It's A Burberry Patch!

Now that I only work in the Boutique a few days a month, I always feel like I'm walking into a brand new store. And yesterday was no exception. Only I didn't have time to take a closer gander at the new merchandise covering almost every possible, hangable square inch of our little shop because even MORE consignment arrivals were pouring through the door!

One consignor brought in her 25 potential pieces and, with a wave of her hand, said: whatever you don't want just donate to charity. Well, there wasn't a single piece we were willing to part with! Several pieces of Burberry were among the oh-so-fun drop off, and I've posted some pictures below for you!

p.s. there were 2 signature Burberry scarves, but one of them sold before I could even take a picture!

The scarf that already sold was the same signature plaid, and was made of merino wool. But this Burberry cape is still available as per this post!

An adorable, red plaid Burberry scarf used as a decorative belt for this classic Burberry skirt!

My personal favorite: (if only I could fit into it) this quilted Burberry vest

SURPRISE - Jessica's Surprise Wedding Shower!

We had a manager's meeting last night, which was also going to serve as a surprise wedding shower for Finders Keepers Fashions' manager: Jessica. Our fearless leader is getting married next month. And while she didn't want a lot of fuss made over her big day, we couldn't let her get married without a single shower! Here are a few pictures from the fun event:

I think she wanted me to stop taking pictures so she could actually cut the cake...

A beautiful cake decorated to match Jessi's wedding invitations! The cake was done by our favorite bakery: Sweet -n- Sinful in Avondale Estates!

It took Jessi until after the shower was over to realize that the cake had been designed to match her invitations! Wedding planning is stressful!

A shower is not complete without an inside joke - or, in this case, a bottle of detergent.

Dana and her daughters were a surprise arrival for Jessi. Dana will be officiating the ceremony!

Jessi read every card! Etiquette points for the bride to be!

Such a classic Jessi-face, I just had to include it!

Dana with her wonderful daughter

Congrats to Betsy on 20 years with Finders Keepers!

Furniture and decor comes and goes - but one face remains ever present at Finders Keepers Furnishings: Betsy Johns, the manager of one of the best furniture consignment shops in Atlanta. This month marks her 20th anniversary with the Finders Keepers company. It's no secret that Betsy works HARD - but I learned the story of her history with Finders Keepers yesterday during a surprise - congratulations we threw for her during a managers meeting last night.

20 years ago, Betsy worked full time for Atlanta Dental - and not just full time, but 60 hours a week. Bonnie, the owner of Finders Keepers, had recently purchased the little, 600 square foot space from its original owner, and was quickly becoming busier than one person could handle. Betsy began working on Saturdays in the little store to help with the rush of incoming merchandise and new customers. So that's how she started: tacking on eight more hours to her 60 hour work week.

A few years later, the store hosted a couple of "late night" shopping days a week. Betsy would work at Atlanta Dental during the day, and then drive to the store to help them close from 6pm - 8pm. And she maintained her Saturdays with the store, of course.

Six years ago, Betsy left her Corporate America job with Atlanta Dental and came on full-time for Finders Keepers. Her eye for staging quickly created a buzz in the consignment world. The fantastic furnishings and decor come to life through her artful combinations. Our furniture store has even drawn the interest of TV and movie set producers who are filming in Atlanta.

So Betsy, here's to 20 years! We couldn't have done it without you.

Surprise!

She's taking a trip to Nashville to celebrate! (She'll jump at any chance to put on her cowgirl boots)

We're Hosting a Book Signing for Barb Tobias!

We're so excited to be a stop on Barb Tobias's southern leg of her new book tour! She'll be hanging out with us in our store on September 11th from 9:30am - 11am to sign books as well as speaking during her time with us.

Barb Tobias, America’s “Thrift Talk” Diva, is an admitted thrift-aholic…
a veteran radio and TV personality who has crisscrossed the nation in

her search for fabulously frugal finds.

