After Christmas Recovery!

Man, we're STILL recovering from our Day After Christmas Sale - which, if you listen to those who were standing in line, was awesome, and very close to how Country Pickin's used to be the day after - we take that to be quite the compliment!

If you didn't make it in (or even if you did!), we've still got some great stuff left! We ordered far more product this year with the intent of getting it online. Since that process took a little longer than we anticipated, we've got some really fantastic stuff left, even now. Come in to the store right away to snag some great deals!

Speaking of online, Chris finally had the moments he needed to release the next batch of products - Colonial Tin lamps, lighting, bulbs, and more! So be sure to check out the online storefront, too - there's a lot of stuff there that you can't get in the store at the moment (and it may or may not stay that way!).

Christmas Sale & Hours Information!

Today is the first day of our pre-Christmas sale, and if you're not here - well, you're missing out! Come in this week for the following sales discounts before Christmas, and don't miss out on whatever (if anything which, as we look around the store, we're thinking will be very little!) is left after Christmas! Also, please note that Demdaco Willow Tree items we stock year round, and are not part of our Christmas sales...

• Thursday 12/21 - All Christmas 10% off
• Friday 12/22 - All Christmas 20% off
• Saturday 12/23 - All Christmas 30% off
• Sunday 12/24 - All Christmas 40% off
• Tuesday, 12/26 - All Christmas 50% off

Also, please be aware of our holiday season hours!

• Christmas Eve (Sunday: 10am - 3pm)
• Christmas Day CLOSED
• "Day After!" (Tuesday: 10am - 6pm)
• December 30th (Saturday: 10am - 6pm)
• New Year's Eve (Sunday: 10am - 3pm)
• New Year's Day CLOSED

Merry Christmas, from all of us here at The Weed Patch!

Welcome Back, Weed Patch!

As it turns out, shortly after my post about the store having no power, the store power came back on (thanks, Grahame, for calling to tell us!). Interestingly enough, we recently switched over to a different server for the website, and it has taken some time to get that up and running. I BELIEVE we're now good to go, but that's definitely said with some crossed fingers.

Anyway, this is the last week before Christmas - and our Christmas stuff continues to shrink daily. Come on in for those last minute gifts, or just for some time out and about. If you're still without power, then come in and get warm and have some fun!

What a Season!

Between fantastic fun at the store, insane weather, an ultrasound that showed us a healthy baby BOY! (WOOHOO!), and now no power at the store, this Christmas Season has been crazy!

That's right - there's currently no power at The Weed Patch yet. It's 9am on Saturday December 16th as I write this, and we're hoping & praying for power sometime today - but we were hoping & praying for power sometime yesterday, too. The local utility crews are working as hard as they can, and right now we're just thankful that there was no damage to the store or the back patio in all this wind.

We'll keep you updated here, for those of you that are checking the site for information. Unfortunately, with no power comes no phone at the store, so we're really hoping that people aren't driving all the way out for The Village today.

We're also in the process of moving our website to a new, more stable server. As soon as that migration is complete we'll be updating the shopping cart software to create a more smooth checkout experience. We'll also be adding some really fantastic features, and - oh - close to 150 more products. This product update will include lamps, candle accessories, chandeliers, wax warmers, and more ... we're very excited! The next batch of products we'll be adding, following this batch, should be our Victorian Heart Quilted Throws, as well as many other Victorian Heart products - bedspreads, quilts, shams, pillow cases... keep your eyes here for more updates!

A New Product, and an INCREDIBLE opportunity!

We've introduced a new product to The Weed Patch (we're now Independent Distributors!) that we're very excited about, even though it's a deviation from our normal product lines. I'm proud to introduce you to a product that has made an amazing difference in Chris' life - and in Barb's, Betty's, Marcia's, Kelli's . . . the list goes on to include just about every gal at The Patch! The product? It's called Mona Vie, and it's an elegant health supplement that actually TASTES GOOD! The crown jewel of Mona Vie is the acai berry; harvested in the Amazon, the acai berry is LOADED with antioxidants, protein, phytonutrients.... Mona Vie's proprietary blend includes the acai and 19 other fruits; the "Active" formula also contains glucosamine and estrified fatty acids, which help with joint problems. Barb has lost 9lbs in one month, and her knees have improved to the point that she can walk up the stairs without pain. Betty's back is feeling better. Kelli - who could hardly walk up the stairs - literally spent all day Saturday running up and down the stairs (and Kelli has signed up as an Independent Distributor!). We're excited about Mona Vie, because it actually works - it's absolutely amazing stuff. Each week that goes by, Mona Vie makes an even more noticable difference in our lives. From a health standpoint, Mona Vie balances our bodies by providing the necessary antioxidants, phytonutrients, and (in the case of the Active Blend) glucosamine and estrified fatty acids which help maintain, build, and lubricate our joints. Mona Vie is not a miracle cure; that said, the results of everyone that has taken it faithfully are absolutely incredible, and the longer they're on it, the better it is. From a business standpoint, Mona Vie is also incredible. In fact, we're SO excited about Mona Vie that we've set up a website dedicated to it. This site is part of the Mona Vie, and has a wealth of information about Mona Vie. It also has some fantastic videos and radio interviews that will tell you more about both the product and the company. We are so confident that as an Independent Distributor you will see your health improve, and that you can make some extra income for the holiday season, that we're going to pay the initial signup fee for the first 10 people that come to sign up! So, if you're interested in tasting Mona Vie, or if you want to get yourself signed up, come by the store during our Holiday Extravaganza on Dec. 7th from 6pm - 8pm for a tasting. If you're interested before that, come by the store and talk to Chris! Don't wait - Mona Vie could change your life!

