La Retro Gifts and West Reading Holiday Glow Celebration in the News!

La Retro Gifts on Channel 69 News – VIDEO

“Some smaller shops let their customers sleep in this morning and stayed open later. WFMZ’s Pam Cunningham shows us how small shops did without newspaper ads, early hours and blow out deals.

>> REPORTER: The day after Thanksgiving and in West Reading you can see Santa window shopping for his long list.

>> EDDIE DANIELS: Everybody was really happy and buying things and saying oh I got this for Christmas, shooo don’t tell anybody here can you put this behind the counter that’s kind of fun to see.

>> REPORTER: At Curious Consignments, Daniels says Santa’s helpers were busy and helping his bottom line even in what’s considered a weak economy.

>> DANIELS: You’d never think anything was different we had a very very good day, sales have been soft for November but today you’d never know it. I mean all day long steady flow of people not too crowded, it was a fast day.

>> REPORTER: And that’s what Black Friday is all about going from the red into the black, here on Penn Avenue these shop owners say by staying open late it’s better for business for everyone.

>> LEE UMBERGER: People walk up and down the Avenue to actually look at different shops, when more shops are open yeah we definitely see more traffic in the store.

>> REPORTER: Umberger’s store 1-up Collectibles has been open for just 4 weeks.

>> UMBERGER: Sales today have actually been better than what I originally anticipated being that we’ve done very little advertising so I’ve been quite impressed by the number of people that have turned into sales.

>> REPORTER: The store next door is la retro gifts. The owner says the later hours help and provide a contrast.

>> HALLIE VANSZL: We mostly had people that enjoy shopping outside of the busy-ness of the big box stores so it’s been steady all day long.

>> REPORTER: And almost all the shops plan to stay open later Thursdays through Sundays until Santa delivers.

>> DANIELS: I think people are going to be freer spending now I really feel that at least from today’s sales it was great really had a good day.”

Website customers can get their Gus Fink Toys signed by the artist himself!

It’s true!

SPECIAL OFFER FOR ONLINE CUSTOMERS:
You don’t live near Reading, Pennsylvania but would LOVE to have Gus Fink sign your Gus Fink toys for you also?  We’ve got you covered.  Gus has agreed to sign toys purchased by our online customers too!  Simply purchase your toys from La Retro Gifts between now and December 1st, 2009 – then drop us a quick email note or give us a call.  We will hold your order for you – Gus will sign your toys while he is in our shop on December 3rd – and we will send your signed toys to you on December 4th.

RSVP to us through our Event Page on Facebook, or send us a quick note through our Contact Us form.

Where Art and Toys begin

Puzzle Piece Soap featured in Cool Mom Picks Holiday Gift Guide

La Retro Gifts has a fun item featured in the Cool Mom Picks Holiday Gift Guide.   If you haven’t checked this guide out you should!  It’s full of great shopping suggestions.

Puzzle Piece Natural Glycerin Soap, Made in USA

Puzzle Piece Natural Glycerin Soap, Made in USA

Puzzle Piece soap makes bath time fun! Six nose tingling fruity scented, hypoallergenic glycerin soaps interlock together. Helps young and special needs children with hand/eye coordination as well as color recognition. Every puzzle piece is individually hand poured to assure the highest quality, is approximately 1 1/2 inches long, 1 inch wide and weigh over an ounce each.

Handcrafted in the USA

Conforms to vegan guidelines

Hypoallergenic

6 Soaps in puzzle piece shapes

Scented with a fruity scent

We never test on animals.

Meet artist Gus Fink at La Retro Gifts Open House

We are excited to announce that Gus Fink will be at our shop on December 3 to sign some of his outrageously cool art toys.  Gus will bring with him original works of art and prints for sale also.  This is a perfect opportunity to get a fabulous gift for someone uber cool on your shopping list.

We will have some fun raffles going on as well as snacks – so come get into the holiday spirit with us!  This is the First Thursday of December in West Reading, so many shops will be doing something special for the holidays.

Stitch Kittens, Puff Dogs, Boogily Bunnies, and Boogily Heads will be available for sale (get them signed!).

