Customer Inspiration - John and Deanna's beautiful, from new to old, china cabinet story!

When John and Deanna stopped in at Jubilee Furniture a couple of weeks ago, they really didn't think they'd find anything since they were looking for something pretty specific. They were so sure we wouldn't have what they wanted that neither of them brought in their wallets! Can you tell where this story is going? You're right! They did find a beautiful piece, but I'm getting ahead of myself, so let's back track a bit.

John and Deanna will soon be receiving John's grandmother's beautiful old dining room table and chairs, but Grandma is keeping the matching china cabinet. Knowing they would not be able to find an exact match to the antique table, they were simply looking for something that would compliment it. After a quick glance, they walked right by a very contemporary looking china cabinet we had in the store. As they shared with me what they were looking for I suggested they circle back and see if it might work. The clean lines, gorgeous wood, beveled glass and mirrored back might make a nice backdrop for the antique table and chairs - didn't they think? At that point I left them to mull it over (no one likes a pushy sales person - even a friendly one like me!). John asked me for a screwdriver to see about removing the hardware and after more discussion they decided to take it.


(in place at John and Deanna's home still with the original hardware)

The rest of the story goes like this. Once they got the piece home and removed the original hardware, John and Deanna remembered a box of old hardware they had in their garage - sorted through it, cleaned up the pieces and - wonders never cease - they fit PERFECTLY in the china cabinet!



The old hardware "aged" the china cabinet and will, I've no doubt, make a gorgeous companion to Grandma's dining table and chairs!



A beautiful ending to a beautiful Jubilee Furniture purchase - wouldn't you agree, dear reader?!

Do you have your own Jubilee Furniture story you want to tell? If so, email me (sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org) with the details and photos.

Take care and I'll see you back here Friday with my weekly update post (but I'm telling you now we have amazing donations coming in this week - so make plans to head out to the store either Friday 1 to 8 or Saturday 9 to 4!).

Blessings!

Customer Inspiration - my family room

Hello and welcome to this week's customer's inspiration! I know LOTS of my customers are in the process of taking photos of their fabulous Jubilee Furniture finds and emailing me (sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org) as I'm writing this (hint, hint) - but until their emails come through I'll show you how wonderful the things I've purchased from the store look in my family room. Remember, the point of customer inspiration Tuesday is to show how terrific Jubilee Furniture furniture looks in your home - whether you've made any changes to it or not. Couldn't be simpler and a number of people have mentioned how much they've enjoyed these posts.

So without further ado, welcome to my family room!

One wall in the room is filled with built-ins and both the retro metal lamp (with yellow shade) and the cardinal artwork (it's actually a place mat) were purchased from the store. There were two identical lamps and I bought both of them and my husband uses one in his office in Chicago.

Here's another metal lamp which I bought at the store and the quilted throw is also a Jubilee Furniture purchase (we normally don't have stuff like the throw in the store, but occasionally we do - remember our mantra? - you never know what you might find at Jubilee Furniture!). The photo to the right gives you a better view of the room to understand the floor plan. The stairs lead up to our entryway (it's a split level home). Lamps are often overlooked at the store - they're sort of scattered around and often need new shades - but are priced really cheaply and well worth the cost to replace the shade (and sometimes the shades are just fine, thank you very much!).

The artwork in the photo on the left is from the store and both the TV and the coffee table the TV is on were purchased from Jubilee. The TV is a Sony rear-projection model that I paid $100 for at Christmas and we did recently have to buy a new lamp (to the tune of $125) - but it's a great TV. The coffee table/TV stand I purchased about two months ago (we had the TV in a different room) and I'm thinking about painting it, but am not sure what color. Orange? Black? Thoughts? There isn't a lot of color in the room - and actually like it that way - but would love to do something fun with the TV table.


Just another view of the room.

I'm considering replacing the sofa, chair and ottoman with a large sectional - if the right one, at the right price ever shows up at the store (would be nice to have additional seating in the room - only four can sit comfortably) - but it's fine for now.

And that, dear reader, is a look at how some pieces from Jubilee Furniture look in my family room!

I hope you're doing well!

Until Friday (I promise lots of photos to make up for being off last weekend!)!

Customer Inspiration - John and Judy's home!

