Jalaina and Brenda - headed to New York this week

It’s that time of year again, when the Pick Up Sticks crew (Jalaina and Brenda this time around) leaves Clovis, New Mexico (pop 37,000) and heads to Manhattan (pop 1,585,000, give or take a few)  for the New York International Gift Fair at the Javits Convention Center ( January 29 to February 2, 2012).   We checked out the numbers on the NYIGF site for comparison’s sake – it looks like the number of visitors to the show will outnumber the population of Clovis.   Crazy, right?  And we’ve moved to a different booth location, so we’re figuring all 38,000 of those visitors might walk down our new aisle in Personal Accessories!

Candace and Glena in the New York booth, Summer 2011

Going to New York is always a little breathtaking.  There are the electronic billboards in Times Square, the crazy traffic, the crowds, the all-night eateries, the shopping, the Broadway shows, Central Park, more crowds, our favorite pizza place (housed in a former church, no less). . .  And going to the New York International Gift Show is almost as awe-inspiring as the city itself.  Javits is a huge glass house filled with gift vendors from every corner of the world.  We’re pretty proud to be amongst such company.

Glena in Times Square, Summer 2011

This year at the show will be even more interesting than usual – as we said earlier, we’ve left our normal booth in the Handmade section and repositioned ourselves in Booth 8531 in Personal Accessories.  It’s an exciting move for us – instead of being out in the north forty (that’s how they talk in Clovis), we’ll be in the thick of things in the main building, easier for you to find.  Making this move puts us right in the path of all our customers, and we’re letting you know early so you can pencil us into your notebook of show searches.

Glena and Candace, Times Square Summer 2011

So yeah, the Clovis gals are headed to Manhattan.  We’ve posted a few photos from last summer’s trip when Glena and Candace found themselves in the thick of things in Times Square.  We can’t wait to see what Jalaina and Brenda will do for fun.  And we can’t wait to see you in Booth 8531!

Candace and a very friendly New Yorker, Summer 2011

Don’t forget that all exclusive retailers who order in the booth at New York will get 10% off their orders.  Drop by and check out our new designs, and get yourself a nice little discount.  We’re looking forward to seeing you!

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year. . “  That’s the tune floating through our heads at Pick Up Sticks today.   Not only is Christmas just around the corner, we have all these new designs to show you.

Bright, playful new Bubbles,  inspiring Word Candy, a sweet new Chicklet. . .

Great new Photo Charm designs, including a breast cancer awareness charm that’s sure to be a big seller.

A new set of Dots inspired by our favorites from the animal kingdom. . .

They’re all here, in the studio, right now, waiting for your order..  And the good new is - Orders placed by Wednesday can be overnighted to arrive before Christmas.

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas from Pick Up Sticks!

As you probably know, we grew up in small town America – Logan, NM, population 550 in the 70′s,right next door to each other.  When we weren’t swimming in the backyard, we were swimming in Ute Lake, which was just down the road.  Or we were jumping on our bikes and high-tailing it over to Mother’s for popsicles on the beat up couch she kept on her front porch.  Pretty sweet stuff.  We’d like to have one of those summer afternoons back.

Below is another photo taken the same day, just to show you that on occasion, Glena was not the one in charge.  We debated for days on which one of these photos would best serve for our logo.  In the end, the one with the most action looking like we were having the most fun won.  As always, our motto is Have Great Fun With the Ones You Love.  Or Be With Those Who Make You Smile (shameless plug for one of our charms. . .)!

But it’s true.  Spend quality time with people you care about.  If you see a kiddie pool, jump in.  Who knows?  You might end up creating something as much fun as Pick Up Sticks.  We did!

Since opening, Albert F’s has grown, changed and always embraced the arts.  Out of the shop, Brad and Holly provide interior design services along with a full array of gifts for him, her and the home.  And Holly is quick to say that Pick Up Sticks has consistently been a best seller in the store regardless of the season.

They love the vintage look of the designs, as well as, the mixture of humor, sweetness along with the mix and match ability of the line.  They also love the story behind the product.  “It’s clever and true,” Holly says.