NEW! Weekly Featured Product by Email!

We've added an interest category to our email mailing list. If you're on our mailing list, you can manage what information you receive from us at any time by simply clicking the link in one of our mailings. We currently offer "Newsletter", "Events & Activities", and "Featured Products." Our new Featured Product email comes out once a week (Wednesdays) and features a product in the store and one in our online storefront. Sometimes (not always, but sometimes...) there's even a coupon included for one of the featured products! You can join our mailing list simply by putting your email address in the box in our top bar, and click Subscribe!

Santa Arrival Weekend!

This coming weekend, December 2 & 3, is the annual Santa arrival and tree lighting at Country Village. There will be caroling and train rides throughout the weekend. Pony rides from noon to 4:00 pm, weather permitting. BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND: Santa arrives in his sleigh from the sky at 7:00 pm Saturday only followed by a traditional tree lighting. Enjoy thousands of twinkling lights and beautiful lit displays featuring the giant sea serpent in the pond, fiddling pig, trumpeting angels, animated train, dragon fly, and more! Complimentary hot roasted chestnuts beginning at 4:00 pm Saturday 'til they last. Call (425) 483-2250 for more information. (as found on www.countryvillagebothell.com) Truly, this is a weekend not to be missed! Great shopping, activities for the family, and tons of fun! Come see us at The Patch, and bring the family!

HopeLink Wrap Up!

THANK YOU, everyone who came out this past weekend to support our Giving Thanks HopeLink Benefit Event! The total raised between the participating shops was $1500 and two boxes of food! That's AMAZING!

The Weed Patch would also like to thank the following shops for their participation in the event:

• Country Cottage Wine Merchants (www.countrycottagewines.com)
• Peanut Butter & Lily's (www.peanutbutterandlily.com)
• Chapters Photography (www.chaptersphoto.com)
• Town Hall Antique Mall
• Ye Olde Whitehouse Antiques & Candy Shoppe
• Pacific Nights

HopeLink Fundraiser Update!

UPDATE: It's 2PM on Sunday, and The Weed Patch has now raised $1016.47 for HopeLink! Hopefully this evening I'll have numbers from the other participating shops, so keep your eyes peeled here!

Well, it's 2:15pm on Saturday and the store is packed! There's people wandering all over Country Village, so we're hoping that everyone is doing spectacularly in raising money and food donations for HopeLink.

Currently, between Friday & Saturday, The Weed Patch (alone) has raised $681.60 for HopeLink (and that's not even counting the cash donation box sitting on the counter!) Come in and do your Christmas shopping, and let's see if we can hit $1500! Bring your food donations and put them in the bin outside, too!

As a side note, all our Thanksgiving is 25% off during our event this weekend, so come and get it while it lasts!

Keep your eyes peeled here for more updates at the end of the day, and throughout the day tomorrow. We'll also post the total here of ALL the participating shops early next week, once we have tallied everything.

Thanks for your help, on behalf of The Weed Patch, Country Village, and HopeLink! (www.hope-link.org)

Giving Thanks Benefit Weekend :: HopeLink

This Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (Nov. 17 - 19) we, along with several other shops here at Country Village, are hosting a benefit fundraiser for HopeLink, a local non-profit agency (http://www.hope-link.org/). We have donation stations set up for food, gifts, and school supplies, as well as two locations for monetary donations. There's information at The Weed Patch on HopeLink, for those of you who would like to know more about HopeLink and what they do.

