"I'm going contemporary!" She was seventy, if she was a day, a prim white-haired Yankee by birth and breeding. She thrust a photo at me and added, "I just ordered this camelback sofa and I need some funky end tables to go with it."
"Contemporary" is the hot new word in decorating. Queen Anne is out. So is chintz. Ruffles are a crime. Pyramids of pillows are passé. Most of our customers, young and old, are seeking a look that is sleek, sharply-defined and serene.
What they are calling contemporary is really classic design. Barbara Barry started the trend a decade ago when she created an amazing sofa with a sharply contoured arm, borrowing from a style that had been very traditional in England. Mitchell Gold took the same look and outlined the sofa in nailhead trim. That's been a huge hit for his stores.
From Baker to Crate and Barrel, you can now buy a variation on that theme in almost every furniture store in the U.S. They're calling it transitional. Maybe people are tired of the word - even the concept - of traditional. You, our customers, are calling it contemporary. It looks and feels new and fresh.
True contemporary is Lucite. Contemporary is metal, plastic and modular sofas. Visit Roche Bobois, where the showroom is filled with strangely curved pieces of furniture sitting low on the floor like giant slugs. Works in Europe. A tough sell in New England. That's contemporary.
At Furniture Consignment Gallery, we might dabble with the ultra-modern every now and then. We have no law against Lucite. What we do best, though, is high-end, traditional re-interpretations of the finest furniture ever made. Call it what you may - traditional, transitional, contemporary, modern - we know what you mean.
So when Yankee matron with the twin-set cardigan and the sensible shoes tells me she is looking for a more modern look for her retirement penthouse in downtown Boston, we have exactly what she wants on our floor.
Topics:
contemporary,
classic design,
manomet,
decor,
interior designers,
color,
plimoth,
consignment,
boston,
Interior Design,
Home Decor,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
decorating,
lucite
We pulled up in front of a massive mansion earlier this week to pick up some furniture. The owner, a wealthy businessman, was gutting the house down to the studs, then renovating and redecorating. He wanted us to sell his furniture - but he wasn't going to make it easy for us. 
Rule #1: Do NOT park in the driveway. He didn't want tire marks or oil leaks from our truck staining his beautiful, black ribbon of asphalt. He was very fussy about his driveway. In fact, he boasted, he forced workers to use plastic shovels to clean the snow from the driveway by hand in the winter so the surface wouldn't be scratched by a plow.
Tiptoeing across his lawn was tough - but well worth it. We loaded up several truckloads of high quality furniture, which you'll find in our showrooms this weekend along with furniture from several other high-end homes in Boston.
And, yes, it is true. The very rich are different from you and me. Plastic shovels? Well, if you insist. Which is why they choose to partner with us more than any other consignment business in New England.
Why Furniture Consignment Gallery?
I can think of three reasons. One, they trust us to come into their homes and to handle their possessions with care and integrity. Two, we have the skilled people and the right equipment to carefully extract items from their homes without damaging the hand-painted wallpaper or the marble floors. And, three, they know that their furniture will be beautifully displayed in our three showrooms - and that it will sell.
Mr. Big Shot insisted that he didn't need the money, but he knows his furniture - gently used - still has value. "I want to see some money from this stuff," he said gruffly. "I know I'm going to get the best price by consigning with you. Then I'll donate the money to charity."
So it isn't about the money ... but it is about the money.
Working with the super-successful can be challenging, but we do it well. Our business is built to handle it. When you visit the showroom this weekend, feel free to chuckle a bit, knowing we had to skip lightly across some guy's lawn to bring you the best furniture in New England.
Topics:
manomet,
family,
consignment,
boston,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
chairs,
quality,
chair,
dining,
dining room,
travel,
summer,
mirror,
shatter
Like any red-blooded retailer, I loved the state tax-free holiday last weekend. Our cash register was smoking after hours of ringing up one sale after another. The showrooms were jammed with shoppers eager to take advantage of the savings. Some were familiar faces. Others were new to Furniture Consignment Gallery.
One newcomer was absolutely giddy at some of the exquisite pieces she found in our showroom. She'd discovered two objects of lust - a Sheraton style sideboard and an inlaid china cabinet - and the longer she lingered in the showroom the more she found that would be perfect for her home.
"Do you deliver?" she asked. "Of course," I told her.
Suddenly, a look of consternation crossed her face. "Does your truck say Furniture Consignment Gallery?" she asked anxiously.
