Notes from You!!!

When Rose made the announcement that she was retiring we got so many nice emails! And now that you all know SHR is not going away - we have again gotten so many nice emails! We have also gotten letters, calls and wonderful stories and hugs from those of you who came into the shop to share with us your memories! We wanted to share some of these nice notes with you! From Rose and the whole gang - all of you, our customer friends, are so special - your enthusiasm helps keep us inspired and your loyalty has been incredible! We love you all!
And here are some of your comments..............
______________________________

Rose, You might be "Over and Out," but u will never be OUT. Thanks for sharing all of your creative talents and generous spirit all these years. You have been an inspiration for so many of us. Whenever I need a creative charge and inspiration I come to your dealer days and the battery is recharged once again.
Good luck to your and enjoy your semi-retirement for as long as you can stand it. From one that has retired three times and keeps going back for more.


The best of luck to you Rose. I am so glad we will continue to see you once in a while. My home is filled with wonderful treasures from your shop. My memories of shopping there with my daughter and close friends... I will cherish forever. One year, while waiting in line for your December sale - at the old shop - my girlfriend and I plucked all of the large wooden candy canes right out of the window boxes! I felt like the Grinch! Every year when I decorate for Christmas, I walk around the house with those candy canes and wonder what in the world I'll do with them this year. I put my annual call in to her and say, "I'm walking around with my candy canes!!" She says, "Me too!!!"
Merry Christmas to you and yours.


Rose, Rose, Rose,
You will be greatly missed. You’re creative stamp was in every nook and cranny of your shop and I loved it as did everyone else who returned month after month not just to buy but to be inspired with new ideas and discover quirky new ways to use old finds. Thank you for giving us a monthly destination that was never disappointing and often awe inspiring.
Thank you, Rose. You will be missed.


Greetings,
Please pass our greetings to Rose.
We live in Bismarck and have loved every trip thru Buffalo that we have made! We were just sick when we heard about "the closing".
The news today that the flag has been passed and SHR will remain open is music to my shopping ears!
Best wishes to the new owners and best best best wishes to you in your retirement!
Can hardly wait to get to Buffalo in 2011!


Thank you for the fun shop and concept that you started! It is such a highlight to look forward to the first of the month so see all of the cute ideas that you and your dealers come up with. Enjoy your lighter schedule. You deserve it! I’m glad it will continue with Brad and Amy.



Thanks for the note.
I sooo appreciate this store. It really has shaped how my friends and I decorate. It is wired into our personalities. We mention you often on our blog, sometimes abbreviated by SHR - :)
Love to you Rose, and we will be back!!!
emily haataja
http://www.outsandins.net/


I am a loyal customer and just wanted to say YOU WILL BE MISSED (but I will keep coming ).


With cheers and many thanks, Rose! For all you have done and given of yourself I am grateful. You have made my world a more beautiful and inspiring place.
Peace and love


It is Sherry from Hopkins Lillian's and I am so sad to hear that you are going to be done. I truly think NONE of the occasional shops anywhere would be around if it were not for you. Second Hand Rose fills my shop in Hopkins and we get so many compliments on the decor. It is because of you and the clever way you put it all in each and every customers you have touched. My home reflects this as well. My daughter Summer was so inspired by you she opened her own shop and has had huge success. I will for sure be out to see you this month with my neighbor gals.
Good luck in whatever you choose to do.


Good luck to you Rosalie... yes, if the soul is pulling a certain way, how can we not want to look what is lying around the corner. And the numerology is perfect too. :)
ps. really enjoyed the monthly visits to your store... you know it was the best!!



Thanks for the years and hard work that went into the shops you have had. They were always the best. Yes it time to read all those books! I am working on that now,


I’m excited for you Rose and wish you well in all that your future holds! I am sad as well, since your sales have always been the highlight of each month for Patty and I. Sincerely, Dale O’Hara, a Loyal SHRR (Second Hand Rose Regular)



From Molly in Des Moines....I am sad but SO very happy for you. My daughter, Heidi, lives in the Cities and it was always our "together time" for me to come to visit so we could work in the Second Hand Rose weekend. We had such good times together - it always seemed she found the "good stuff" before me or at least recognized what it COULD become (she is very clever). I retired from a job I loved about 4 years ago and know the feeling of it just being the right time. I have not been sorry and continue to enjoy the freedom to visit my grandbabies whenever, sleep late if I wish, spend hours in my garden, read lots of great books and just be ready for what happens next. I wish you happiness and thank you for the wonderful hours and adventures you enabled my daughter and me to enjoy. I will remember Second Hand Rose fondly as I enjoy all the treasures filling our home. Thanks!!


