Lingering in the Splendor of Fall

Is it just me or have retailers been pushing christmas and gift-buying a bit earlier than usual this year? Seems that emails about getting a jump on Black Friday and the holidays and “last chance” opps are triple what they have been in the past.  Yes, I’m a retailer…but I’m not ready to push the holidays just yet! I remember, back in the late 70s (yes, I am that old) when I had my Country Peddler brick and mortar stores, my clients would clamor and beg for holiday decorative pieces to be put out in September instead of the first day of November. I made the mistake of sharing with a few of them that all of the holiday items were ordered the prior January, received in July and were sitting in the Country Peddler warehouse, tagged and ready to go when I made the switch from fall to Christmas and Hanukkah! Big mistake! The second year, I did acquiesce and changed the shop over to holiday on October 10th!! Loyal customers were parked out front waiting for me to open the doors at 10:00 just so they could get first dibs on all the delightful goodies.

R.J. Graziano Cozies Up

Yes, it's true, I do shop at both HSN and QVC (gasp!); mostly for items for the house, oh and okay, an occasional piece of jewelry. (Occasional...interesting word choice...thank goodness there is no lightening today.) While, of late, both venues have been offering a lot of "disposable jewelry;" however, if you're astute and really keep your eyes and ears open you can find some interesting and well-made items interspersed throughout.