Changes’ MAJOR SUMMER CLEARANCE EVENT underway NOW and the sales get BIGGER and BETTER every day from now ’til the BIG BAG SALE on August 8!

Back to School for the Fashionista on a Budget

Back to school shopping on a budget does not mean compromising on fashion – if you know where to shop. Yes, I know you can buy discount fashions at the large discount stores, but seriously, how many fashion-conscious teens do you see oohing -and- aahing over the latest new arrivals at Walmart? ……Thinking?…Come up with the same number I did?….Not so many, huh? Okay, here’s your answer: CONSIGNMENT stores. (If you’re in North Alabama, CHANGES Boutique and Designer Consignments is where you want to go.)

Yes, I know what you’re thinking. Sure, celebrities like the Olsen twins, Reece Witherspoon, Pink, and Julia Roberts brag about their resale finds, but just how much really good stuff will the average person find in a consignment shop?
Well, open your eyes and you just might get a big surprise, sister. Today’s consignment shops are not the last-ditch, desperate, thrifts, of yesterday. Oh, no. They are way past that scene. The best of them are more like little boutiques with daily changes of new merchandise to tempt their regulars. Unlike many thrift stores, most consignment shops are extremely selective, accepting only current styles in new or like new condition. These shops, fed a constant diet of barely worn (if at all) cast offs from trendy, shopping-addicted, clients, are “the” place to shop for demanding fashionistas. Nowhere else on earth could a fashion-hungry diva on a budget find such a smorgasbord of labels and styles for so very little. Nowadays, it’s almost commonplace to find Seven For All Mankind, Joe’s Jeans, Rock n Republic, or a 1/2 dozen other brands of designer jeans ($160 – $375 retail) in consignment stores. With such a surplus of barely worn goods to choose from, there’s no reason a smart diva should ever shell out $40 for a tee again. Now she can pick them up for a 1/4 of the cost – at a consignment store.

CHANGES Boutique and Designer Consignments

And if your taste trends more towards Ann Taylor, Chico’s, and Coldwater Creek, not to worry; there’s plenty for you to choose from too.

I can’t think of another place on earth where you can find such a diverse assortment of up-to-date fashions. One store or mall simply can’t stock the selection a consignment store can. After all, they have a limited number of buyers who are all shopping the same vendors. Not us. We’ve got “buyers” shopping the world over. Every client returning from another cruise to a foreign city has the potential to bring us more fabulous finds. It’s almost like Christmas here sometimes. (I was positively giddy when the Gwen Lamb sandals and Jimmy Choo pumps came in – until I realized they weren’t my size:( ) Oh well, I consoled myself with another COACH bag….

Another surprise for the uninitiated among you; consignment stores often stock the latest in fashion jewelry, handbags, scarves, and belts from the country’s largest fashion markets. (Yes, the same markets the trendy little boutiques get their accessories from. The only difference is the price.)

So, what are you waiting for? Isn’t it time you checked your local consignment shops out? Now’s the perfect time. You can pick up lots of summer clearance items while cherry-picking the newest Back-to-School arrivals at CHANGES in Athens, Al .

CHANGES Boutique & Designer Consignments closed July 4th. Re-open July 7th with lots of fabulous, new Arrivals!

Just in at CHANGES Boutique & Designer Consignments – 35 designer purses – COACH, D&B, Tumi, and more

Age and treachery will always win over youth and skill…

Just another quote I’ll be doing in Wall Words…(If you’ve seen uppercase living or Right on the Walls, you know what I’m talking about. If you don’t now, you soon will.) Why would I do this? Because it’s funny, somewhat true, and it sells! For a quick peek at some of the other stuff we do here, just click on the link. (Tip: click on SLIDESHOW when you get there so you can actually SEE the catalog.)

click to see our first draft for a catalog

We’re thrilled to finally have a preview of the catalog we’re putting together. We’ll be doing it in print of course – and hopefully in color. In any case, we’ll include lots of color pictures of the actual wall quotes and graphics.
They really do look like they’re hand painted! But, they’re better because YOU don’t have to do the artwork or spend an arm and a leg to commission someone else to do it – AND they’re removable. Perfect for apartment dwellers who have nitpickety landlords.

click on this photo to see the REAL deal!

In addition to the catalog coming out, we’re also ordering lots of full size, color, posters, to hang in the store, and (God help me, I’m ambitious – praying my ADHD goes into overdrive so I’ll have the energy to pull it all off), doing a video that we’ll put on our projector for the store. So, not only will you be able to shop all of our great designer deals to make yourself look good, you’ll also see how easy and affordable it is to make your house look gorgeous at the same time! Isn’t it time you made CHANGES?