Hello and welcome to John and Judy's lovely home! As missionaries returning from Spain, John and Judy relocated to DuPage County with no home and no furniture. Thankfully, they found the perfect house quickly and then found Jubilee Furniture and their furniture needs were also quickly solved (well, over three or four weeks - faithfully checking the blog and then spending a lot of time in the store with tape measure and a list of needs - that is!). One of the things I love about working at the store is getting to know - a little - my customers and I've very much enjoyed getting to know John, Judy and their daughter, Alyssa. Amazing people. So, when they were in again on Saturday and mentioned practically their whole house was furnished with Jubilee Furniture furniture - I asked if they would take a few photos and email me so I could showcase their home in my Tuesday "customer inspiration" segment - and they graciously agreed!

So, let's take a look at their shaping-up-very-nicely-if-I-do-say-so-myself home!


I love the colonial style of this lighted china cabinet! It's interesting to me that more often than not when a couple is purchasing furniture from Jubilee both parties are invested in making each selection and that was certainly true in John and Judy's case. Every purchase was made jointly with both of them looking at each piece of furniture from every angle and considering the cost of purchase and getting it home before making a final decision. This piece looks wonderful in their dining room!


Here's Alyssa lying on her full-size bed - the head board and frame were just purchased on Saturday from the store and Alyssa got to pick them out! I love the color of Alyssa's room and think the wood and iron head board looks great! Not to mention how lovely Alyssa looks too!


Their family room is ready for TV night or an overnight guest since the sofa is a sleeper and the rocker/recliner looks like a perfect place to nap (ooops, can you tell I'm having a "fatigue fit" as my grandmother used to say?). You know I'm a plaid girl so am loving the sofa!

The sofa, chair and end table were all purchased from Jubilee and look great in John and Judy's living room. I especially like the fabric color with their wood floors!

We don't often get outdoor furniture donated but when we do it usually goes fast and that's the case with the four chairs J & J purchased. They already had the table and interestingly the chairs were donated without a table - so you might say it was a match made in heaven! The cheery yellow mum, comfy, bouncy chairs and the lovely weather we've been having makes this deck - I imagine - a great gathering place to unwind at the end of the day!

Since there appear to be a few "holes" left to fill at John and Judy's place I'm thinking they might continue to regularly stop in at Jubilee Furniture - which makes me smile since I always like seeing 'em (bring Alyssa too!)!

John ended his email by writing, "Jubilee has been a tremendous blessing for us as we set up housekeeping here in the US on a limited budget." Ahhh, how sweet is that?!

Have you purchased something from the store that you could take a photo of and email me at sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org so I might share on a Tuesday in the near future? If so, that would be great! Though we work hard staging the furniture each week in the showroom - bottom line it's an old warehouse with awful lighting and no windows and things just look better in your home and it's fun to see them there.

Thus ends another customer inspiration, dear reader!

Take care!

Customer Inspiration - Mandy's amazing retro apartment!

Greetings and welcome to Mandy's super cool apartment which is brimming with fabulous furniture that she purchased from Jubilee Furniture! Mandy is the perfect example of what semi-regular browsing at the store will net - since her shopping has happened slowly over the last year or so. And she's not done yet - thankfully! - she writes "There are still a couple of rooms in our apartment, like my office, that I haven't acquired a Jubilee piece for yet. All in good time..."

Let's begin our tour...

Though I love this cabinet (it's the liquor cabinet in an odd corner of the kitchen), it's the lamp which was purchased from Jubilee. It looks almost identical to the one I bought recently from the store and have in my bedroom - but Mandy's has a better shade than mine. Mandy emailed me, "The lamp is a gem...It adds nice ambient light when we have dinner parties."

The maroon wing back in Mandy's library (she writes, "if you can call it that") is where "my boyfriend loves to read every night." Though Mandy is hoping to reupholster the chair, "he'd be perfectly fine with it if we don't reupholster this piece, but the maroon is really not doing it for me." I actually don't mind the color - especially like it with that super fun sunny yellow library card holder which I love and I also like the ottoman (neither - alas - were purchased from Jubilee but that's okay). I can see why it would be a wonderful place to put your feet up and dig into a great book (speaking of great books - have you read The Help by Kathryn Stockett? It's set in Jackson, Mississippi in the late 1950s/early 1960s and is written in three different women's voices. It's a riveting read about black maids and their white employers.)

One thing Mandy writes is, "Had I known in my early days of Jubilee shopping that there is no need to be hasty in your shopping and if you wait long enough the perfect piece will turn up, I would never have bought two chairs I want to reupholster." Thanks for the good reminder, Mandy!

This chair isn't one that Mandy wants to reupholster since it's perfect - in all it's orangeyness - just the way it is! It's in Mandy's bedroom and I love the earring tree on the dresser next to it - can you see it?