Turns out she lives in an upscale waterfront neighborhood on the South Shore. She didn't want her neighbors to know that she was shopping for bargains at a consignment store. She was afraid that our truck might signal she was suffering financial distress in a town that prized financial success. What if the neighbors snickered at her behind her back?
Little did she know that our delivery trucks cruise her neighborhood regularly picking up and dropping off furniture. In fact, we know every lawn ornament on the town's impeccably manicured lawns. Here's a secret: her neighbors may be moneyed, but they're also blue-blood Yankees. They appreciate quality, but they also insist on a good deal. And they know they can't satisfy both of those demands in traditional furniture stores anymore.
Mrs. Insecurity is in for a treat when we deliver her furniture this week. She has no idea how impressed her neighbors will be at the treasures she found at FCG - and her financial savvy in snagging a bargain price on that china cabinet with the inlaid satin wood. So, yes, our trucks will be rolling proudly into the finest of neighborhoods this week - and every week.
Topics:
manomet,
society,
gossip,
neighbors,
consignment,
boston,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
chairs,
quality,
chair,
dining,
dining room,
summer,
deliver,
hingham,
duxbury,
pine hills,
high end
So What is all the Hoopla about?
After all the tax savings is only 6.25%. Other than unleashing the libertarian within, the savings isn't great enough to cause a fuss. But, at Furniture Consignment Gallery we think it is a big deal. So we are making it one! This week only, you can take an extra 10% off the current price which brings your savings up to 16.25%. Now that is some hoopla!
Here are the details:
TAX-FREE Sale Event. Take 10% OFF the current price! Starts today on August 11th at 10AM. You can take 10% of the current price and take the item with you today! If you want to wait to purchase the item on the Sales Tax Holidays of Saturday and Sunday August 16 & 17, we can reserve your item, process your order over the weekend and then you will save the extra 6.25%.
Items reserved for purchase for the tax holiday can be picked up over the weekend, but not before. Delivery trucks will be operating all next week and we can schedule your delivery at the time that you reserve your item.
All Massachusetts Sales Tax Holiday Rules and Regulations apply. Under Massachusetts State Guidelines, items that exceed $2,500 are not eligible for the sales tax holiday exemption.
Our trucks will be running all this week, picking up items and bringing them in for the sale event. Great items are schedule to hit the showroom floors throughout the week and we will update you along the way.
Take 10% off today! The Sale begins Now on Monday August 11 and runs Through Sunday August 17th.*
*Items that drop in price during the sale event and all items that are in final markdown status may not be eligible for any further discounting.
Topics:
manomet,
family,
tax free,
consignment,
boston,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
chairs,
quality,
chair,
dining,
dining room,
travel,
summer,
tax
"No, no, no!" Ron
, the veteran manager of our store in Hanover, exclaimed excitedly. He was on the phone talking to a woman who was moving and thinking about selling a beloved dining set. "Don't sell it," he advised her. "You've got to keep it!"
If you overheard that conversation - and you don't know FCG - you might have been puzzled. After all, we're in the business of consigning quality furniture - and hers definitely qualified. Her dining room set was from Stickley's Mission Collection. Made with quarter sawn white oak, the set was beautiful and would someday be an heirloom. It would have sold instantly in any of our stores.
Was Ron crazy?
Actually, no. The woman had told him she wasn't sure about her plans. She didn't know where she was moving or whether the dining set would fit - in size or style - in her new home. Ron knew intuitively that she might regret selling a treasured piece before she'd had time to think through the decision. Sure, FCG would have made money consigning the set, but he was right to advise against the sale.
At FCG, we pride ourselves on our honesty. If you see an item on our website and call us to ask about the condition of the piece, you are going to get an honest appraisal from us. That means we're going to tell you about the dings and dents. If you call us about consigning a piece that you might regret selling later, we'll caution you to think twice.
"Put it in storage for the short-term," Ron told the woman. "Once you've decided where you're living, then you can evaluate whether the dining set is a good fit for your new home. And if you do decide to sell, then you know who to call - FCG!"
Establishing a bond of trust with customers and potential customers is important to us - even if it means we forego a short-term profit.
Topics:
manomet,
family,
consignment,
boston,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
chairs,
quality,
chair,
dining,
dining room,
travel,
summer
I was ready for a break. So I welcomed the brief lull in the store when the phones went silent and the parking lot emptied earlier this week. It didn't last long. Suddenly, I heard a massive crash. A large mirror had jumped off the wall to its death. Shards of glass were everywhere.
