Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Tuesday's Customer Inspiration - Sarah's beautiful desk!

Hello and welcome to Tuesday customer inspiration where I showcase something a customer has purchased from Jubilee Furniture and either how fabulous it looks in their home exactly as it looked leaving the store - or - how it's been transformed into something even more fabulous (which truly boggles the mind if you think about it).  Either way the point is to inspire you to think about used furniture in a new and creative way which in turn might motive you to walk into a local resale store (preferable Jubilee Furniture) where often the proceeds of what's sold is helping to support programs and services through some great organization (like Outreach Community Ministries) which in turn is often helping those most in need in your community.  Got it?  Good!  Let's begin!

Here's Sarah's email:

Hi.  My husband and I picked up this desk last December.  I never really liked the stain and the knobs didn't match, but it was a great price ($35) and a solid piece of furniture.  With the nice weather I finally got around to painting it and putting new knobs on (from Anthropologie).  I love it now and it works perfectly for my computer and to sew on.



 
Wow!  I love the crisp white paint and the orange flower knobs Sarah used!  What a lovely place to work!

Thanks so much for sending the photos, Sarah!

Have you purchased something from Jubilee Furniture that you'd be willing to take photos of and email me at sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org with the thought of inspiring others?  If so, that would be super!

You might have noticed I didn't have a post last Tuesday.  I didn't have anything to share and I've decided to only write a Tuesday post if I have customer photos to share.  Doesn't mean I don't love you, dear reader!

I hope to see you back here Friday morning for my weekly update!

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Tuesday's customer inspiration - Caroline's rocking rocker!

Caroline's no stranger to either Jubilee Furniture or Tuesday customer inspiration (see for yourself here) so I wasn't surprised when her most recent purchase from the store was tweaked in such a way that made it seriously fun.  Here's her email:

Hi Susan!  Had to send you pictures of my recent acquisition.  I fell in love with this beautiful double wide rocker the moment I saw it on your blog online and when I came in the next day it was still there!  I only changed the cushion fabric to make it more "me."  

It's such a blessing to have a place to buy furniture at reasonable prices and it's a bonus knowing the proceeds go to such a great cause.

Thanks for all your hard work and for your blog that makes shopping fun for the rest of us!

Blessings - Caroline


I LOVE the zebra print with the classic mission style rocker which makes for such an unexpected and fresh pairing!  I got a chuckle out of seeing the Jubilee Furniture pink sold tag in the before photo!  Oh, Caroline - you do know how much I want to live in your home, right?

In case you aren't familiar with the "great cause" Caroline mentioned in her email let me fill you in.  Jubilee Furniture's proceeds are helping to support the programs and services offered through Outreach Community Ministries.  Outreach's mission is to restore hope and provide opportunities to those most in need in DuPage County.

Thank you so much for letting us see how you dialed up the "WOW" on your double rocker, Caroline!

With tons of donation pickups this week - you'll want to head back here Friday morning to get a glimpse of some of the new-to-us stuff the guys are picking up.  My goal is to have my Friday posts ready for your viewing pleasure by 9:00 a.m.!  I've been told by a number of people that if you're a "follower" you aren't getting notification of my posts until much later in the day.  I don't know why and if I need to do something on my end - I can't figure out what (and if you know what I should do, please tell me!).

Take care, dear reader!

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Tuesday's customer inspiration - Luke and Emily's award winning night of the spinning table!

Actually the spinning table was a new character and had only a bit part in the annual Oscar party Luke and Emily have hosted for years.  This year's party was the largest yet with 64 adults and 46 kids (yep, you read that correctly 65 adults and 46 kids PLUS Luke, Emily and their three kids!) in attendance.  The small pine table has a great solid base and the top - for some unknown reason - was designed to spin, like a lazy Susan (on behalf of Susans everywhere I do want to start some type of formal protest again naming something that is highly functional, efficient and sorta cute a lazy Susan) and purchased it from Jubilee just a couple of days before the party when they realized they were short on places to set things.