Here’s what Holly told us about merchandising Pick Up Sticks:  “I have tried many display options and the mannequin option is far and above the best way to display PICK UP STICKS.  Along with the mannequin, we have a table with a “Jewelley”, a silver tray and an antique adding machine that we placed a velvet pad on with all of our initial charms.

Anytime I find anything vintage when I am shopping or going through items of mine I pull them to incorporate into the displays.  Last year I found these wonderful vintage post cards that I incorporated into the displays.  And frames are always good to use.  I put fabric over foam board for the “picture” and then assemble whatever PICK UP STICKS Display I like.  I have used suitcases and lamp shades as well.  IT’S FUN.  And I promote the line as a fun line for all ages.”

“It’s always good to have a few made up items as examples.  Then encourage shoppers to get in there and make their own custom piece of jewelry.  I have also found that it is important to have more charms on display than you really need to have.  MORE sells more.

Plus I keep my prices fair so people feel that are getting a great product for a great price…..which they are.  In this economy it is important to send out that message.  And when they purchase a piece I send it away in a tiny little jewelry bag with the PICK UP STICKS story card inside.  Shoppers are desperate to connect again with stores, products and artists.”

And does Holly have a special story about Pick Up Sticks.  Yes, she does.  In fact, it’s one of our favorites – makes us feel like rock stars:

“While I don’t sell too many Pick Up Sticks to the male shoppers, I did have one very interesting male buyer.  He’s a well-known song writer from Nashville who has had several hits with many country music acts.  He purchased charms and ball chain necklaces for each of his staff members.  And lastly he bought a ball chain necklace with a clever gender neutral charm for TIM McGRAW who had just recorded the writer’s song for the movie THE BLIND SIDE.  I was so thrilled and honored that he wanted to give a little piece of PICK UP STICKS and ALBERT F’s to Tim McGraw.”

We’re thrilled and honored too.  Good work, Holly!

Holly says Pick Up Sticks has added a happier and sweeter mood to the store.  She’s shared lots of giggles and smiles with people as they “play” with the charms and accessories.

When we asked her how we could improve, she said that she’s always been impressed with the customer service we provide.  “Your staff has always been very accommodating to my needs which is so appreciated as I am a very small business.  Turnaround times for all orders are so fast too.  Keep up the good work!”  (Once again, hats off to Jalaina, Candace and Brenda for making our customers so happy.)

Holly’s parting words?  “Keep doing great jewelry and keep coming up with great marketing materials.  We love your product.”

Find Albert F’s at www.albertfs.com, and at 209 Ruskin Place, Seaside, FL (800) 974-5203.

Ruth and Mother

A couple of weeks ago we started this series with the tale of how Glena and Sabrina’s forebears made their way to New Mexico.  There were some missteps, some extremely hard times.  By the time we ended that part of the tale, Mother (great-grandmother Ade Johnston) had divorced her husband and become a single mother, something unheard of in the 30′s.  She was sticking it out in Logan, NM, running a cafe and raising little Ruth to be as tough and hard-working as Ade was herself.  But, of course, the story doesn’t end there.

During World War II, Mother and Ruth, who was now a young divorcee with three little girls of her own, found themselves in yet another business, flipping houses in Tucumcari, NM.  They’d pool their resouces, buy an old house and then spend several weeks scraping, sanding and painting before trying to sell it.  Glena’s mom, Anna Lee, says they spackled holes in walls with flour and water.  Times were extremely hard and rationing made finding supplies tricky, but they didn’t give up.  They maybe even made a little money.

Ruidoso, NM, circa 1950

1945 found the two women living in Hatch, NM, where Ruth’s new husband Perk was running a grocery store.  Not to be outdone, Mother opened a restaurant across the street.  Both businesses were successful, but when the polio epidemic swept through southern New Mexico,  the family gathered up Ruth’s three little girls (Anna Lee was four, and the baby at the time) and moved to the mountains in Ruidoso.

Perk with the little girls in front of the Ruidoso store

It was a bump in the road, but nothing to slow down these women, and they had found a willing ally in Perk.  He was up for anything – he bought an old motel and turned it into a long house of rooms for his wife and girls and mother-in-law.  With Ruth’s help, he opened Long’s Store, where they sold everything in the world from blue jeans to needles and thread to flour to tires and car parts.  We wrote about the store before - Perk was the consummate merchant, caring about his customers and connecting with them so that they were always happy to come back.

