Daisy Chain

You walk into a store and your heart starts beating faster the minute you walk in the door. Research says men are visually stimulated, but researchers just haven’t tested women who have just seen pieces of clothing that scream, wear me and you will have fun and feel beautiful!

The Daisy Chain is a fabulously unique boutique. Walk around the mall. Go in every store, and then go to The Daisy Chain. You will not find these brands anywhere else in town, or at least I haven’t. But it’s not just the clothes. It’s way more.

Do you ever look at celebrities and think, “Oh how I wish I had a stylist who could help me find clothes that are right for me. I need help developing a personal style. Wish I could afford that!”

Well, you can because it’s free at this store.

The staff range in age from high school students to mature women, but what they have in common is that Courtenay Jackson, the store owner, has empowered them with her own vision. She envisions a place where moms and teen daughters can shop together and both find treasures that look great on them. I know there are many of us who hate having a sales person follow you around while you are shopping. But, this is a no-pressure zone. The staff has an uncanny way of looking at the pieces you are choosing, discerning your taste and then comes the best part. They actually help you find the pieces that fit your style and fit your body.

Since you know there are two Jennys that write on this site, I feel it necessary to divulge which one is writing this article. Jenny B. could put on a sack, tie a rope around it, and she would look amazing, but this article is written by Jenny W. Let’s just speak the truth here, at my age and slight pudginess, it is harder for me to live out externally the hot babe that I am internally. I have even gone into the dressing room at The Daisy Chain with my girdle underwear that I bought off of a TV infomercial, and the staff there has treated me like I am a beauty.

My wardrobe is becoming more and more filled with signature pieces from this store. When I am out with friends they will see things and comment that the item “looks like me.” I have a style. When I really want to look my best, I consistently pull out the items in my closet from my Daisy Chain shopping experiences.

While you will pay more for clothes here than at TJ Maxx or many places in the mall, the value is huge. Do you have many articles in your wardrobe that fit and are fine, but you don’t get excited about wearing them? The items you invest in here will be your “go to “ items. They are high quality. I am building a wardrobe year by year, still wearing the first items I bought seasons ago. You get a personal stylist with your purchase, and they carry jewelry, shoes and handbags, so you can get everything in one place.

The store is small, but there are 100’s of items because Courtenay purchases one item in its available sizes, so you know you won’t see everyone in the same piece. Shirts range in price from $30.00 to $80.00. Dresses go from $70.00 to $140.00. But if you get on the store’s mailing list, you receive monthly coupons that can be used on two items per month. If you want to receive the coupons, find out more about the store and check it out in greater detail, go to www.daisychaintn.com, and then become a facebook friend.

While the clothes in themselves could be considered wearable art, that isn’t actually the only art in the shop. The Daisy Chain has gifts from dishes to stationary, each of which is also unique.

So, go to the store to renew your exterior. While you are there, purchase a copy of Unwritten Travels to revamp your interior for a whole new you. You will walk around town and hear people whisper, “Who is that? She must be someone famous.” Just smile, look great and either leave them guessing, or be kind and send them to Courtenay.

Spruce~Inspired Living

Walked in to a store one day, and immediately my blood pressure went down. At the same time, my senses were heightened in the loveliest way. If it’s true that, “it’s in the details” then there is a store in Brentwood on Church Street that is doing “it” right.

Walk in to hear a playlist of jazzy, folksy, music that sounds how I sound in my fantasy life. Passing by one display of bath products I literally had to sit down on one of the many pieces of furniture available for purchase just to soak up the aroma for a while.

Noticing the tag line after the store’s name, I realized that Unwritten Travels and the store, Spruce share an ideal – inspired living. I had to meet the person who was obviously inspired when they opened this store and was pleased to talk to one of the owners, Alicia Helm.

Alicia and her business partner, Ashley met while renting space in the same location to sell products that brought beauty into a woman’s life. They were both drawn to home décor and gifts and their tastes were very similar. They call their style “transitional.” I just call it lovely, comfortable and inviting but not fussy. They decided they would open their own place for other women to rent space to sell beautiful things. As they grew and their vision developed, they decided as of March 1^st of this year to switch to doing their own buying for all of the products they carry, resulting in a store with an identity all it’s own.

Spruce has gifts - wedding gifts, baby gifts, stationary, yummy candles and bath products for your best friend. They have furniture, paintings and unique things that my grandmother would have called knick-knacks, but seem like necessities that you can’t live without when you are in the store. A favorite of mine is the beautiful hourglass that looks like blown glass with black sand inside. Surprisingly affordable too!

You could shop other places and check things off of your to-do list, but if you want to feel like you are treating yourself while you are running an errand go to Spruce. While there, decide to spruce up your life by purchasing a copy of Unwritten Travels. Whether you are buying a gift for someone else or for yourself, the experience at Spruce is actually a gift you are giving yourself in itself. Can you purchase an inspired life? Give it a try. The surprise will be a pleasant one.