The dog days of summer are upon us. Even the furniture is getting agitated.
July is a weird month. That's when the showroom seems to turn into a confessional. Is it the heat or the humidity? I don't know, but for some reason, that's when wayfarers wander into our stores and pour out their hearts.
Yesterday, a pickup truck pulled into the parking lot. Four rambunctious boys spilled out of the cab and tore through the showroom like monkeys swinging on jungle vines. The oldest was about fourteen, the youngest was a toddler. Their father followed, looking sweaty and irritable.
"Cute kids?" I offered hesitantly.
"They're driving me nuts!" Dad replied. "You know, I thought we were done after two kids. I even went to the doc" - he winced - "so there wouldn't be any, you know, surprises. Then, after ten years, my wife decides she wants more. So back I go. You know, to the doc."
He closed his eyes and shook his head wearily. "Twelve grand it cost me to fix the plumbing! And that's just for starters! I'm on the hook, man. I'm on the hook for a long time. I'm looking at, like, sixteen years of college tuition."
What do you say at a moment like that? I had no idea. When in doubt, my motto is to talk furniture. "That's a mighty nice desk you've got out there in the truck, buddy," I blurted out. "Mighty nice! I think we can sell that desk and put some money back in your wallet."
Readers, if you're in the market for some entertainment, you gotta come visit one of our showrooms. Comedy, tragedy, we've got it it in spades in July. And if you're in the market for a desk, you'll make one poor guy a little happier.
Topics:
manomet,
family,
consignment,
boston,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
chairs,
quality,
chair,
dining,
dining room,
travel,
summer,
mirror,
shatter
Rain soaked and sweating from the stress of battling traffic, I found my seat right in time for the start of my son's middle school graduation ceremony. I was really excited that I was able to flee the showroom so that I could savor a few last moments with my son as an eighth grader. Sure, it isn't the same as commencement from high school or University, but I was still looking forward to this moment.
It was a nice ceremony featuring a well behaved crowd. Students thanked teachers and parents. They reminisced about the past and peered into the future. No one lit a firecracker. No one pulled a prank. All in all, the ceremony was safe, predictable and, well, maybe just a little disappointing.
All across America, commencement speakers are delivering the same speech to a new crop of graduates: "Be yourself!" "Take a stand!" "Make a difference!" Meanwhile, as a society, we're doing our best to squelch any sign of originality or any spark of dissension.
Neutral is the watchword of our times. That's how we communicate, dress and decorate our homes. Afraid of offending a neighbor, we paint our houses with the same palette of beige, grey and taupe. We shrink from expressing an opinion that might cause a tirade on Twitter or Facebook - and for good reason. The court of public opinion is harsh. Offend someone and you'll pay a high price in your life or your business. Neutral is safe.
This morning, I opened my mailbox to find ten Restoration Hardware catalogues wrapped together. The twenty pounds of RH catalogue is a great marketing idea that will be talked about by many, but what I noticed is a few hundred pages of greys and beiges. Not a splash of color to be found. It's not their fault, it is who we are as a people right now. We would rather be safe than sorry.
So my advice to graduates is to skip bland and go straight to unique. We are not naturally neutral. What the heck, I'm thinking of painting my house Margarita Green. Not beige. Not grey. And definitely not taupe. Why not?
Congratulations to the class of 2014. You have big things ahead of you and many challenges. In addition to solving the world's problems you need to find a way to add some color into your life and ours.
Topics:
manomet,
decor,
interior designers,
color,
plimoth,
consignment,
boston,
Interior Design,
Home Decor,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
decorating
She burst into the showroom like a dervish of interior design, bracelets jangling and coattails billowing. Trailing closely behind were a husband, a daughter and a soon-to-be son-in-law who seemed cowed by this new and unstoppable force of nature taking charge of his life.
As mother-of-the-bride, she'd planned every detail of the wedding down the last sugared flower on the cake. Now, she was on a mission to decorate the couple's new home. Her help was non-negotiable, apparently part of the fine print of the marriage contract.
She stopped abruptly at the first piece of furniture in her path, a Stickley cherry end table. "Look!" she commanded. "You won't see this at Ikea. Hmmm, $225. That's a great buy."
Daughter leaned in, eyes wide with wonder. Future son-in-law looked panic-stricken. What was his role in this drama? Agree? Disagree? Meanwhile, husband stood back, arms folded across his chest, clearly signaling that young couples should make their own decisions about tables, chairs and lamps.