When one of the kids realized that spinning the top when it held cups full of liquid resulted in flying cups and spraying juice - Luke and Emily might have wished that wasn't one of the table's features but from the photos below - it apparently didn't dampen the party (new character, bit part, flying liquid, dampen the party - am I on a pun roll or what?!).


Luke and Emily and both sets of parents are all regular Jubilee Furniture customers and Luke's dad, Gordon, is a key volunteer without whom we couldn't do what we do (Gordon does everything from help move furniture for the Thursday design team to load merchandise for customers to recycle our broken TVs, empty water bottles and pop cans).

Thanks for a fun peek into the night's festivities, Luke and Emily!

Before I sign off, I also got an email from Monique - another regular Jubilee Furniture customer - with the following plea:

Susan - I bought this chair a while ago at Jubilee Furniture and STILL haven not re-upholstery it.  Aside from the funkadelic print, it's covered in what can only be described as Muppet fur.  No, really, you can run a comb through it.


Perhaps your viewers have suggestions on where I can take my little monster to get some new skin?


Not sure why Monique wants to mess with perfection - but to each his own!  If you have any great ideas for Monique - please leave a comment.  She lives in DuPage County.

Have you purchased something from the store and are willing to take photos and email me (sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org) with the hope of inspiring others to see used furniture in new ways?  If so, that would be peachy!

The guys have fabulous pickups all week and I'll be back on Friday with photos of some of the funkadelic (what a great word!) furniture that's been donated!

Peace out, dear reader! 

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Tuesday's customer inspiration - Jennifer's jammin' Jubilee Furniture home!

Welcome to Tuesday customer inspiration where each week I showcase something someone has purchased from Jubilee Furniture and how fabulous it looks in their home - either exactly as it looked in the store - or - how it's been transformed into something even better with the hopes of helping others see used furniture in a new and creative way (and because I'm super nosy)!

This week I have lots of photos to share because Jennifer is a regular customer who has a fantastic eye and knows quality furniture when she sees it.  This busy mom of four volunteers each week filling in at the front desk at Wheaton Youth Outreach and Jennifer's husband is on the Outreach board - so they appreciate and value what we do and use key resources - time and money - to support us.

Here's Jennifer's email:

Hey Susan - I finally am sending you all the pics of my Jubilee purchases.  I LOVE MY STUFF from there!  Wow - I have a lot of stuff from there and hope to get some more great finds.  Jennifer



got this bar high table and chair set for the basement to use as a game table


fabulous Room and Board couch for our basement - great for watching TV or playing the wii 




this is an awesome outdoor bench we got from Jubilee - love benches




got this amazing Room and Board coach for our bedroom and the little leather ottoman (also from Jubilee) makes a great little side table for the couch




I got the rectangular table plus four chairs from Jubilee - two of the chairs I put with this round table I already had and the other two I added to four chairs - I also already had - around the rectangular table.  All the table and chairs needed was a new coat of black spray paint




a great little dresser that I got for my seven year old's room - she is a little pack rat and this is filled with toys and junk.  Wanted to send you a picture soon and I didn't even have a chance to get new hardware - that will happen eventually because one of the top drawers came without a knob



we love this side table between the two chairs that we got at Jubilee - the top flips over and on the other side is a checker/chess board and if you take the top off there is a backgammon board.  The drawer stores all the pieces that came with it - great little game table in our computer room





love this bistro table and chairs - they make for great extra seating in my family room (plus my kids like to eat snacks there while watching TV)

There's not much I don't LOVE about Jennifer's lovely - and - kid friendly home!  Pretty wall colors.  Fabulous kids' artwork on the walls.  Framed photo shelves.  Beautiful patio.  Clean lines.  No drapes or blinds.  Hardwood floors.  Jubilee Furniture in almost every room...

A huge THANK YOU to Jennifer!  

And thank you too, dear reader, for stopping by!   Hope you'll come back on Friday for my weekly update post! 

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Tuesday's customer inspiration - Kari's marvelous chairs!

Hello!  Welcome to this week's customer inspiration where we showcase something someone has purchased from Jubilee Furniture in order to inspire you to see used furniture in a new and creative way.