Come in to The Weed Patch this weekend, and help us raise money for HopeLink! We're giving 10% of the total weekend sales to HopeLink; Town Hall Antique Mall is also donating 10% of their total sales, and Peanut Butter & Lily (formerly Fancy Frocks) is donating 5%. Chapter's Photography is donating all session sitting fees for this entire week; Pacific Nights is donating $1 for every Victorian Jar Candle sold; you can donate school supplies and gifts at The Whitehouse Antiques & Candy Shoppe.

So come, bring friends and family, and help raise some money for families that need a helping hand!

The Holiday Open House was a SUCCESS!

Thanks to everyone who came in to the store this past weekend for the Holiday Open House here at Country Village. We had a lot of fun, even though the store was so packed you couldn't walk through it!

For those of you who didn't make it in, the store has been coverted over to Christmas, and HOLY COW does it look good! I would encourage you to plan on coming in this Friday (17th) / Saturday (18th) / Sunday (19th) to see the store! If you're looking for Christmas stuff, we've got what you want - and it's going fast! Some of it we can't get again, so don't wait to come in if you're looking for something specific. Also, this weekend is our Giving Thanks Hopelink Benefit Event - come shop, and we'll give 10% of the total weekend (Fri - Sun) sales to HopeLink! There's several other shops participating, too - so come on down to The Village this next weekend!

Annual Holiday Open House

The Country Village Annual Holiday Open House is THIS WEEKEND! Come enjoy the Black Belt Magician's Street Magic from 1 - 4:30 on Saturday, Erin & Josh's Christmas Carols throughout the day on Saturday, hot roasted chestnuts provided by Country Village, and SO much more! The place is decked out for Christmas, and the shops are in the holiday spirit!

Saturday November 11: 10am - 8pm (Village-wide)

Sunday November 12: 11am - 5pm (The Patch - 10am - 6pm)

It's ALMOST DONE!

That's right - Christmas has arrived at The Patch! We're putting the final touches on our Christmas displays, and boy-oh-boy - you've NEVER seen The Patch look like THIS before! We've got glitter, houses, stars, angels, santa, snowmen, gingerbread, sports, vintage, Victorian, more snowmen, animals, and ... yeah, I'm probably forgetting something! Come spend a few hours browsing through The Patch, and get into the holiday spirit!

Last Weekend Before Christmas Comes Out!

Boy does time fly! We've still got some fantastic Fall, Halloween, and Thanksgiving items at the store, but if that's what you're looking for you'd better be quick! Starting this coming Monday evening we'll be starting to convert the store over to Christmas! Why so early? The upcoming Holiday Open House on November 11 & 12, of course! And with SO MUCH Christmas stuff, we are anticipating a VERY long conversion.

That said, we KNOW you'll love Christmas at The Patch this year! The store will be a Christmas wonderland, full of goodies and gifts for those on your list as well as yourself. And with all our regular stock out on the floor this season you'll still be able to get all your favorite things!

Harvest Festival Summary!

This past weekend was the Annual Harvest Festival at Country Village, and BOY was it fantastic! There were pony and train rides for kids as well as an inflatable "bouncy" castle, and a face painter. On Saturday Japanese drummers took the stage in the afternoon, and a belly dancing festival went late into the night. Sunday saw Valentine's Performing Pigs on stage, and our close friend Gary McKibben Black Belt Magician entertaining crowds right in front of The Patch. For those of you who missed Gary, he'll be performing again on Saturday October 28th during the day at the store for our Happy Halloween Party - you and your kids will BOTH love Gary! In addition to all of this, there was a great craft show with everything from jewelry to paintings, fresh squeezed cider to fresh produce and fresh flowers.

If you missed the Harvest Festival, then mark two things down on your calendar right now - our Happy Halloween Party (October 27, 28, 29) and Country Village's Holiday Open House (November 11, 12) - you don't want to miss either of these events!

Essay Contest for our Newsletter!

If you don't yet receive "From The Patch," you're missing out. October's newsletter was 16 pages of craft projects, decorating tips, recipes, event information, news, products, coupons, and so much more! One thing we'd really like to do with "From The Patch" is to get the involvement of you, our customers. To help facilitate that, we're holding an Essay Contest! The details are below - we hope you're participate!

Each newsletter will now feature a question relating to homemaking, gardening, celebrating, the seasons, and any other aspect of simple country living that we can think of. The winning letter will receive a $25 gift certificate to The Weed Patch.

For this quarter's newsletter, we'd like to know:

"What Makes Your House a Home?"

Send us a note with your most creative ideas and best tips, and you could be published in the next newsletter. Send in your answers to our question along with your name, address, phone number or email address to: 814 238th St. SE Suite A Bothell, WA 98021. Submit by email at newsletter@theweedpatchstore.com, or even by fax if you'd prefer: our fax number is 1-801-640-5804.