Ruth and Perk's girls - dance lessons were required. . .

But it wasn’t all work.  By this time, little Dee had joined the family, and now there were four girls to raise.  Ruth was the artist, the progressive thinker, determined to give her girls a world view that was relatively new for the early 50′s.  They took dance lessons and music lessons, they painted and learned to appreciate art.  If there was an event somewhere nearby, Ruth loaded up the girls and they attended, whether it was a concert or a rodeo.

Ruth being Ruth. Every day was an opportunity for adventure. . .

Perk shared Ruth’s thinking –  with their daughters and then their granddaughters (Glena and Sabrina included), they both liked to challenge the idea of traditional women’s roles.  They stressed hard work and education, and taught all their girls to never be financially dependent on a man

Ruidoso downtown - circa 1950

Ruidoso in the 40′s and 50′s was a magical place and time fed by crazy ideas (Perk decided there was big money in sand and gravel and persuaded Ruth to go along with another new company) and lots of activity.  In the midst of rampant entrepreneurship (Perk also bought a gas station in Hollywood, NM), there were  piano and swimming lesssons.

Long’s store catered to the neighboring Mescalero Apache reservation, so the girls learned to mix with and appreciate that culture without question.  At one point, when Perk decided more gas stations would be profitable, Mother moved to Alamogordo and ran a service station.   Were there other grandmothers running gas stations in southern New Mexico in the 50′s?  No, but that didn’t stop this family from trying it!

Bathing Beauties - Ruth with two of her girls

Those four little girls, two of whom would become Sabrina’s and Glena’s mothers, learned that the world was a great wide place full of beauty and possibilities and opportunity, as long as one was willing to work hard and take notice.

It’s just a little more of our story, but we think it’s what made us who we are.  We believe in possibility, in finding success in the craziest of endeavors.  We’re inspired every day by strong women, particularly those in our family.  We grew up in a family where we had the freedom to be who we really are.  That’s what drives us to create inspiring jewelry.  That’s who we are.  And that’s what Pick Up Sticks is.

The four little girls with a friend in Ruidoso. . .

. .And as you can see from the above picture of the four little girls with a donkey and the below  picture of Perk (taken at a mock wedding), we were raised to believe that life is a hilarious adventure everyday – you just have to pay attention and learn to laugh at all of it.

Perk Long. What else can you say?

Shelley, Sabrina and Raynee, pirating it up

All Hallow’s Eve, aka Halloween, is one of our favorite days at Pick Up Sticks.

Sabrina as a 24-pack. . .

We love an excuse to don our tackiest, goofiest outfits, hats and makeup, and we figure you do too.

Glena as Medusa and our pal Angie as an over-done beach bum. . .

Halloween always provides a great excuse for a party. . .

Sabrina as Tammy Wynette. . .we think. . .

And it also provides a great excuse to do something really obnoxious with lots of big hair.  You know the saying, “The bigger the hair, the closer to God.”

Sabrina's granddaughter Rhili

You can grow wings. . .

Bruce and Sabrina

Or horns. . .

Bruce's nephew, Rance

Or a whole new personna with dryer vent parts. . .

If you’re still stumped about costume ideas, we borrowed a few from Real Simple Magazine:

• A green clown wig + a schoolgirl outfit = Broccoli Spears
• A plastic laundry basket with holes cut out for legs + white balloons + a shower cap = Bathing Beauty
• A white dress + a pipe-cleaner halo + leaves in her hair and “dirt” on her face = Fallen Angel
• Black clothes + yellow electrical tape down his torso + toy cars + Velcro = Highway
• A pig nose + a blanket = Pig in a Blanket
• A blue T-shirt + cotton balls + tape + a water gun = Partly Cloudy With a Chance of Rain
• A polo shirt + khakis (or madras shorts) + a name tag = Jay Crew
• A clear umbrella (preferably dome- shaped) + party streamers or metallic ribbons = Jellyfish

Whatever you are this year, be your funnest, most interesting self.  And enjoy!  We plan to.

