Saturdays in January

Beginning January 3rd, JB Knacker will be open on 5 consecutive Saturdays 10am-3pm. We won't be open during the week at all. Just on Saturdays: Jan. 3rd, Jan. 10th, Jan. 17th, Jan. 24th and finally January 31st. We are excited for this change of pace at the shop! January tends to be a bit of a slower month, and with that in mind, we wanted to mix it up a tad, create a little excitement, get the town gossiping and really make the old place SHINE each and every Saturday!! Now, we will return to regular programming in February with the debut of JB Knacker's February Faves and the launch of our wine glass give away through Valentine's day. Stay tuned if you're curious...

Merry Christmas & thank you...

Julie & I wish all of you a blessed Christmas. You have helped to make this season a most successful one. In fact, it has been our best holiday season ever! We feel so fortunate to have our passion as our business and doubly so to have such kind, creative and adoring customers! OK...adoring may be a bit strong, but we feel your love and are ever so grateful to you!
We want to remind you all about our after Christmas sale going on from 12/26 through 12/30 during our regular business hours. So that means our doors will be open Friday (12/26) 1-6pm, Saturday (12/27) 10-3pm and Tuesday (12/30) 1-6pm. All Christmas will be 50% off ~ something we have never done before but are very excited to see how it goes...and we hope it all GOES! And to sweeten the deal, we are adding 20% off all of JB Knacker inventory (we sound like a real live commercial now). So come on out to the shop, stomp the snow off your boots, enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and load up on your favorite vintage and vintage inspired goodies.
And remember, we are open only on Saturdays in January ~ 5 Saturdays to be exact! We are really pumped about whooshing the shop into something fun and a little different each Saturday. It's all about creating excitement w/ a new look and new stuff each time. You won't want to miss even one Saturday!
Julie & Brenda

Told You So!

That's what I should have said to husband...but you know me, wouldn't want to rub anything in. We had a heck of a Friday and Saturday at the shop after Thanksgiving. The old galvanized bucket was stuffed w/ names for our $50 gift certificate giveaway... and the WINNER is ~ Dawn Graber!! Custom orders for window sash letters and soldered charms are written all over my hand and up my arm as the calls and emails have been coming at a quick pace. The shop will get whirled around again before this Saturday as it is Gilbert's Christmas Festival (yes, I said Christmas...who around here celebrates winter anyway...just a little dig at the flier that went out about this little shindig). The tour of homes and Santa Claus are the big draws on this day and of course, cookies and cider and such. I am thinking Friday night might be a late one as we give the place a fresh look w/ our new finds and creations. Would love to have you by the old place on Saturday w/ extended hours from 9am - 6pm. Thanks for your continued support!

giving Thanks

What would make customers swarm to a small rural town on the biggest retail shopping day of the year? To shop JB Knacker, of course! My husband, the disbeliever, thinks we ought not be open on Black Friday (he likes to give me a hard time but secretly he is my biggest fan). I believe we have a duty to be open on this day. Where would all the people who hate to shop the big box stores go? Where would they find their JB shred? Who would welcome them and ask how the kids are or let them know their new haircut is not too shabby? Where else could they make a snowman or throw a snowball and sip hot cocoa & coffee after coming in from the bitter cold? OK...JB Knacker, again. Yes, we will be open and proudly so! We will have extended hours from 10am - 6pm on the day after Thanksgiving. Our vintage goodies and unique gifts will be well-stocked and the shop will smell of hand-cut soap and french vanilla coffee. We will wrap your new found treasures in white butcher paper and tuck them into our ephemera tagged craft paper sacks. If you came all the way from DesMoines or Mason City or some other far away place, we'll make sure you have a bottle of water for the road or a cup of coffee to keep you alert. We are proud of our small town heritage and thankful for our loyal creative customers...thank you from the bottom of our hearts and see you on Friday!
There will be a drawing for a $50.00 JB Knacker gift certificate on Saturday, Nov. 29th at 3:00pm as we close up shop and wrap up a wonderful November at JB Knacker. All you have to do is visit us in Gilbert on Friday (10-6pm) or Saturday(10-3pm) and throw your name in the old galvanized bucket. Also if you see something on the blog that you Have to have just contact me and we'll work out the details...this will also get your name in the drawing for $50!

Brenda & Julie

Best Day Ever!!

