Tuesday's customer inspiration - Jean's lovely dining room table and chairs!

Jean emailed me last week with a photo of a table and four chairs which were purchased from Jubilee Furniture. In her email, Jean wrote, " We are very pleased especially since we bought the table separately from the 4 chairs and we think that they look good together. The table had a crack in the top, but John repaired it. Just takes some time and effort but well worth it."

The set is gorgeous and I think Jean and John did an amazing job! Don't you agree? And how sweet is their dog watching Jean take the photo?!

We had another great weekend at the store and ended November with total sales of over $32,000! This is our highest monthly sales total ever and is especially exciting since the month only included four sales weekends (some months have FIVE sales weekends).

We now head into - what historically - is our slowest month of the year, December. I believe - between our wonderful donors and fantastic customers - that we'll turn "slowest" into "show-stopperest" (by adding a few letters and making up the word "stopperest") month of the year!

Speaking of December, I want to let you know how Christmas will impact our store hours. Jubilee Furniture will be OPEN our normal Friday from 1 to 8 and Saturday from 9 to 4 this weekend, the weekend of the 10th and 11th and the 17th and 18th. We will be CLOSED Friday, December 24th and Saturday, December 25th (ho, ho, ho) and then OPEN Thursday, December 30th from 1 to 8 and Friday, December 31st from 11 to 3 and then CLOSED Saturday, January 1st. We'll do something extra fun on the 30th and 31st since we're not normally open those days and/or times - and we'll want to try to entice you to come in!

Jean ended her email by saying, "Thanks for all you do at Jubilee Furniture!!". I'm sending the thanks - and love - back your way, Jean!

And to you as well, dear reader!

Tuesday's customer inspiration - Kate's warm and welcoming office at Jubilee Village!

No, you're not crazy, today is Wednesday and I'm - again - a day late on my Tuesday customer inspiration post. I drove to Taylor University (in lovely Upland, IN) on Monday to attend my son, Jack's orchestra concert that evening (concert was great -he plays cello). I drove home yesterday arriving back around 4 p.m. and immediately went to write this post from home when - surprise! - the same thing happened where I couldn't save the photos that Kate had emailed me on my home computer (maybe some day I'll figure how what to upload so I don't have this problem forever - but don't place any bets on me being successful!).

So, if you checked all day yesterday for my post - I'm sorry. Believing the old saying, "better late than never," I'm here to deliver today though!

Kate Hutson, MA, LPC is our Clinical Case Manager for Jubilee Village. Jubilee Village is a transitional and independent living program for single, formerly homeless, mothers between the ages of 17 ½ and 20. The program is designed to holistically address the many needs of its residents, many of whom enter the program with histories of domestic violence or other manifestations of family discord, and without financial resources or job skills.

Jubilee Village exists to provide safe, secure housing, experienced mentors, and financial counseling for its residents as they prepare for independent living, upon their graduation from this two year program. Jubilee Village is one of the many programs offered through Outreach Community Ministries (of which Jubilee Furniture is a division of - and where the proceeds, minus our expenses - funnel back and help support the work of).

Kate started in her role this summer and inherited an office which was practical, but short on warmth and charm. Here are the "before" photos that Kate sent me:



After a fresh coat of paint (in a great warm, yet neutral color), Kate installed several items she'd selected from Jubilee Furniture as well as some other great pieces which all work together to create a welcoming, safe place for moms - and their children - to met with Kate in.

Didn't Kate do a wonderful job with her office? I love it!

I have something else to tell you about today.

About three weeks ago, Henny - one of our volunteers who works in our older adult program - stopped in the store to discuss Olga - the senior she visits through our Friendly Visitor program (another great program where a volunteer is matched up with a senior - often one who has no family in the area and would love a friendly visit from time to time). To keep occupied and busy - Olga crochets afghans. Lots of 'em. Yet she has no one to give them to and no outlet to sell them. Henny wondered if she and Olga could sell the afghans at Jubilee Furniture and my response was "Sure!". So, starting this Friday (remember we WILL BE OPEN Friday from 1 to 8 and Saturday from 9 to 4) Henny and Olga (at least for a while Olga will be there) will be selling Olga's afghans for a minimum price of $25 (Olga just wants to cover the cost of her yarn - but if you want to give more for an afghan - please do so). Henny emailed me the following photos of some of the 25 afghans that will be available for purchase.

Aren't the colors and patterns amazing?!

Again, Jubilee Furniture will be open THIS Friday from 1 to 8 and Saturday from 9 to 4 and I'll have my usual Friday post, including photos of the new-to-us items for purchase, Friday morning (have you noticed that I've been completing my Friday post earlier? It's usually up by 9 or 9:30 a.m.! Aren't you impressed?).

I hope you, dear reader, have an awesome and wonderful Thanksgiving!

Tuesday's customer inspiration - my computer room!

Before I share photos from my home of some of the fabulous furniture I've purchased from Jubilee Furniture - I need to tell you about this past weekend at the store.

Remember how WGN TV aired a segment on the store last Monday? Well, I'm here to tell you the power of the press is alive and well! We had a record number of customers in the store this past Friday and Saturday which translated into record sales of $11,460! Yes, you read that correctly - we sold over $11,000 worth of used furniture this past weekend. And the common refrain when asked, "how'd ya hear about us?" was "the WGN broadcast." So, to Marcus Leshock and WGN - THANK YOU! And if you missed the 3 minute segment, scroll down to my WGN post and listen and watch (I don't sound too much like an idiot *smile*).