Rose~
You absolutely amaze me with your talent and I want to thank you for all the blood, sweat, tears and most of all the love you put into your unique 1 of a kind shop. Any occasional shop owner desires to be "like" Second Hand Rose! Amy and Brad are very lucky to be carrying on your store and your name!
You have helped women with your inspiration to create unique looks that they wouldn't have ever thought twice about.
I'm so excited to shop in your booth and see you at the sales! Unfortunately Tim and I won't be there for the December sale because we're headed to Florida for a long weekend on Thursday but we'll see you in February!
Again~ from the bottom of my heart THANK YOU!


Rose,
What a beautiful passing of a "place where everyone knew our names." You started a great concept and many followed in your creative footsteps. I am so glad you found a soul mate and can enjoy a new phase of your life.
We talked in the shop one day and shared our new adventures. Life is better now. We may not look the same or act the same however we have experiences on our side and that makes it all the sweeter. There are second chances.Thanks to you and all the dealers who made the shop so welcoming and fun. Good luck to Brad and Amy. We'll keep coming.


Rose:
All the best to you. I always love love love your shop.
We live 60 miles away and have sent many many people to find you.
I love your creativity. You inspired me to start my own occasional shop.
I have Dragonfly Bay Boutique in Spicer, MN. (am only only on weekends in the summer months) I do consignment in a cabin on a lake North of Spicer. It has been a lot of fun. We finished our 5th season this year.
I don't make any money yet( I am always buying from my vendors) but I meet some real nice people and they love coming to my place.
Thanks for being who you are and what you do!!
deb

Farwell from Rose Darden (aka The Grand Poobah!!)

Today I pass the flag of Second Hand Rose. The fact that I am passing my business on to two wonderful people has made this an easier transition. You will all just love Brad and Amy….they fit in like a missing piece from a puzzle.

I don’t think that the finality of this transaction has hit me yet. I have been so fortunate to make a living doing what I love. The pressure of having to get a sale ready every month has been huge at times but I would not have traded this experience for anything. I have worked with like-minded, really fun dealers. We have had so many laughs over the years. We have had a raccoon in the shop, a family of mice, women fighting over an item, a dealer who insisted on the presence of ghost at the old shop, angry husbands and absolute hilarity. I will always remember the long, long lines of customers waiting to get in at 9AM at our first shop. I remember one of our dealers telling the customers that anyone who had a present for me could come to the head of the line. I remember going out to my car and sitting there having a good cry because I was so exhausted and there were so many customers in the shop and everyone wanting a piece of me. Our sale was so huge that time and I told myself that I didn’t care if I ever had another sale that big. I just could not handle it.

I didn’t want to grow unlike many shops. I wanted to stay small. I didn’t want to do extra events, lots of advertising or be open more than the four days per month. I always felt that getting bigger is not always better….at least not for me.
Now Second hand Rose will have new life. I can continue in this business on a smaller scale being a dealer only. I don’t want to be in charge anymore, I don’t want to make the important decisions. I just want to slow down a bit and have the presence of mind to create. I want to simplify, take better care of myself, take some long walks, read my good books, kayak a lot of rivers with my dear David and rediscover myself.

Now I can watch Brad and Amy soar with the shop that I created. I am SO happy that they want to take over, to make the business grow, and introduce some exciting new ideas. I will always be there to help where I can.
Thank you to all of my friends, family, dealers and most of all thank you to all of my loyal customers.

Rose
Over and Out

Once Upon A Time...............

Once upon a time there was an awesome little shop called Second Hand Rose in Buffalo, Minnesota. It grew and grew til people from all over the country knew what a wonderful place it was. The Grand Poobah (aka Rose) worked hard and found just the perfect little elves to help her make this the best place in the world. But one day GP (aka Rose) got tired of working so hard and decided it was time to retire and do silly things like read books and play with her friends so she announced to the world that Second Hand Rose would be no more. A deep and dark sadness fell across the land and all the elves and all the friends of SHR. How could mankind as we know continue without SHR????????? But then one day a small sliver of light shone into the shop – a young couple managed to shake off their sadness and say “Hey, wait a minute – I think we could buy SHR and keep it open and make it shine again and add new ideas and make it bigger and better!” So they talked to GP (aka Rose) and made it all so – and the light began to glow again, and the sun shone, and laughter and music rang out, and the sadness was lifted off the world! The elves began to sing and dance and paint and create and even GP (aka Rose) decided to become an elf instead of GP!!!!!! Ah, miracles do happen, the world can rest, and our new Grand Poobahs (Brad and Amy Johnson) have already begun working hard to make the shop glow and sparkle and ring with laughter!!