Ruth and Ade Johnston, Gallegos, New Mexico (circa 1920's)

George Bernard Shaw said, “If you can’t get rid of the family skeleton, at least make it dance.”  That’s one of our favorite quotes.  In fact, Sabrina once designed a charm with that written on the back.  We love it because it tells part of the story of who we are and where we came from.

Logan, New Mexico (circa 1907)

Homesteaders.  Hardscrabble.  Hungry.  Tough.  Tenacious.  Those are all words that describe Glena and Sabrina’s great-great-grandparents.  The Osborns and Johnstons traveled to New Mexico from Missouri in 1906 in a wagon train with several other families, headed west with a promise of prosperity in their steamer trunks and saddlebags.  They landed in Logan, a tiny village in northeastern New Mexico, and settled on a section of land north of town, where water was scarce and the weather was frequently threatening and almost always unpredictable.

Logan, NM - crowd photo from 1911

But they persevered.  They were trailblazers and they were adventurous.  There’s a story about Tralve Johnston, Glena and Sabrina’s great-grandfather – when no one else could get a wild black stallion across the Canadian River, Tralve climbed on and then he held on.  It was a rodeo in the river, the old folks say, the craziest ride of the trip.  Tralve became a legend, renowned for his own wild and fearless behavior.

Ruth (right) and her cousin Opal in the 1920's

After staking their claim near Gallegos, New Mexico, Ade and Tralve Johnston tried their hand at dry-land farming.  For those of you who don’t know it, dry-land farming is a truly fearless endeavor – you plant as soon as the rains end in the spring (if the rain shows up at all) and then pray for moisture (but not too much) all summer long.  Sometimes, if you get extremely lucky, you actually make a crop.  It’s dry and dusty work, and seldom rewarding.  But it gets you land.  It gets you roots.

Logan Train Depot

They raised chickens as well, and sold the eggs in town.  Tralve took a job in the 20’s driving a truck, and when he started misbehaving and staying away from home too long, Ade divorced him.  It was scandalous, unheard of in those days, especially in rural New Mexico.

But she was stronger than the scandal; Ade just held her head high and worked harder at raising her daughter Ruth to be as tough as her mama.  Eventually Ade and little Ruth moved into Nara Visa and opened a restaurant, cooking for the locals to
make ends meet.

Nara Visa, NM, circa 1906

When times got tough there, she sold out and moved 24 miles southwest to Logan, where she opened a more prosperous café.  She didn’t quit.  She didn’t go home to Missouri.  She just kept working and building a business.  It was the 30’s – when most folks sold out and moved to California, she stayed.

Ruth and her cousin Opal (top row) in Tucumcari New Mexico

And that’s part 1 of how we make the skeleton dance here at Pick Up Sticks.  Instead of focusing on the negative parts of our history, we celebrate it.  We’re adventurous (who in the world would have ever believed we could create a jewelry business from thin air?), we’re tough and tenacious (those early years were almost unbearable – have we told you some of our scary early market stories?), and we believe in strong women because that’s where we come from.

By celebrating where we came from, we also celebrate you.   We celebrate your own family stories, the adventurous genes coursing through your veins, the hardscrabble tanacity you share with your forebears.  It’s our goal every day to help you feel happy about who you are and where you come from.

By definition, the word “vintage” means several things:  “No longer modern.”  “a wine, especially a good one,” and “recognized as being of high quality and lasting appeal.”  We created our jewelry line with a vintage feel for a lot of reasons – most of it having to do with our history with our great-grandmother, Ade Johnston (we called her “Mother,” and you can read more about how she influenced Pick Up Sticks here).

But we also felt that by taking images that were no longer modern and combining them with the best of quotes and inspiration, we might just create something that had lasting appeal to you.  History, especially your own, is always important, and it’s
generally beautiful.  Even if there are skeletons.  Just be sure you make them dance. . .

There are more stories and more skeletons.  We can’t wait to share them with you.