Barb is a professional speaker and inspiring coach who renovates lives, homes and wardrobes by sticking her curious little nose into other people’s
“thrifty business.” After a lifetime of transforming trash into treasure, this savvy mistress of thrift shares her secrets to finding deals, repurposing
before tossing, reconstructing the tattered and renewing things others view as passé in her recent release…Tossed & Found. Her “tell all” book is not only a journey of personal transformation, but teaches a newly frugal nation how to purchase, purge and profit from thrift.
 
Thrifty Living…
Barb Tobias has spent a lifetime transforming trash into treasure. She is
a master at creating stunning interiors, dressing clients like supermodels
and turning the forgotten into the unforgettable—for a fraction of the cost.
· Decorating the DivaWay

· The Frugal Fashionista

Business…
An astute businesswoman, Barb Tobias has walked the competitive walk
in both the entrepreneurial and corporate worlds. After successfully
running three businesses, she was wooed by the corporate world and
embarked on a seven-year stint as the trainer, coach andmanager of a
top-notch sales teamfor web-basedmarketing systems. She teaches how
to dream big, break through self-limiting beliefs and blast away
procrastination.
· Thrifty Business…Big Business on a Budget

· The Entrepreneur…Unleashed

Motivation and Lifestyle…
Barb has scaled some formidable peaks, visited her share of murky valleys
and, out of necessity, become the Diva of Reinvention. Her experiences
are the tools that now support those who want to build remarkable,
fulfilling lives.
· So YouMissed the Boat…Buy Another Ticket
· After theMotivationWears Off…What Then?
 
 

Learn More at www.thrifttalkdiva.com

These are a few of our favorite things...

My project this week is to collect 5 images combined from the three stores for an online brochure on http://www.wheretraveler.com/ for Finders Keepers stores. That meant going through the incredibly large archives of pictures to find five that could command on their own, and played well with the others. And it also meant getting sucked into the years of pictures like a scrapbook. It's so fun to reminisce about the development of the store, its culture, its inventory, its staff, its customers, and its consignors. It's practically a living, breathing thing: a house to its own heartbeat. So here are a few of our favorite inventory pictures. Enjoy!

Take a Vacation From the Mall - Summer Clearance Starts TOMORROW!

Two is Better Than One! And this applies in TWO ways:
1) Summer Clearance starts at BOTH of our clothing stores - Finders Keepers Boutique AND Finders Keepers Fashions - TOMORROW! As soon as those doors open, all of our summer merchandise will be marked 50% OFF the original price!

2) When prices have been cut in half, you get to buy twice as much.... right? (Well, that's what I'm going to tell my husband when he eyeballs the stuffed shopping bags I'm sure I'll bring home tomorrow...)
We've got really *really* cute summer inventory still hanging on our racks. And it's so easy to use your summer wardrobe in the fall months. A sundress with a cute blazer and boots is a simple, chic way to make your closet go the distance. Not sure how to pull it together? Our store associates will be happy to help!

Take a gander at a few of our summer goodies:
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

Feel the Breeze...

... of our really super awesome new fan! Our store has a lot of great qualities: amazing prices, a huge selection, new inventory every single day.... but our air conditioning has its work cut out for it. It a nutshell: even if it's cranked down to 60 degrees, it can still get pretty toasty in there. So we're trying a new tactic: the addition of a really, really enormous fan. And a little shout-out here to our very favorite electrician: Bray Electrical Services, who installed the closest thing I've ever seen to a space ship turbine.... if space ships have turbines...

Feet on the Ground, Head in the Clouds

Imaginary friends, a plastic playhouse becomes our own castle, brides, queens, mothers, astronauts, doctors, veterinarians, cowgirls. From our tender, toddler minds could grow the most astounding adventures. A treasure chest of costumes and dress-up clothes could carry us a world away in the blink of an eye. As we grow older we learn how to balance our ever-present imaginations with the responsibilities of our daily lives. And maybe fashion is an outlet for the oft-denied imagination, teaming with don't-you-want-tos. Some outfits make us feel capable, daring. Others make us feel protected and hidden. Our wardrobes are our grown-up treasure chests. If we let them, they can carry us away, even for just a moment...

Boutique Girl: Heather (pictures by Carrie)

On Heather:

Dress: Karen Millen $140
Handbag: Louis Vuitton $488
Boots: Nine West $49
Scarf: Pashmina $28
Earrings: $21
Bracelet: $7

Finders Keepers Fall Bag Sale 2010 - Round 1!