I really thought my post last Tuesday was so pathetic (my brother-in-law sitting in a recliner they purchased from the store - not that my brother-in-law is pathetic - but it's pathetic that I have to ask family members to send me photos for my Tuesday customer inspiration post!), but apparently none of you who have purchased wonderful things from the store and own, and know how to operate, digital cameras thought it was pathetic enough so you felt guilty and decided to send me your photos!

So, until this Tuesday customer inspiration thing takes off - or - we go through my entire house and I have nothing left to show you and I give up on Tuesday customer inspiration - we'll continue through my house.

With that warm welcome, can't you hardly wait to continue?!

This morning before leaving for work, I snapped a bunch of photos of the room we call the computer room - just in case no one emailed me photos. The computer room got its name because it's where we keep....our computer. It's sort of like when my kids were little and had stuffed animals with super creative names like Bunny and Birdie (two of their favorites). There's something to be said about easy-to-remember names like Bunny and Birdie when you're sleep deprived and most of your clothing has spit-up stains on 'em. Ahhh, good times!

Anyway - as you walk into this room in our lower level (remember my house is a split-level) you immediately see a nice wing back chair which was purchased from Jubilee Furniture - as was the side table next to it and even the coaster on the side table! Don't you want to sit down and relax?

This cool trunk is also from the furniture store as is the red shaded floor lamp.

I just recently purchased this table lamp from the store after another desk lamp we had died.

Most of the furniture in the room is from IKEA and there's nothing from Jubilee in either of these photos, but I wanted to let you see the rest of the room.

This artwork is just a framed print - and though it's hard to see - it's a path meandering through some woods (I love roads/paths/streams leading off somewhere - makes me want to continue on and see whatever amazing things are just around the bend). There's something about the chick that was too sweet for me not to buy it!

So that, dear reader, is a look at my computer room!

I would love to see how some of the things you've purchased from Jubilee Furniture look in your home and you can email me (sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org) with your photos! Please?

Blessings!

Tuesday's customer inspiration - Peggy and Jim's amazing recliner!

Hey! Thanks for stopping by to see our weekly customer inspiration installment! Several weeks ago my sister, Peggy, emailed me with the subject line "if you're desperate..." and included a couple of photos of a fantastic recliner she and her husband, Jim, purchased from the store about a year ago (is that when you bought it, Peggy?). Guess what? I'm desperate. So, thank you, Peggy and Jim, for allowing me to show off your amazing looking - and more importantly if you ask Jim - super comfortable recliner which is positioned by the front windows in their pretty country living room!



I'm not sure anyone else in the family is allowed to sit in this recliner!

If you think Jim looks familiar and you attended Lake Park High School or Elmhurst College - you're correct - it's the same Jim! Though retired from Lake Park for a number of years now, Jim still teaches at Elmhurst College.

Again, thanks to Peggy and Jim for allowing us to see how yet another wonderful Jubilee Furniture piece of furniture looks outside of the dreary warehouse and inside a lovely home!

If you've purchased something from the store and are willing to take photos of how the item/items looks/look inside your home and can email me (sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org) - I can stop pestering my family - which would be wonderful and they would all be very grateful!

I'll write another post tomorrow with a link to a segment WGN TV did on Jubilee Furniture on Friday which aired on the 5:00 p.m. news last night - so please stop by again!

Enjoy these last few gorgeous days of fall, dear reader!

Blessings!

Tuesday's customer inspiration - a day late - welcome to Kim and Scott's wonderful home!

Good morning and thanks for coming back to take a look at Kim and Scott's amazing Chicago apartment! Though Kim and Scott have only purchase two pieces from Jubilee Furniture (a lamp and a filing cabinet) their whole apartment is well worth the time to virtually wander through it. They have a fabulous website (http://www.yellowbrickhome.com/) chocked full of thrift store finds they've turned into masterpieces as well as great posts on how they've turned their 650 square foot apartment into a gorgeous, color-filled, I-wish-I-lived-there home for themselves; their dog, Jack; and two kitties, Maddie and Libby. Sigh. Envy.

The first time I met Kim and Scott was several months ago when they stopped in and purchased this great table lamp. Kim writes, "We love the design and shape, and we think it fits pretty well in our living room."


(don't you love the orange elephant too?!)

Then in mid-September I got an email from Kim with this subject line, "Jubilee to the rescue?" in which she asked about our current filing cabinet inventory since she needed a specific size. I was happy to measure and email back with a description and photos of what we had available (and am happy to do the same for anyone, just call 630.337.1467 or email sgalbraith@outreachcommin.org). Scott stopped in the following Friday to see for himself if any of the couple we had that met their size requirements would work and - yay! - one did.



The one Kim and Scott selected was donated from an area design firm and wasn't your typical two-drawers-for-hanging-files filing cabinet, yet was perfect for their needs. I love how organized each drawer is! It makes my heart go pitty-pat!

Kim writes, "We heart Jubilee, and we're always telling our friends that it's worth the drive from the city. There is so much potential in your store, that often times Scott and I wish we had a whole room to devote to 'future projects'...sort of like a furniture graveyard that we can revive when we have the space and time!"

Kim, you know the love is going both ways!

And dear reader, I heart you too!