And of course, she knows Glena and Sabrina personally.  They grew up with her daughter, played in her yard, ran their car up and down her driveway, even ran through her front door for years, either in search of Bunny or something to wear out of her closet.  Betty knows the why and wherefore of Pick Up Sticks because she knows the why and wherefore of Glena and Sabrina.  Sounds advantageous, doesn’t it? 

But then there’s the size of Logan – not such a distinct advantage.  With a population of approximately 1,100 (yes, you read that right.  Glena and Sabrina grew up in a village without stoplights, crime or a movie theater. . .), Logan lacks what most retailers need most:  buyers in large numbers.  Despite this lack, Betty became an exclusive retailer just a few months after she began selling Pick Up Sticks. 

So we decided to make her our September Retailer of the Month.  We figured if Betty and Terry’s Floral can become an exclusive retailer and order $1,500 of product in a year’s time (although truth be told, she’s way past that number), anyone can do it.  We asked her for tips to pass along to you, and here’s what she told us:

“It’s all about getting charms out there where everyone can see and touch them.  My business is primarily floral, and for a small town, people in Logan really love to buy flowers for one another.  When I put a loaded  Judy bust form on the floor right in the path of every shopper, Pick Up Sticks started flying out the door.  My Judy’s an eye-catcher, and once she stops them in their tracks to take a look, customers are hooked.”

Terry’s Floral also has an active Facebook page (http://on.fb.me/oNGBQ8) on which Betty posts lots of Pick Up Sticks images, news and links to any new blog posts.  She makes sure her fans know when she gets a new shipment, posting several times each week so that collectors don’t miss the chance to buy something new.  She says if you’re not using Facebook to promote your product and your Pick Up Sticks, you’re missing a great marketing tool.

Finally, she offers initial charms on a ribbon to go with floral arrangements.  It’s a relatively inexpensive add-on that makes a bouquet immediately more personal. 

And of course, when she heads out to the Post Office every morning to pick up the mail and visit with her neighbors, Betty’s wearing her Pick Up Sticks.  “Sometimes I think I sell as much on the street as I do in the store,” she says. 

“I love selling Pick Up Sticks.  My shop is a hodge-podge of new and old things – a fun place to shop.  Pick Up Sticks is very popular here – possible because the owners/designers are local gals, but most of all because the charms are unique.  Every customer can find one that fits her personality or that of a friend.  They are great gifts for any occasion – some are quirky, some are serious, and I find that most shoppers want several to mix and match.  And the new clips are great – they make charms easy to exchange quickly.”

Great tips, and great job, Betty.  Congratulations to Terry’s Floral and Gifts of Logan, New Mexico (575-487-2420), for being our September Retailer of the Month.  Terry’s is proof positive that anyone anywhere can be a successful Pick Up Sticks Retailer!

Glena, Bunny and Sabrina in Central Park, circa 2003

The first day of second grade at Logan Elementary, when I was still an undersized, silly and scrawny mama’s baby who pretended almost every day to have a stomachache so that I could stay at home, I met Shelley Henry (now Shelley Wallin). Shelley was taller and tougher than me (as was everyone else at Logan Elementary), even though she was only starting first grade, and she was ultimately cooler. She showed up for the first day of school with a cast on her arm, which only made her cooler and tougher still. Shelley was already tragically hip in the first grade. And I was a total dweeb.

Shelley, Bunny and Glena, circa 1977

She backed me up against a wall with that arm in a cast and  demanded that I say my name. “Bunny Tewwy,” I told her. She demanded again, and I failed again to get it right, and there may have been some crying and a bit of yelling from Mrs. Smith, the third-grade teacher on recess duty that day. But the next day, Shelley became my friend. And by junior high, although we were a grade apart, we were inseparable.

And yes, for those of you who are worrying about it, by third grade I could pronounce my “R’s”, although there are people who still call me, affectionately, Bunny Tewwy.

Having Shelley as my friend was a life-changing experience for a lot of reasons. She was fun and smart and beautiful and had no fear and we led one another on a number of crazy adventures, all of which I can’t discuss in this post simply because she’s now a high school teacher. But one of the greatest advantages of being Shelley’s friend was that I also got to be, for all practical purposes, a member of her family. I slept at her house several nights a week. I ate lots of meals at the Henry’s table, and, just like a sibling, Anna Lee always made me help with the cleanup.