Round 1? Yep! Does that imply a Round 2? Of COURSE! For those of you who have never rushed a Bag Sale Event, I'll give you the run down: inventory in our clothing stores expires after a certain amount of time. So we take it off the sales floor and either donate it directly to a charity, or we save up a stock pile for our Bag Sale event - which is also for charity. But instead of giving them clothing we raise money from the sale of the expired clothes and we send 100% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities: Refugee Resettlement and Immigration Services of Atlanta (RRISA).
The best part, here's how the money is raised: We take all of the stockpiled expired merchandise from the whole season (and from both stores) and hang it up in the parking lot of our location in Avondale Estates - Finders Keepers Fashions. You get to take our medium-size shopping bags and stuff them as full as you can get them for $10 a bag - and you can stuff as many bags as you want. 100% of the money raised go DIRECTLY to RRISA - we don't keep a single dime. This bag sale raised $2200 for RRISA's work with the Haitian Medical Evacuees from the January earthquake disaster in Haiti. That $2200 brings us to a total of over $10000 raised so far since the January earthquake.
 
Want a peek at the madness? We've posted a video below of a short clip from the Bag Sale held last Saturday. Our next Bag Sale will be Saturday, September 25th!

Finders Keepers Bag Sale - Fall 2010 Round 1

Round 1? Yep! Does that imply a Round 2? Of COURSE! For those of you who have never rushed a Bag Sale Event, I'll give you the run down: inventory in our clothing stores expires after a certain amount of time. So we take it off the sales floor and either donate it directly to a charity, or we save up a stock pile for our Bag Sale event - which is also for charity. But instead of giving them clothing we raise money from the sale of the expired clothes and we send 100% of the proceeds to one of our favorite charities: Refugee Resettlement and Immigration Services of Atlanta (RRISA).


The best part, here's how the money is raised: We take all of the stockpiled expired merchandise from the whole season (and from both stores) and hang it up in the parking lot of our location in Avondale Estates - Finders Keepers Fashions. You get to take our medium-size shopping bags and stuff them as full as you can get them for $10 a bag - and you can stuff as many bags as you want. 100% of the money raised go DIRECTLY to RRISA - we don't keep a single dime. This bag sale raised $2200 for RRISA's work with the Haitian Medical Evacuees from the January earthquake disaster in Haiti. That $2200 brings us to a total of over $10000 raised so far since the January earthquake.

Want a peek at the madness? We've posted a video below of a short clip from the Bag Sale held last Saturday. Our next Bag Sale will be Saturday, September 25th!

It's a Man's World

Not anymore! But combining menswear with your girlie wardrobe can result in a super sexy chic look. As much as I heart skirts, pants and shorts are more functional, especially for us gals about town. Hopping in and out of the car, zipping through the grocery store, picking up or dropping off kids... needless to say, we're busy. And clothes that go the distance make our daily triathlons easier. But that's no reason to sacrifice style. Let's show the boys how it's done...

Boutique Girl: Heather (photography and styling by Carrie)
Shot in Rainbow Groceries on North Decatur Road - we LOVE their hot bar!

On Heather:
Straw handbag J Crew: $17
Scarlett Turquoise shorts with sash, size L: $25
Tory Burch blouse, size 4: $20
Harley Davidson black boots, size 8 1/2: $65
Mizzae black jacket (new), size 1: $37
Silver/Clear flower ring: $12

BEEP BEEP

BEEP*BEEP*BEEP... it's the best sound in the world! What is it, you ask? The alert beeps of a truck backing up to deliver even more beautiful new pieces to Finders Keepers Furnishings. It can be a little daunting sometimes as we frantically look at each other and at the lack of space and think: Where the heck are we going to put all of this incoming furniture? Luckily, we moved record amounts of inventory at the sale last weekend, so we cleaned out tons of room for all of these great new arrivals. It's like a whole new store! You really don't want to miss this week...

Interested? Give us a call: 404-377-1944 or check out our website: http://www.fkconsign.com/.