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1/13/08 -
wow - what an amazing whirlwind the last couple of months have been!
We've been warmly received in our new brick and mortar home in
Lawrenceville! The Christmas season flew by and we met so many great new
people and have converted lots of folks to the "Sparkle Whenever
Possible" philosophy! I am continuing to refine the store and also add
new lines - we have 4 GREAT new lines coming soon and lots of cool new
stuff in our current lines on the way too!! In the spring we will begin
our Saturday / Sunday sidewalk sales where we put GREAT deals out on the
balcony area. We will also begin having some trunk shows with various
artists! Sign up for our newsletter to keep up with everything new!
11/21/07
- NOW OPEN!!!
It's been a
long, long road but we have finally been given permission to open our
beautiful new store! Check out the most recent photos
here and
here!
Click here
for directions if you are unfamiliar with downtown Lawrenceville.
We are fully
stocked and ready for your holiday shopping needs! Come see us and let
us know what you think!!
10/16/07 -
Long time no update! Well, we have had a few unexpected surprises and
setbacks but we are working through them and hope to have our work
completed in the next 2-3 weeks and we'll open quickly after that. The
garden area in front of the shop is almost complete and oh so pretty!
The first butterflies have already moved in to their new home! The
exterior of the building is also completed and looks really nice! It is
truly amazing to see the overall transformation of this building!! Check
out some new photos
here
and here
9/21/07 -
Lots of work has been completed this week. Monday the walls for my
office and mechanical closet were installed. The electrical for those
areas was completed by Tuesday. The drywall can not all be done until
the HVAC and plumbing rough in is complete and all is inspected so we
are on hold again waiting for this to be completed before we can move
forward with drywall completion and painting. The HVAC Is going in now
and will probably be complete today.
Outside,
they are installing the steps leading up to my space and should have
this complete today. They poured some more concrete yesterday and have a
few more forms set up for today. The garden area is moving along and
I'll bet they'll be landscaping next week. The city of Lawrenceville
is doing some work on the water main to allow our building to tap into
it. This is major stuff and has required Crogan and Chestnut to be
partially closed for days. It looks to me like they might have it all
completed today but it's hard to tell.
They are
beginning to paint and prepare for the stucco exterior as well. There is
still a LOT of work to do for the building to get a completion CO but we
are moving. September is obviously off the table so now I am hoping hard
to be OPEN prior to the Fall Leaves festival on Oct 20. Stay tuned and
check out
the latest pics here...
9/16/07 -
Have I mentioned that patience is not one of my many virtues? I am
trying to learn and I suppose this is all really good character
building... but I am ready to be done building character (and my store!)
now!! Actually, things are moving - just not nearly as quickly as I had
hoped a few weeks ago. There is still a lot to do on the exterior
of the building but the stonework that has been done is simply gorgeous!
I also now have a door on my unit and all the windows are in, though not
yet fully sealed. I finally received my permit from the city to begin
building out on 9/7. We were originally told that the drywall on the
walls would be going up in my unit last week but that was not to be. We
were waiting on this to take place before we built the remaining walls
but I was finally told on Thurs that I would need to begin the final
couple of walls that my contractor is building and all the rough
plumbing, electrical and HVAC would have to go into the unit before
they would be allowed to put the remaining drywall up. Okey dokey! So my
walls should be up tomorrow (Monday) and I anticipate the rough
electrical and plumbing that is within my control to be complete midweek
at the latest. I don't know when the HVAC will go in and so we'll be
waiting again. I rescheduled the carpet installation once already and it
looks like we'll have to reschedule this again as well. A lot will
depend on the HVAC installation and the inspections, then the speed of
the drywall guys. In keeping with my "glass half full" mentality,
however, I still have hopes of being through this part fairly quickly
barring anymore communication issues and unforeseen red tape. The major
hold up for us opening going forward will be the completion of the main
building which the city will have to sign off on before I can get my
cert of occupancy. Let's all cross our fingers!
Click here
for the latest pics
In the
meantime, I have the slatwall (grooved wall board used for hanging
shelving and hooks, etc. in a retail space), glass shelving and lots of
other equipment being delivered on Thurs the 20th to my home. This
should complete the filling up of my garage which is already half full
with my fixtures, equipment, sink, refrig, lighting and so many other
things! Most of my inventory has now been entered into my inventory
system and most everything has been tagged and is ready for display. I
have even purchased some lovely fall decorations in anticipation of
opening in early Oct.
8/30/07 - We're really starting to groove now on our new space!! The
roof is complete and the drywall ceiling is in. The walls and remaining
drywall for the space (before I begin my build out) are also going up!
They are doing a lot of work on the exterior and the landscaping as
well. We should be on schedule to begin my build out of the space I am
leasing next Thurs or Fri. I have purchased all my lights, the carpet
installation is arranged and so much is beginning to happen at once!