Though the bookcase with color-coordinated books is the show stopper in this photo - it's the coffee table that Mandy purchased from Jubilee and it's amazing too! She writes: "And the coffee table is great too (really, have I gotten anything I haven't loved at Jubilee?). Obviously the photo of it isn't recent - I don't leave my Christmas decorations up all year. ;) But I took it last December and I liked this photo, so I figured I'd just include it." And glad I am that you did, Mandy!

I left my personal favorite Jubilee Furniture purchase that Mandy made to last - this pink retro chair - which, if I'm remembering correctly swivels and rocks! It's Mandy's favorite too, "It's totally unique and fits great in our living room. That little corner is one of my favorites in our apartment. It sits right next to an old doctor's cabinet I got in Ohio, where I house my Alice in Wonderland collection." How cool is this?!

Speaking of cool, Mandy ends her email with these words, "Thanks for being so awesome Susan. Seriously everyone I have gone to Jubilee with has commented on how cool you are. And all of the volunteers are really sweet too. I spread the word as much as I can!!"

Since I am probably the single most UN-COOL person you will ever meet - I just might have to frame Mandy's email and highlight her comments!

Wow - wasn't that a wonderful glimpse into Mandy's place?! What a great collection of different styles which come together in a refreshing, beautiful way! Thank you, Mandy!

Have you purchased something from the store that you'd be willing to take a photo of and email to me at sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org? If so, YOU might be showcased next Tuesday!

Customer Inspiration - Karen and John's home

Welcome to this week's customer inspiration and Karen and John's lovely home! Karen, John and their three adorable children recently moved to Michigan but before leaving DuPage County purchased a number of pieces from Jubilee Furniture to take with them. So, let's take a look at what they've done with what they bought!


entertainment centers are quickly becoming the newest "white elephant" and yet are often very nice pieces of furniture which provide a lot of storage - if you can see past using them only for storing your television - and that's exactly what Karen and John have done. By adding crates and boards the piece has been adapted to meet their needs (and keeps things looking tidy behind the closed doors). Karen writes: "We bought this media cabinet particularly for an interest piece in our living room and to house our stereo amp and some photo albums (we've not yet hung anything on the walls, hence the pile of stuff on top)."


both the futon and the floor lamp are from Jubilee - though Karen did purchase a new lamp shade (again, if you can see past the often battered shades on our lamps - you'll find some really nice lighting). I love the pillows Karen's added to the futon and how they warm up the neutral color of the futon fabric

both the table and four wooden chairs are from Jubilee Furniture (two fabric chairs are from IKEA) and John did refinish the table top but, "we left the legs rough, for that instant weathered look. The table and chairs were not an original set, but they look great together!" Yes, Karen - they do look great together and John did a nice job refinishing the table top - it looks fantastic!

Karen mentioned she didn't even get downstairs to snap photos of the rest of the furniture they purchased from Jubilee Furniture. What with moving to a new state and having three young children to get settled, I'm impressed she took photos and emailed me at all!

Okay everyone - if Karen can take some photos and email me - there's no excuse for the rest of you! Email me photos of how your Jubilee Furniture purchases have enhanced, changed, prettified your home and I'll share every Tuesday.

Next Tuesday, we'll take a peek into Mandy's fun/retro apartment!

Karen ends her email by writing, "You had just what we needed at just the right time." How cool is that! Thanks for sharing, Karen!

And so, dear reader, that's this week's "customer inspiration." I'll close with these excellent words from Dr. Seuss: "Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one."

Blessings!

Customer Inspiration - Megan's place!

Hello and welcome to this week's customer inspiration where we showcase something someone has purchased from Jubilee Furniture in their home. My goal is to provide a "customer inspiration" every Tuesday (and if you don't send me your photos, I'll drag you through my house - and yes, that's a threat!). So email me at sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org with either before and after photos (if you've refinished an item purchased from the store) or simply photos of how wonderful the Jubilee Furniture furniture looks in your space! Couldn't be easier and you know it's tons of fun to peek into others' homes!

This week Megan graciously sent me several photos of a number of different things she recently purchased from Jubilee Furniture. Megan is a very creative individual and you can see some of her work/art at http://www.meganleedesigns.com/.


Megan purchased both the white make-up table and the small bench from Jubilee Furniture. The bench was a gold chrome piece in questionable condition (the price was one dollar - which tells you exactly how "nice" it was to start!) and I love how a coat of paint and new fabric turned it into a charming place to sit! Though the make-up table was super cute to begin with - I love all the things Megan has added to the top! Can you see how she used branches to hang necklaces from? How clever is that!?