13 Things Your Consignment Shop Might Not Have Told You

http://ow.ly/8gT1

Cynthia (a poster at tgtbt.com) posted a link to this article on that board. It’s worth repeating.

Everything’s personal in this non-personal world

Ever notice how the more impersonal our world becomes, the more people want their belongings personalized? Seriously, monograms are HUGE right now, the latest (again) trend. Sit in line during a traffic stop nowadays and seems at least 1 out of every 5 vehicles have the owner’s monogram on the rear windshield. Pull alongside them and see their name on the driver’s window, and chances are good, they have their name on a tag up front. And don’t forget the STICK PEOPLE Families. These people are everywhere! Some have Soccer or Skull heads now. (I get the Soccer heads, but I’m afraid to think about the Skull head families. I’m nosy but I don’t need to know everything.) All this, and of course, the number of people who pay extra to get their license plates personalized.

While some might say it’s pride of ownership – and it might be in some cases – I tend to think there’s more to it. Think about it. We’ve all seen those clunkers with monograms, names, and hobbies, emblazoned front, rear, and both sides. Now tell me, how many people are so proud of their 1986 Pontiac with rusted side panels, that they simply must proclaim, “Hey! Look at this bad girl! She’s all mine. She’s my baby. Ain’t she something?” Honey, it’s not pride of ownership for these people.

Now me, I know why I like my decals and they have nothing to do with my car. I’ve done a stick figure Cheerleader with the name “Grace” for my rear windshield (my granddaughter of whom I’m so very proud), a sticker that says, “Keep Honking, Buddy – I’m re-loading” for the other side (Feel like it’s only fair to warn all the road ragers out there that I do carry), and I’ve put my name on the driver side window. Yes, I still answer when someone yells, “Hey, Shelby!”, (I drive a Mustang Shelby) but it’s kinda nice when someone knows my real name, too.

Bottomline, whatever the reason, we know you want these pretty little things and, as always, we want to help. So, if you want your monogram big as a football on your back window or small and discreet, we’ve got you covered. We can put your name on the door panel and hook you up with your very own personalized tag. We even have adorable polka dot handbags in the hottest colors for summer, complete with a clear pocket for showing off photos or a monogram. And of course, no outfit is complete this season without a monogrammed piece of jewelry. We do that, too, by the way.
Here at Changes,
http://www.picasaweb.google.com/Logston.Roger.Carolane/CommercialMay#

Take It or Leave It!

"Take it or Leave it" - maybe in the kitchen but not at the store!

A full year after discovering the fun designs at uppercaseliving and being motivated to do it on my own, I still love it! Unlike the design I finished and put in my kitchen this weekend, (which, by the way, I love), my businesses are not limiting.

The very concept behind Wall Words is about personal choices: YOUR WORDS – YOUR WAY. What to say, how big, fancy or simple, elegant or funky – and what colors you like. CHOICES.

And of course, a consignment shop is unlike any other retail shop in that it’s filled with one-of-a-kind items and offers new choices daily. Consignors come in all shapes and sizes, from every walk of life, with styles ranging from ultra-conservative to fun, funky, totally wild – and everything in between. Their personalities are all across the spectrum, too. Quiet, sweet, grouchy (not so many of these ’cause we make them pay to hang out with us), fun, bubbly, thoughtful, laughing, singing (I kid you not, some sing and dance!), introspective, laid back, uptight, shockingly open, and even one or 2 that I’m pretty sure have papers. The goodies they bring us reflect these personalities and it’s sometimes a riot of influences and colors around here, but it’s always fun and full of choices!

I wouldn’t have it any other way.

But I still like my sign in the kitchen. After all, all of life can’t be as much fun as work. Gotta have some limits…

Wear a bra? Check out the RACKTRAP!

I’ve really neglected this blog – BIG TIME – but I saw something a few minutes ago I just had to share with everybody; the RACKTRAP!
Unlike Spanx, I had no clue I even needed one of these…now I’ll just sit back and see which of our shopaholic consignors is the first to bring us some of these…http://www.theracktrap.com/index.html

CHANGES, Changes, and more changes…

We are certainly aptly named. CHANGES not only describes our clients, but us, too. We’ve “changed” our minds again. Rather than being just a CLEARANCE OUTLET for excess merchandise, our old location the former Athens Consignment Center bldg will now house Antiques and used furniture.

Don’t you just love making CHANGES?