Click
here for the latest pics - things are
changing daily now! As it is beginning to take shape, I am so excited to
see what a pretty building we are going to be in! The landscaped
"butterfly garden" out front is going to be just gorgeous and a great
atmosphere for outdoor dining in the restaurant below!
8/21/07 - The
building is coming along but there have been many many delays along the
way. The concrete balcony has been poured and
the window frames are in the building. The glass should be coming this
week. The remainder of the roof and overhang is going up as well. The
base for the serpentine wall for the landscaped area has also been
completed. We should be pretty close to beginning the interior work,
which should go much more quickly now that the structural issues have
been taken care of. Check out page
4 and
5 of
the location photos for the newest shots.
The downtown
area continues to grow and gain popularity and this is great for us! I
have also met our soon to be new neighbor, Dorothy Riddle of
Hair Riddles Salon. They will
be two doors down from us and are a full service salon with a full staff
of very experienced and terrific folks. I couldn't ask for a better
"co-tenant" and we both can't wait to get our respective shops open!
7/12/07
My daily mantra is currently, " I will be patient.
Everything happens for a reason. All good things take time. I will be
patient." Seriously, things are moving along, albeit still
more slowly than I would have hoped.
Click here for the most recent pics
of the building that will one
day become the home of Sparkle!. The balcony is now up and this opens
the door for a lot of other work to be done. The windows and door areas
have been opened and so it finally is beginning to look like a retail
building. I believe the next two weeks will see some major changes! We
are hoping to begin our build out of the space in a few weeks and it
won't be much longer after that that we will be able to open!
Our home is
FILLED with fixtures, decor, and more and more inventory as my wonderful
purchases come in and my own Sparkle! original line continues to grow.
I've picked out colors, carpeting, light fixtures, paint and all the
necessary decor. While there are still a few more items that I need to
purchase, we've pretty much worked out the layout of the store and the
overall look of it. I think the end result is going to be a very fun,
pretty store with amazing items that you will be hard pressed to find
anywhere else in this area!
6/16/07 Well, Rome wasn't built in a day, I'm told, and neither
has the Honest Alley Exchange been! Still, things are coming along,
slowly to be sure, but steadily. I will not be open by the 4th of July,
sadly, but hopefully I will have my grand opening in late July. I saw
the plans for the landscaping / park in front of the building - it is
going to be simply lovely! Some of the concrete walkways have been
poured, the electrical and part of the HVAC are in and soon the
balconies and metal overhangs will be up. Once this happens and the
windows are installed it will really start looking like my storefront!
I am now in
the midst of picking out colors, fixtures, decor and all the little
things that will make this a very special shop. I also had a chance to
go to Market last week and have ordered some AMAZING artisan lines of
jewelry. I am also hard at work making lots and lots of "Sparkle
Original" jewelry that you will not be able to buy in any other
store!This store will truly be special and you will find things there
that you just won't find most places. I'm so excited and yet... still a
long way to the finish line!
I'll update
the picture page soon!
5/8/07
It's finally official. The lease is signed on our new space at the
Honest Alley Exchange! I got a chance to visit again yesterday and lots
of progress is being made! Walls are going up inside the main part of
the building and the grading in the garden and dining deck area is being
completed. While we are still hoping to be open in late June (or at
least in time for the 4th of July!) it is possible it won't happen until
mid July. Still, it WILL be happening and that is the most important
thing!!
Click
here for some pictures of the construction progress along the way...
4/27/07
I got to visit my new location this week! It is going to be SO great!!!
We will be located in the Honest Alley Exchange in downtown
Lawrenceville just across from the new parking garage! You can learn
more about Honest Alley and see what the building will look like
here. Our spot will be
in the Garden Overlook section on the far left as you look at the
building! The folks that own and manage the Honest Alley Exchange are
fabulous people and all dedicated to making downtown Lawrenceville a
fabulous dining and shopping destination.
As
construction continues we'll post photos so you can follow our
progress!!!
4/17/07
We love our online customers, but it has been my dream to have a jewelry
boutique in downtown Lawrenceville, Ga. It looks like my dream is going
to be a reality soon! We are finalizing arrangements for a pretty
downtown space - once it's a done deal, we'll post all the details here!
Right now it looks like we'll be opening in early Summer - June is
likely. Just like the online store, the retail location will carry a mix
of handcrafted items from various artists as well as sterling silver and
boutique style jewelry and accessories. Of course, the web site will continue and we will keep providing great items at fantastic prices!
Here is some
info on my hometown of Lawrenceville, Ga... More info to be posted
soon!!!
Lawrenceville Properties
History of the Square
Honest Alley Exchange
Lawrenceville tourism and
trade
Residential Living |