JB Knacker Handmade Journals...$16 each
JB Knacker soaps~they make shop smell heavenly...Goose-sold
bed-sold...baby doll-sold...pillow-sold
galvanized sled-sold..."J" "O" "Y"-sold...2 of 3 concrete planters-sold...1 of 2 windows-sold


And I mean the best...well at least in a shop owner's terms. The crowd was steady for the Christmas Bash and the weather perfect...cold and just soft flurries of snow. We were as ready as we were going to be w/ fresh evergreen strewn about and a harvest table of homemade goodies w/ piping hot apple cider and coffee. Customers shopped and mingled and laughed and kids w/ rosy cheeks and winter sweaters were here and there. All things "organic" flew out the door...wire clam baskets, old hockey skates, sleds, letter window sashes, flour bins, statuary, painted firewood boxes and so much more. Indeed, it did seem that anything needed to make a statement in Christmas decorating was sold! It was great to see customers that we only get to see once or twice a year and always great to have our true, blue steadies come through the door. Thank you for a wonderful day!
Julie & Brenda

Christmas Bash ~ Saturday, Nov. 8th 10 am - 5 pm

Can't wait for you to see the fun JB Knacker has planned for Saturday, November 8th! Our Christmas Bash is a nostalgic look back at the fun that Christmas was as a kid...only in a very grown-up sort of way...you'll just have to show up to figure that out! We're extending our hours a bit on the 8th(10am 'til 5pm), to allow everyone a chance to make it over to JB. Festive bites and beverages will be served and if snow is present, there WILL be a snowball fight in the side yard!

I know, I know...I said I would get pictures up of our gifty items at the shop, but w/ our Christmas bash a mere 10 days from now, I feel the need to keep some things surprises. You loved surprises as a kid! You remember how disappointing it was when you peeked at your presents in mom & dad's closet and then the magic was over and the guilt began(i felt guilty anyway...don't think little brother Matt did). Just know that Julie & I have been running around crazy-like finding just the right vintage goodies to add to our Christmas Bash theme. And just like Santa, we have been stocking up on all of our great vintage inspired gifts so we don't run out. I have yet to put on all black and slink around my mom & dad's yard for the best nature finds(i have to be sneaky as my dad thinks I'm killing all the trees by cutting branches & such...i am almost certain Martha said it's a good time to prune). The food will be yummy and the beverages toasty, and as day turns to evening, the wine will flow. Bring family and friends to rekindle (i love that word) that warm feeling of Christmas as a kid!

Can Hardly Wait,
Brenda

PS ~We have openings for our next 2 workshops, Jolly Junk Workshop(making JB Knacker-style snowmen & women...see pictures on our News section of website) on Tuesday, Nov. 11th from 6-8pm and Charm Workshop(making soldered picture charms for a unique necklace charm...also see website for pics) on Tuesday, Nov. 18th from 6-8pm. Call the shop at 515 233-2600, stop by the shop or check-out our website for registration info.

Life is Good

Having just baptized our new baby and having our oldest son back from up north on a quick break from his sophomore year at UMD, yesterday was a day filled w/ the stuff of life. Kids running and crunching in the leaves and grown-ups talking and laughing about everyday things. It was a good day.
Ahh...the best time of the year is upon us. As shop owners, we find this time to be refreshing as it is so easy to decorate and whoosh the shop into something fun and sometimes even a little unexpected! There is so much nature to decorate w/...mums, pumpkins, hay bales, hydrangea, bittersweet, grapevine and branches. The way our vintage and antique pieces look this time of the year - stunning: old gold and wood decorative frames leaning against a wall, harvest tables w/ mismatched wood chairs pulled around, ironstone platters and old glass cake stands, bowls of chippy croquet balls and 100 yr old ledger books.
Our shop smells fantastic w/ our new soaps just in...oatmeal, twigs & berries and lemon verbena - pure glycerin, rough cut and handmade right here in Iowa. Mix those smells w/ our "signature" coffee ( OK...it's really french vanilla Folgers), and it's like a warm blanket wrapped around 'ya as you walk through the front door. Another new gift item just in is our apple jackets and coffee sleeves done up in the coziest of colors and fibers. Never heard of an apple jacket - they are too darned cute w/ their antique button or rhinestone closures, they will keep your apples from bruising as you brown bag it and well...they are just too darned cute! Great as gifts for teachers and bus drivers and sisters and moms and working women and Sunday school teachers and babysitters and teenagers who do cold lunch...or just gathered in a wooden bowl on the table! I promise pictures to come of all of our gift items in the shop (and hopefully, they won't be blurry pictures like above...I am trying?!).
The new shop hours (Tues thru Fr 1-6pm and Sat 10-3pm) seem to be catching on w/ our seasoned customers as well as new souls that have come through our old doors. We will be making final decisions on our upcoming seasonal celebration tomorrow, and then we will post all the details as well as send out emails and update the website. Just so you know, it has always been hard for Julie and I to bring out Christmas decorations before December...just the way we were brought up to savor each holiday as it comes. But as shop owners, we understand the urgency to begin a little early. So to make up for this, we strive to do Christmas very JB Knacker-like. You will love our themes, colors, vignettes and wonderful gift ideas! Stay tuned for the dates and times of the event and in the meantime, come visit us and checkout all the goodies!!