To his surprise, Mom seemed to get the hint. She gave a last little speech on buying quality furniture then sent the couple off to explore our store. The young couple meandered off and discovered, to their delight, handcrafted furniture perfect for their starter house.
That morning, the couple excitedly took the first steps towards feathering their first nest. Beaming, they bought a Venetian mirror and agreed to think about a Bradington Young leather set on the second floor.
'Tis the season to be wed. Parents of the brides and grooms, you may be tempted to drown that young couple with well-meaning advice. But, here's my advice to you: RELAX! Sure, they're bound to make a few mistakes but if you point them in the right direction, they'll eventually figure it out on their own.
Topics:
newly weds,
manomet,
decor,
interior designers,
color,
plimoth,
consignment,
boston,
Interior Design,
Home Decor,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
decorating,
momzilla,
wedding
He shot into the showroom like he'd been launched straight from the corner office by a cannon. His white shirt was crisply starched, his shoes were shined and he reeked of expensive cologne. "I need a table," he said abruptly and somewhat angrily. Nothing fancy. Four legs and a flat surface. Where he could drink his coffee and read the paper. Alone.
Two days later, a black Escalade ripped into our parking lot. Out jumped a guy in surgical scrubs, a surgeon, sweaty after hours in the operating room. "I need a chair," he snapped. Something comfortable, he said, but he had to be able to fit it in his car and carry it up three flights of stairs, by himself, to his new and empty apartment. We found him a nice barrel chair at a reasonable price. Now at least he has a spot in which to sip a stiff drink after work.
What's going on? Two different guys, same week, same story. They came home from work to find the locks changed and the golf clubs scattered all over the lawn. I guess May must be the month for disgruntled wives to really clean house.
At least Wife #1 was able to offer one small act of mercy to the schmuck in the driveway. "Where do I go?" he asked his wife as he stuffed his belongings into the trunk of the car. "I don't care," she yelled out the window. "Get an apartment." Shocked, he stammered, "But I don't even have a bed - or a table."
There was a moment of silence then she apparently took pity on him, he told us. "Go to Furniture Consignment Gallery," she shouted then she slammed the window shut.
Topics:
manomet,
family,
divorce,
staging,
consignment,
boston,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
chairs,
quality,
chair,
dining,
dining room,
travel,
moving,
home staging,
relationships
They met as teenagers at a clam shack on the Cape, and fell in love. For the last twenty years, they've worked hard to build a marriage, careers, and a family. On Thursday, the couple and their two young sons stopped by our showroom shortly after leaving their lawyer's office. "We just bought a house!" the wife exclaimed. "On the Cape!"
Summer is coming and they have big plans. They want to take the boys to Old Silver Beach. Dad grew up playing volleyball there. Mom was a waitress at a restaurant in Woods Hole. Lunch there is on the agenda, too. They envision a summer filled with sandcastles and picnics. But first, they need furniture.
Buying the house tapped out the savings account, the couple admitted, but they wanted the place ready for fun by Memorial Day - in ten days! Thrift shop stuff is tacky. New furniture wasn't an option, either. "It's expensive and it lacks character," Mom said. "And we don't want to wait weeks for delivery."
For this family, Furniture Consignment Gallery struck just the right balance of quality products at an affordable price.
With the help of our sales staff, who are skilled at interior design, the couple quickly picked out a house-full of furniture from our three stores: two leather love seats, a cocktail table with storage for puzzles and crafts, and a sideboard for the foyer. The sideboard is perfect for stashing away keys, cell phones and all the other flotsam of their busy urban life.
They also snagged a hardy maple dining set and some end tables for the living room. At our store in Plymouth, they discovered a classic bedroom set by Michael Ashton - and were delighted to learn that we carry a line of new mattresses to complete the deal.
After that whirlwind shopping spree, the couple had one last concern: delivery. No problem, we told them. Furniture Consignment Gallery's movers would carefully pack up all the furniture they'd selected from the three stores into a single truck and bring it to the house in Falmouth.
With heavy rains in the forecast for this weekend, it is the perfect time to feather your summer nest. Stop by one - or all three - of our stores. Whether you're heading to a beach cottage or a mountain lodge, you'll find everything you need for that second home at FCG.
Topics:
manomet,
decor,
interior designers,
color,
plimoth,
cape cod,
consignment,
boston,
Interior Design,
Home Decor,
MA,
chestnut hill,
massachusetts,
newton,
Furniture,
Hanover,
plymouth,
decorating,
relationships,
cape,
the cape,
couple,
dating
