I get many people asking what the shop name means, some of you already know. It certainly would not give you a hint of what we do, it doesn't sound like anything to do with re-furbishing or re-purposing. So what does it mean?
Nancy named her shop 'Next Act" it has a two fold meaning. First it's because She and I just ended jobs we have had for years. I was with Fabric Town for over 20. First as Barb's manager and then as the owner. Nancy was the HR/Manager of a Law Firm for 10 years. The last time she worked retail was when she was still in high school. So this is our "Next Act". The second meaning, because we take in old, previously loved pieces of furniture and home decor.. patch em', prep em', paint em' and keep them out of land fills. They move onto their "Next Act" as well.
It almost feels like working for the Humane Society or Last Hope. We take in stray, unwanted pieces. We clean them up and give them an appearance that makes them desirable and then put them up for adoption. It gives us pleasure to know that someone likes the work we do enough to take it to their home.
In the past 2 to 3 weeks we have really been busy. To say I have been painting non-stop would be an understatement. Nancy has been working on the "search and rescue" part.
I try to take photos of everything we makeover or usually get a shot as they are leaving the shop. I just wanted to share with you these pictures. These are some of the pieces that found new residences in the past 2 - 3 weeks.
I also do custom orders, and they aren't shown yet. I will post them when their finished. It's hard to believe all the items that we have sold. On New Years weekend we re-did the front of the shop. I posted the photo... you may remember that it looked like Spring. Well, with the exception of the Blue and Cream hutch, the entire section has sold. We are now painting like buggers to get more to fill it.
One of the fun things, repeat customers. We have so many that are excited about their first purchase and return with friends. Their enthusiasm is contagious and we love the fact that they are so happy with our work. I can honestly say, that when you're going on a 12 hour day.. covered with paint and tired.... that's the kind of thing that keeps you going and lovin' it.
They say that your best advertising is Word of Mouth. Well, it's true. When someone comes in and says they were told about us by a friend or relative..we know it's working. Advertising is expensive, but good customer service and a nice product at a reasonable price goes along way in getting the word out.
We're constantly hearing that our prices are so low. My comment is that we want to sell the items, not own them forever. If we purchase them reasonably then it's easy to turn around and sell them that way. We aren't claiming to have Schneiderman's quality. Most are vintage and we paint right over the digs, dips and gouges. That's known as character and we don't charge extra for it.
We don't get to many of the other shops that do the same type of restoration. Mostly because they're open only once a month and we're working on those days. When we first started we did go to a few just to see what other shops have. We looked around and decided that when it comes down to it,we like our prices and style. We aren't trying to compete with the funky junk look, or copy someones shop. We want to be a little of this and that but mostly the furniture.
We are adding gift items, and other things to the mix in the next few weeks. Eventually, we would like to have a nice selection of handbags and fun jewelry along with a special line of Photography by "Where's Q?". We'll keep you posted on all the new developments.
I hope you liked seeing all the things that have come and gone at Next Act in the past 3 weeks.
There was more but I forgot to get a shot of then before they departed.
This little round table was the second item I painted when just learning. It's still one of my favorites.
After a quick Milk Paint lesson, these two bar stools are heading home with the paint to be re-done. Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint is doing well. We have had several workshops. We just filled the January 10th workshop and still have a couple openings in the January 24th. We also do private workshops for groups of 3 - 6. If you'd like to learn to "Play" like I do... let us know. It's always a great time when it's a group of friends.
That's all for now. I feel this was long winded but wanted to let you know how things are going. A very big Thank You to all the new owners of the furniture shown. I hope you enjoy them for years to come.
Patti
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