Gus Fink  is a juried member of ALTERNATIVE ONLINE ARTISTS.

We’d love to know that you’ll be joining us to welcome and schmooze with Gus Fink.  RSVP on Facebook.

Lunch Notes – Free, fun and full of love

Yup, it’s that time again.  We’ve survived the back to school craziness and now we’re somewhat comfy and back in our groove…  mostly.  Now it’s back to our yearly debate – to eat school lunch or pack a lunch of our own.

The answer seems simple enough, if only I were the organized type of Mom that has their act together at 6:30/7:00am in the morning.  I’m not – so the great debate continues.  Hot, easy (someone else makes them!), supposedly healthy, yet questionably edible school lunch, or home packed, healthy (or at least yummy) lunches…

I hope to attain the goal of a daily packed lunch BEFORE my children graduate, and could use some good recipe suggestions for junior-high and high-school lunch options if anyone reading our blog has some yummy, healthy, simple to make suggestions.

My mindless rambling has brought me an opportunity to remind myself and anyone else that might be interested, that Lunch Box Notes are a free and easy way to hug our kids and give them a warm fuzzy moment in the middle of their busy school day.

Happy School Year!

Back to School Messenger Bags!

Hello everybody,

Back to school season is in the air. People are frantically scrambling to pack in as many summer activities as possible, every other commercial on television shows a gleeful parent stocking up on pens and pencils for their children and here at La Retro Gifts we have been swimming in packages of messenger bags! They have been literally flying out of the store as soon as we get a delivery.

Because they are so popular I have chosen them as my first review because I do NOT want anyone to be left out of the cool loop this September. Trust me, if you want to be hip and stylish this Fall you will get your hands on one of these bags (and I will do my best to ship it out to you before school starts!)

The messenger bags are made by three cheers and come in two different styles:

The ‘Hot Dot’ style (which I always mistake for “Hot Dog,” resulting in some comedic confusion)

And the Peace Sign print

Both are very stylish and the Peace sign design comes with a matching pencil case that I know we carry.

They are made out of a lightweight material which is convenient for keeping your load to a minimum weight, but still durable enough to endure all the smashing and throwing and cramming that will inevitably occur.

They have an adjustable shoulder strap so you can custom fit it for your height, and the best part is they have lots of pockets!

I have to say I love pockets. I always have pencils, erasers, mints, notes, my cell phone, keys, ID and whatever else I happen to shove into my bag all hanging out at the bottom being crushed by my books. Now everyone can be organized AND look awesome doing it!

This is the inside front pocket

This is the Main part of the bag

Easy-Grip handle for grabbing in a hurry!

Back Pocket

There is even a mesh pocket on the outside for a cell phone or something you need to grab quickly without having to open up your bag.

Cell Phone pocket!

This is an item that we sell online and in the store, but they are going fast so you need to hurry up and get yours before the new school year starts. (If you come into the store and we do not have them displayed, just ask one of the ladies who is working that day and we will be happy to write down your name and number and set one aside for you as soon as they come in!)

For many people, back to school is something we dread! We cannot believe the summer is coming to an end and another year of school is about to begin.

Instead of being mopey about it, why don’t you go out and buy yourself some new clothes, shoes, pencils and one of our awesome messenger bags. You’ll feel better already!

This is Amanda from La Retro Gifts, and remember:

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; We grow old because we stop playing.” George Bernard Shaw

Store Update!

Hello everyone!

Sorry for the delay on here, but things have been quite hectic at the store these past few weeks.

We finally moved!

…

Right next door!!

This sounds like a very simple process, but trust me it is far from it. Luckily we had help from Hallie’s wonderful kids and their friends. What good workers!

This is the old store:

so cramped!

The New Store!!!!

If you look close you can see Nikky twirling!

Look how far back it goes!

We are pretty much all set up in

the new store. We were open for business last week, but our awning has not changed from the previous store. We’ve had a lot of confused customers coming in and asking where the clothing is! Sorry all you loyal imagine that! customers.

As you can see our new store is much much bigger. We even have dressing rooms so the kids can try on the fairy finery.

There is an office and even a basement where we can store all the stuff that we ship to our online customers.