So be sure to come on out and check out the brightest, merriest, happiest, coziest, warmest, funnest, bestest sale ever!!!! Our December sale is packed to the brim with goodies for Christmas decorating, home décor, Christmas gifts, lighting, upholstered pieces, mirrors, beds, silly stuff, fun stuff, and lots of our usual unusual one of a kind, just gotta have it, don’t know what it is, oh my gosh, nobody else will have one of those, bestest things in the whole entire universe!!! And all of us elves will be dressed in our Christmas finery, there will be treats for you (and presents too!!) and you can get to meet the new team Brad and Amy!!!!

Sadly, some of us will be leaving SHR (Barb is taking a break and Mike and I will be heading out for new adventures) so be sure to check out the clearance pricing and deals that we have for you! Our regular great pricing all around and steals to be had as well!

Don’t forget we will be closed in January so Brad and Amy can make some improvements to the building and give everyone a chance to enjoy the holidays – but will re-open in February with A BIG BANG!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Come on out and celebrate with us – we’ll carol with you or to you, jingle bell rock your world, help you find Joy in the World, give you peaceful Silent Nights, help you with all 12 Days of Christmas, find your L in Noel, make your Christmas White or Blue (depending on your color scheme!!), make your Silver Bells ring, help you find your 2 front teeth or whatever else is all you want for Christmas, help you be Santa to all your baby’s, and make your world and home a winter wonderland! So Come all ye Faithful friends and celebrate with us – we’ll be waiting with sugarplums!!!!

Oh yeah – go check out the blog – I’m putting TONS and TONS of photos on there – 2 or 3 posts worth of photos!!!!!



See you on Thursday, Friday and Saturday AND Sunday!!!!!

All I Want for Christmas.............

The last photos from the December sale - want to see more???? Well, come on in and you'll see the REALLY GOOD STUFF!!!!!!

MaryAnn's black and silver area - to die for! Elegant and yet very cozy.

Angela is all soft creams and grays and taupes!

How much is that doggie in the window?????
Lynn has so many fun goodies - she truly has something for everyone (and quite a few things for me!!!)

No room for your Christmas tree - hang it!!

Love the barb wire wreath!

And Dinah's barb wire tree - how whimsical is that!

Just plain nice..................

DON'T MISS THE BATHROOM - decorations on the cheap - toilet paper garland with a few sprigs of greens - Rose is still the best!!

An entire room of fun and Christmas!

All you Want for Christmas!

Some more peeks at the December sale - really, truly you don't want to miss this one!!!!

Sparkles, Twinkles and Jingles!!

The December sale is almost here - and all of the SHR elves are busy creating and decorating and setting up - the mood in the shop today was shiny and bright and twinkly and giggly and just plain FUN!! Most of us are still NOT ready - we'll be taking it right down to the wire - but I wanted to show you a few glimpses of what is happening! I'll be in there again tomorrow and get more photos for you all - but for tonite - things to dream about!!!!!!!

I am loving these ski sconces that Brad made - would look great in your lodge or cabin or north woods styled family room!

Angela still has far to go - but don't you just love the softness of her sheers!!

Nothing like lockers - and stockings!
Such an interesting mix in Marla's area - chippy and fun and a total childhood Christmas!

Okay - now really - who doesn't love this??????????

Barb has really outdone herself this sale - but this corner is probably my favorite - all creams and ivories and soft whites!

Or perhaps this is my favorite part of Barb's area - just can't decide!!

This could be my favorite too - Barb always gets lots of photos cuz she is always done first!! She is also AWESOME!!

Rose's area - sparkly, twinkly, drop dead gorgeous!!

I'll get some more photos tomorrow - cuz there is SO MUCH MORE TO DROOL OVER!!!!! Can't wait to show you the bathroom!!

Rockin' Christmas at Second Hand Rose

It's official - the Christmas season has started! I was in SHR earlier this week to drop off a van load of goodies and ran into Brad, Rose, Barb, MaryAnn, Susan and Georgia! A busy, busy place and it will be even busier this weekend as we all begin to finish up our December sale.