This week's inspiration needed minimum work to turn a ho-hum set of chairs into a beautiful dining experience!

Here's Kari's email:

Hi Susan!  I'm a big fan of Jubilee Furniture store and check your blog like clockwork every Friday for the latest goodies to come in.  I made a special trip out to you in November after spotting these chairs in the background of a photo on the blog.  Happily, they were still there - and a bargain at $55 for all 4.  I finally just got around to recovering them (and painting the table they are paired with!  It's like having a new dining room!).  Here are some before and after photos.


Thanks & we'll see you soon I'm sure!


Kari


What a cozy place to gather for meals!  I love all the different elements Kari's gathered together.  It makes for such an interesting - and lovely - space!

Many thanks, Kari - for taking the time to take photos and email me!

The guys have a wild, very full week of donation pickups - so I hope you'll be able to stop by on Friday to get a sneak peek, dear reader!

Until then...

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Tuesday's customer inspiration - Jessie's spruced up dresser!

Today's customer inspiration is an excellent reminder that much of what you'll find at Jubilee Furniture needs only a small investment of time/work to take a piece from fine to fabulous!

I immediately saw the potential of this chest of drawers when it first arrived in the store even though it was missing some hardware.  Thankfully, the dresser was donated with a matching nightstand that was beat-up but had all the necessary hardware to complete the dresser.  I don't remember what I priced the dresser ($65? $75? $85?) but I do remember pricing the nightstand $15 and writing a note that whoever bought the dresser might want to buy the nightstand just for the hardware (since it's amazing vintage hardware well worth $15).  And the rest - you might say - is history!

Here's a before shot (note missing pull on top drawer and missing pulls on both doors)

Here's an up-close of the amazing hardware and the dresser looking all shining and wonderful!

This shot shows the three pull-out shelves behind the two doors and the way Jessie accessorized the top (extra appropriate given today's Valentine's Day!)

Here's Jessie email:

I just wanted to say a huge thank you for the service you provide.  I have been putting the word out to all my friends and family that Jubilee is the best place to finds amazing thrift pieces.  Knowing I am not only shopping responsibly, but helping others is a great feeling.

Take care -

Jessie

Wow - I couldn't have said it better myself!  

Thank you so much for sharing photos, Jessie!  The piece looks amazing!

To learn more about Tuesday customer inspiration and see previous posts, click on the Customer Inspiration  tab (you probably already knew that - eh).

I'll announce a contest we're going to hold showcasing the Hampton Inn fine-but-generic furniture with my weekly update post Friday morning.  Stay tuned, dear reader! 

Update: contest is on "hold" while details are hammered out!  I'll keep you posted!

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Tuesday’s customer inspiration is short on inspiration!

We’ve had a fairly good run of wonderful customers providing me with lots of photos of their amazing purchases from Jubilee Furniture…but, alas, our run has run out.  I’ve got nothing for you today but a thought.
The Hampton Inn in Carol Stream has been going through a complete hotel remodel which started last fall and will eventually result in 107 pieces of different furniture all in the same style/finish being donated to Jubilee Furniture.  There’s actually nothing wrong with the furniture as is – except it’s a little, ahem…hotel like!
Though we’ve priced the furniture incredibly low already, what if we offered you an even better deal – like 50% off – IF you agreed to do something creative with the piece and email me photos by the end of April.  Would you be interested?
Here are photos and the prices of the pieces:
back yard and Lake Geneva 10-27 & 28-11 047
one drawer night stand priced $18.50
back yard and Lake Geneva 10-27 & 28-11 039
one drawer chest priced $25
back yard and Lake Geneva 10-27 & 28-11 046
writing desk for $30; chair for $20
back yard and Lake Geneva 10-27 & 28-11 040
mirror for $10
back yard and Lake Geneva 10-27 & 28-11 045
upholstered chair for $30; ottoman for $15
This isn’t a fully formed idea – I’m just wondering if there might be interest. 
Thoughts?
Update - still working on details around this contest!  Stay tuned...