It is very fancy and we are feeling very special.

We have recently started opening on Sundays for a few hours during the Farmer’s Market on Penn avenue. We have a small children’s activity outside the store so the kids have something to look forward to while their parents are shopping for fresh vegetables and fruits!

The last time we did it Nikky was in charge. She did sidewalk chalk which was a big hit. This time I was in charge and I had the kids finger paint on a big sign that says “La Retro Gifts” and then we’re going to hang it up in the store.

It was a lot of fun and not as messy as I was anticipating! (I didn’t get a chance to take any pictures, though, because we were so busy!)

In a future post I plan on reviewing the “whirl O” toys so get excited for it!

This is Amanda from La Retro Gifts, and remember:

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; We grow old because we stop playing.” George Bernard Shaw

Art on the Avenue

Saturday was art on the avenue here in West Reading.

It is an annual event where Penn Avenue is blocked off and the streets are filled with art, food, music and fun. We were really excited here at La Retro because it was a great opportunity to get ourselves more well known in the community. We had hired two young ladies to do free face painting right outside the store.

Miranda and Roxy, our professional face artists!

Well it turns out they were serious artists and instead of face painting, the kids were given face masterpieces! Each child was greeted warmly and asked what they wanted, there was no list of things these girls could do. It was all up to the kids and their imaginations! It was really great to see how creative some of these kids could be! There was even one little guy that had a joker face, complete with a big red grin.

There was one small glitch in our plan of having an amazing day: RAIN!

And lots of it. When I got to the store it was pouring. Outside there were seas of white tents popping up all over the street, people in ponchos running for cover. There seemed to be a common theme with everyone: each face was etched with determination. Our June has been filled with dreary, rainy days. We were not to be stopped from having our celebration!

We were checking the weather constantly, and trying to ignore the fact that there was a small hurricane happening outside our door.

Then, finally, a glimmer of hope! The sun had come out, and with it, everyone who had been hiding in their homes for too long. The music started playing and the day had begun. We were now in serious business. The face painters arrived, sat down, and immediately got to work. In a short time there was a line of excited and clean faces, waiting to be turned into works of art.

The sun was faithful for a good chunk of time, but suddenly the rains came flooding back. (This turned out to be quite nice for us since it made everyone run for cover in the store!)

In the end the rain grew weak and the rest of the day went well. It wasn’t exactly sunny, but it wasn’t raining and that was all that people cared about.

All in all it was a fairly successful day. Everyone who came out enjoyed themselves thoroughly, especially those sporting a bit of “face-art!”

This is Amanda from La Retro Gifts, and remember:

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; We grow old because we stop playing.” George Bernard Shaw

Just a Quick Introduction

Hello Everyone!

Thank you, Hallie for the great introduction! My name is Amanda, I am the newest employee here at La Retro Gifts. I work in the store itself, but I also help to package the online sales.

And, as you have guessed by now, I am the new writer for La Retro Gifts’ blog! I am going to be keeping you updated on the goings on of the store. I will also be doing a weekly review of the products that we sell with some in store and online exclusives!

I spend most of my time in the store, and when I am not selling the merchandise…I am playing with it! I will be giving you the inside scoop on the hot new products and the classic favorites.

I will also keep you updated on events happening at the store here on Penn Avenue.

Coming up we have Art on the Avenue and then our big move!

Art on the Avenue is this Saturday (June 20)  from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. right here on Penn Avenue in West Reading! There will be artists, musicians, food, gifts and fun!

La Retro Gifts is having free face painting outside our store, so if you are in the area grab the family and come on over for a great time!

That’s all for today, but you will be hearing from me again very soon!

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; We grow old because we stop playing.” George Bernard Shaw

-Amanda

Welcome Amanda to our team!

We are sooo happy to say WELCOME! to Amanda.  Amanda is a recent graduate of Millersville University and the newest member on the La Retro Gifts team.  We are so lucky to have her with us – she’s awesomely fun, positive, intelligent and in every way just plain wonderful.  We are turning our blog over to her capable hands.  I look forward to the future of our humble blog, and what Amanda will bring to it.

Hallie Vanszl
Owner
La Retro Gifts