Glena and Bunny at the Logan High Prom (dorky dates edited out)

All of which meant that I got to be pals with Shelley’s sister, Glena, and eventually, when she finally grew out of her gawky stage, with their cousin, Sabrina. Sabrina is eight years younger than me, and in elementary school she was this incredibly gangly kid wearing headgear and braces and glasses thicker than coke bottles. Glena and Shelley and I used to allow her to ride around in the back of their 1976 Camaro ONLY if she ducked her head when we drove past a car full of boys.

While Glena and I were picking prom dresses, Sabrina was hanging in the background, hoping we’d be at least civil enough to allow her to be present for the corsage-pinning and the picture-taking with the dates. Thank goodness she grew out of her gawkiness (she’s a freaking swan now) and we grew out of our high school girl-nastiness.

Bunny and Sabrina, circa 1978. For once, Sabrina's the shorter one in this photo. . .

Which leads me, in a very roundabout way, to my story of how much I love Pick Up Sticks Jewelry Company. Glena and Sabrina are my lifelong  friends and I’d walk on glass or hot coals for them, but more than that, they are my family. We have an extended history that involves riding in the back of pickups and skiing behind fast boats and dancing with questionable cowboys in honky-tonks and being up to our noses in swimming pools and playing with Great Danes and Poodles and Dalmatians and spending nights in trailer parks and seedy bars in Hell’s Kitchen and about a thousand other things.

They are like sisters to me, just like Shelley is, and they have, by following their hearts, created Pick Up Sticks, a business that is successful and that feeds both their souls every day. They somehow found a way to do exactly the thing that each of them does well, and I am incredibly proud of them for taking what came naturally to them and turning it into a business that makes so many people happy.

They are New Mexico artists and business women who have found their niche and  created a product that’s gorgeous at the same time that it’s profitable.  They are our own Quay County success story.

If you’re a follower of this blog, you probably already know Glena and Sabrina.  You’ve met them at market, or at least on the phone, and you’ve ordered Pick Up Sticks jewelry, and you’ve been thrilled with the response you’ve gotten from the product.

What’s really important for you to know is that the reason this jewelry is so fabulous and sells so well is because of who Glena and Sabrina are and why they get up in the morning.  Pick Up Sticks, like Glena and Sabrina, is all about celebrating the strong and special women in our lives.

When Sabrina sits down to design a charm, she’s not thinking about profit or the bottom line – she’s thinking about what will inspire you, what will make you laugh, what will show you the humor and joy in this side show we call life.

When Glena goes into the office each morning, it’s not to count the number of orders that have come in – it’s to check all the communications and the status of customer requests.  She’s dedicated to making sure everyone who orders, sells and then wears Pick Up Sticks finds the process effortless and profitable.  Her heart is in making sure you’re happy.

That’s why I love these girls, and why I love Pick Up Sticks.  This post (which has previously appeared, in part, in my I love New Mexico Blog) is my celebration of them.  Thanks, Glena and Sabrina, for being the strong and special women in my life and for  creating a company with so much heart.

Do you have your own story about why you love Pick Up Sticks and Glena and Sabrina?  We’d love to hear all about it.  In the next few weeks, we’re going to give you even more insight into the Why of Pick Up Sticks.

We know you have lots of choices when it comes to choosing jewelry for your retail space – we just want to let you know that when you choose Pick Up Sticks, you’re choosing a company that celebrates women, and a company that’s a combination of history, heart, soul and inspiration!  Stay tuned. . .

Today we’re finishing up the New York International Gift Fair, and one of the comments we keep hearing in the booth is that our retailers love our display ideas.  So, here are a few more.  We just have to give full disclosure – these aren’t our ideas.  They’re from our fabulous Pick Up Sticks retailers!

These are just a few of the entries we received in our display contest.  We thought we’d pass them along – maybe one or two will work in your store.

We’re always amazed at the multitude of incredibly creative (and effective) ways retailers find to display Pick Up Sticks.  If you have additional display ideas, feel free to send them to us by e-mail and we’ll try to include them in a future blog post.

Now you can see why we had such a difficult time choosing a winner. . .