I'll be the first to admit when Megan handed me this burro's head to buy, I thought the piece was weird - but I totally LOVE it on this shelf with some artwork and a small vase with flowers! Megan - I hope you've given your little donkey a name!

Megan told me she's planning on reupholstering the two matching chairs which currently have purple fabric on 'em (and don't you love the clean lines of the oak arms?) - but I think they look good just the way they are. I also love, love, love the funky retro coffee table - another Jubilee Furniture purchase. If you look in the patch of sunlight you can see Megan's dog!

This final piece from Jubilee Furniture is truly one of my favorite pieces of all time. I showcased it on the blog (July 30th post titled: Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy, days of summer...) and mentioned the amazing beadboard. Doesn't it look great in Megan's dining room? I love the liquor cart (Megan said she picked that up from Craig's List) and the mis-matched dining table and chairs.

So that's a peek into Megan's beautiful space and how the things she's purchased from Jubilee Furniture have contributed to making the place warm and inviting! Megan also wrote "Its been SO great to be able to support Jubilee and find some wonderful pieces for our home." because she knows the proceeds of everything we sell (minus our expenses) help support the programs and services offered through Outreach Community Ministries (to learn more about Outreach go to our website at http://www.outreachcommunityministries.com/).

Megan, THANK YOU for sending me the photos and allowing us into your lovely home!

And to all - God's peace and blessings to you!

Customer Inspiration - my bedroom

Several weeks ago I mentioned I would like to begin to showcase Jubilee Furniture furniture in your home. Either simply how it looks in your space or what creative thing you've done with something you purchased at the store (before and after shots would be great - but not necessary). I asked that you email me at sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org with a brief description and a photo or two (or three or four).

In order to get the ball rolling - and since I've purchased many things from the store over the years - I thought I would show you my bedroom and identify all the Jubilee Furniture treasures in it.

But first I want to share a little about me and used furniture. Until I started working at Jubilee Furniture (fall of '06), I was not a resale shopper. I was a huge sale shopper - never paid full price for anything (or almost anything) - but not a resale shopper, not even garage sales. One of my husband's favorite stories to embarrass me with is from when we were first married (1984) and the two of us stopped at a neighbor's garage sale because I spied four dining room chairs that I wanted to purchase. I don't remember how much they were asking for the chairs, but I offered them more than the asking price because I thought they were marked too low. Now I know a lot of Jubilee Furniture shoppers are avid garage sale shoppers, but I have a really hard time walking up someone's driveway, pawing through their stuff and then bartering for a lower price on a pair of brass candlesticks they've priced 50 cent. I'm sure we could unpack that and determine all sorts of weird thing about me - but let's not.

How surprising that I've gotten off course! Well, my aversion to resale shopping all changed when I started working at Jubilee Furniture (though I still don't like garage sales)! Man alive, do we have some amazing things for sale! So, over the last four years I've purchased quite a bit from the store. I do believe you could find a piece of Jubilee Furniture furniture (or artwork) in every room in my house! But where you'll find the most is in my bedroom - so I've taken some photos to show you how my Jubilee Furniture finds look in that room.

I should also tell you that I am one of the least crafty/handy people you will ever meet - so when I buy something it pretty much will show up in my home exactly as it looked leaving the store.

Okay - enough blabbing, welcome to my bedroom!

Michael and I have never had a headboard but when I saw this retro framed print at Jubilee Furniture I though it would look great over our bed and it does! I also purchased the trunk at the foot of our bed from Jubilee.

We recently turned the other corner of our fairly large bedroom into a reading/TV watching corner (the desk that used to be in that corner was donated to Jubilee Furniture, of course!) and both the chairs, the table in between them and the lamp on the table were purchased from the store. The cabinet the small TV is sitting on is also from the store and the bookcase is too! Some of the baskets on the shelves are from Jubilee Furniture as well (hello? - you never know what you might find at the furniture store - how many times do I have to tell you that?!).

Would our bedroom ever be showcased in a design magazine? No, but it's fun to see what Michael and I have done with some of the pieces we've purchased over the years from Jubilee Furniture.

I know most design blogs would provide sources for everything in a photo - and I can do that for most of what you see - but will wait and see if anyone really wants to know where something, other than what I purchased from Jubilee Furniture, is from.

So, what about your Jubilee Furniture treasure? How does it look in your home? I'd love to see photos and hear how your space has been enhanced/redefined by something you bought at the store.

Super bored? Count how many times the words "Jubilee Furniture" appear in this post - just for the heck of it! I counted 14 but I might have missed one or two!

Gorgeous day in DuPage County - hope it is where you are too!

Blessings!