Of course when I was in I didn't think to bring my camera. Am I sorry??? YEP!!!! OMG, OMG, OMG - the entire place is ABSOLUTELY ROCKIN' with merriment and joy and giggles and jingles! I saw some of the best vintage Christmas items EVER - Barb has some of her great little artsy items that you will probably have to fight over (unless I get there first!!) - Brad and Amy have a lamp with a shade that was part of a cupola (to die for!) and another lamp/nite lite that was made from - well, we don't actually know what it was - but it IS gorgeous!!!! MaryAnn's spot is a wonderland of goodies for the holidays and beyond - Rose has some architectural pieces that look like they came out of a mansion or castle or someplace really, really grand! - There is a HUGE sign in Cindy's area that I think will be gone in a heartbeat - Angela has flowing sheer fabric draping her area - it is absolutely ethereal and romantic and soft! There were 5 great upholstered chairs and a gorgeous sofa - and with all of the greatness I was seeing the best part was that only about half of us had even begun - so that means there will be AT LEAST 2 times more greatness by next Thursday!!!

I'll be in there this weekend with lots of stuff - working hard - and taking lots of photos for you all to share!!!!! In the meantime - start counting down the minutes.............................

December Sneak Peeks!

Was at the shop tonite meeting with our new owners to be (see the previous post to meet Brad and Amy) and took a few photos. Now keep in mind that most of us have hardly even started (well except for - you guessed it - Barb!!) - but still got some fun photos! It's gonna be a fun sale - a bittersweet sale - the end of an era - a look forward to a new era - and lots of Christmas Cheer!!!!! And we'll have treats and presents and I heard a rumor that even Santa is coming!! So come on in and have a look!

Rose painted the back wall this awesome silver - can't wait for you to see it in person!

I loved this little piece with all the drawers!
Barb is getting all Christmasy!

Can't you just see this carriage filled with greens????

I made a new friend!

How pretty is this?

Cindy decided to spackle her walls - wonder what color she will paint them? Something that will show off this awesome chandelier I hope!

I made another friend - seem to have a horsey theme here don't I???

These are old boat cushions - and they are soooooo awesome - there are 3 of them. I want to hang them across the wall over a buffet or console table. Such beautiful art!

I want this cupboard - the most beautiful soft shade of green. I think I could make it work in my kitchen - if I swap it out with something else!

Sooooooooooooo - getting anxious yet? I AM!!!!! Get your shopping lists ready - only 15 more days til the sale!!!!!

New Owners for Second Hand Rose

Meet Brad and Amy Johnson - the soon to be new owners of Second Hand Rose!!! They have been customers for years - have lots of business experience - are avid junkers - have 3 awesome boys - great ideas for marketing and making SHR even better (I know, I know - hard to believe huh????) - have really good humor (which is important when dealing with us!!) - and are anxious to get going and keep many things the same - you know all the good stuff you already LOVE about us - and make some improvements where they see the need (like building, heating and lighting stuff) - and some other fun ideas that you will see coming up in the next months!

They are going to honor our January month off - but will have a BIG GRAND OPENING in February! They are keeping the name and most of the dealers - and even Rose is gonna have a spot and become just a dealer!!!!!

They will be working at the December sale - so come on in and say Hi and get to know the Next Generation of SECOND HAND ROSE!!!!

Finally - Some November Photos!!

So there I was at the shop today doing some last minute stuff - turned off the lights, locked the door, drove away - FORGOT TO TAKE PICTURES!!!!! Fortunately I remembered before I was very far away! So here you go - a few snippets from the November sale starting on Thursday!!! You're all gonna be there right??????

This is Merry! She likes to come and visit us and bring her owner Sarah! She liked riding in the sleigh that my talented husband made!

Cindy has a harvest table that is 10 feet long! Bet you could get the entire clan around that for Christmas dinner!

This is a corner in Dinah's area. You have just gotta stop and stare at what she did to her walls - they are incredibly awesome - some plaster, some paint, some rubbing off of paint, some sanding, they are to die for!!! And she has good stuff too!

Gail has this great sleigh coffee table - haven't talked to her but I bet her talented husband built it! Pretty cool huh?

Think of all the uses for this great green cupboard - then think of how much stuff you could store in it!

I love the simplicity of this vignette in Barb's area. She is a real less is more person and I think it works so well here - even if I am kind of a more is more person!

Love this wall in Angela's area!

Another wall in Angela's area - nothing like signs!

Pat has lots of festive entertaining items!

Love this view of Dinah's area too - looks so peaceful.

Decorate your tree with license plates!

Love, love, love Rose's wall - be sure to take a minute and read it!

One of Ted's cupboards - gorgeous stained glass!

Love this natural beauty!

And this big cage thing - makes a perfect Christmas tree - and it doesn't lose it's needles!