Cottage loves animals of all kinds. Like this hand carved horse head. Mount to wall or display as we have him here. Sweet.

Carrying on with the theme of too cute elephants...we just received these hand painted metal circus elephant hooks. The hooks are substantial and would add a touch of whimsy to any location. Extends approx. 5″ from wall and mounting circle is approx 3″ diameter.

Cottage will be open Friday and Saturday this week at 10:00am but we may close early due to the street closure for the street fair taking place on  Friday and Saturday. Fantasy Fest is upon us!

Paper Mache Elephant

Paper Mache Elephant

This elephant came in last week and it is just the cutest thing. Made of paper mache and hand painted, the elephant just sits quietly, looking adorable. There is only one of him so if you think you have to have him, hurry...



Changes

Changes have come to the Cottage, starting with the name. After hearing from numerous people that they "thought we were a Garden Shop", we decided to change our name from Garden Cottage to simply Cottage.
We have new signage and even some new inventory to reflect the change but we also still carry plenty of the same lines that many of you are already familiar with.

We reopened the retail store on October 1st and feedback has been amazing and appreciated. Here are some pictures of the shop.The retail shop is open daily from 10-6. Please stop by to say hello. Remember, we are offering Cottage Rewards. Every time you spend $50.00, you receive a $5.00 credit towards a future purchase. All we need to sign you up is your name and email address. That's it. See you soon!

Last days of sale

For the past week the Garden Cottage has been having a summer sale. A large majority of the merchandise has been marked down up to 60% and items have been flying out of the store. The sale ends Sunday which also happens to be our last day open until October.

Come stock up on your Thymes products now. When the store re-opens in October be prepared to see some fantastic new merchandise! Laurie, Doug and Dominique just returned from market in Atlanta and the store is going to be bursting with cool, unusual and elegant items, everything from a vintage, one-of-a-kind neon sign to cedar gardening boxes to the most delicate of jewelry. We can hardly wait.

The store may close but we will all still be hard at work revamping the interior. If you absolutely must have something, please call Laurie or Dominique at 305-294-3040 and we will open up JUST FOR YOU! Doug is going to be enjoying a month at his summer home in New York, lucky duck.

Have a great summer everyone!

End of an era

Key Westers's awoke to the sad news Thursday morning that Duval Street icon, "Fast Buck Freddie's Department Store" would be closing it's doors after 27 years in business. The owners cite that the retail market has changed with customers scanning products with their IPhone to find the same merchandise at lower prices. The brick and mortar retail market has changed and it will be a sad day in America when all of the privately owned boutiques stores have to close their doors. Duval Street will be forever changed as the next tenant will most likely be a major chain retailer that can be found in any mall, anywhere in America. If you love a small shop, please try to make a purchase in it. Yes, you might be able to save five or ten dollars by purchasing online but is that really how you want to make all future purchases? Is there no value to be had by talking to the shop clerk, handling the merchandise and perusing merchandise on a rainy day?

At Garden Cottage we strive to have merchandise available at every price point. We sell this adorable kitchen towel for $6.75.

This one with the chickens sells for $5.75.

It's not alot of money but these small sales can determine the fate of a retail shop. So the next time you are in a shop and you leave saying, "I love your shop", please leave with a purchase in hand, no matter how small.

Happy gardening...
Dominique

Roxanne

My, my, where does the time go? One moment it is New Years Eve and all of a sudden it's the second week in May! Season in Key West started out slow but ended up great. The weather was so warm across the country that some of our usual snowbirds opted to stay home and enjoy their own gardens.

Just in time for spring and summer we have received our line of Bosom Buddy bags. Woven of high quality reed and wrapped leather straps these fabulous bags will last a lifetime. They vary in size, shape and price so come in to try one out. They really add the perfect splash of color to a summer luncheon outfit.

Also new to the store is our extensive selection of "The Thymes" a complete line of fragrance for bath, body and home made right here in America, in Minneapolis, Minnesota of all natural ingredients. This line of personal care is extremely popular with our customers and we have several fragrances available. My personal favorite is Moonflower.

As always, we continually carry an assortment of pots and planters. Here are some of the newest arrivals.

Our website has been updated for purchases. Many of you are waiting for the ever popular starfish garland to arrive and I believe we may a have little while to go. We have ordered mass quantities and hope to have it continually in stock from here on out. It's fun to walk through the streets of Old Town and see it hanging along the porches of the beautiful little conch houses. We invite past customers to send in photos of their garland and we will post it here on our blog.

Here's to a wonderful summer! Happy gardening!