Deadline for submitting an entry: October 31, 2006

Enteries must be original and will be judged on:

• creativity
• quality
• practicality
• originality

Content may be edited for style, length, and clarity. No purchase is necessary to take part in the fun. The winner will be announced in our December Newsletter.

E-Mail :: newsletter@theweedpatchstore.com

Loreena McKennitt soon to release a new album!

One of our favorite artists, Loreena McKennit, is close to releasing her newest studio recording. Loreena is a Canadian singer/composer who spends years researching her music. Primarily a Celtic artist, she blends music from around the world into truly moving pieces. Her newest album is titled "An Ancient Muse" and blends Scottish and Irish balladry with musical influence from Scandinavia to Spain, Greece to Turkey. "An Ancient Muse" will be released in mid-November.

Loreena's music is absolutely fantastic - come by the store to hear a sample! We stock all of Loreena's Albums:

• Elemental (Quinlan Road, 1985)
• To Drive The Cold Winter Away (Quinlan Road, 1987)
• Parallel Dreams (Quinlan Road, 1987)
• The Visit (Quinlan Road, 1991)
• The Mask And Mirror (Quinlan Road, 1994)
• A Winter Garden: Five Songs For The Season (Quinlan Road, 1995)
• The Book Of Secrets (Quinlan Road, 1997)
• Live In Paris And Toronto (Quinlan Road, 1999)

Black Belt Magician at The Patch!

Our close friend Gary McKibben will be at The Weed Patch on Sunday October 8th from 1:30pm - 5pm performing magic that the entire family is sure to enjoy! Gary is a friendly, funny entertainer who performs locally. Come check him out!

Annual Harvest Festival

September has been an amazing month, with so much new product that you could literally come in every day and see something new! We've added more Fall & Halloween items, including fantastic gourds that will be color and interest to any home.

Our best newsletter to date should go into the mail this next week, so if you're not on the mailing list be sure to click the link on the top bar and sign up. It's got coupons, recipes, craft projects, home decorating tips, event information, and SO much more! Tell your friends, too - I'm sure they'll love it!

One week from today is the first of a two day annual festival here at Country Village - the Harvest Festival. There's live music, scarecrow making, pumpkin painting, train and pony rides, freshly squeezed apple cider . . . it's a family event that you just shouldn't miss! Saturday October 7 from 10am - 6pm (We're here 'til 8!) & Sunday October 8 from 11am - 5pm (We're here 10 - 6!)

Come out and check it out!

Photo Gallery Updated

We've added some more photos to the photo gallery - check out the Fall section under Products!

Online storefront coming VERY soon!

Well, we've now receieved orders via email from those of you looking through our photo gallery - so you'll be very excited to know that the initial release of our online storefront should happen within the next few days, barring dramatic happenings at the store. Chris has everything working, and just needs to get product into the database. The initial product offering will be smallish, due to the time it takes to add products to the database. But never fear - the products available will grow and grow! Sign up for our newsletter for online coupons, and to receive notification of the release of the site.

What a weekend!

To all who attending the party this weekend, thanks for the fun! It was a very busy weekend here, from activities to flash sales to food and drink - we hope everyone enjoyed it as much as we did. This time around, our flash sales included a wide variety of items and themes - from chicken, crow, and star to furniture, art, food, and even a discount on the entire purchase!

We've also had some new items come in to the store that we're very excited about. We've got some absolutely fantastic jams that you just HAVE to try. We've got some new fall and Halloween items, as well as more of our wonderful everyday stuff!

This coming Friday (September 22nd) the Art & Soul Gallery here at The Village is hosting a "Wine, Women Artists, and Chocolate" evening from 6pm - 9pm. They're being catered by Papa's Place and Country Cottage Wines, and the evening should prove to be fantastic. If you come out to the party, be sure to ask at the counter for a special coupon for The Weed Patch. This coupon will be available only at the party, so come in and see what happening, and grab a great coupon for The Patch!

Upcoming Party!

What an exciting week this has been, leading up to this weekend's celebrations at the store! We've seen several very fun new fall and Halloween products come in, and we've been adding more and more decorations to the store to help spread that "Fall Mood" that we love so much. Speaking of this weekend, it's looking like it's going to be absolutely fantastic. Tomorrow (Friday) Janee Carlson of The Red Shed will be available to answer questions about home decorating from 4pm - 6pm. Janee offers home decorating services in addition to some fantastic products at The Red Shed. Then, from 6pm - 8pm we've got a wine tasting going on the back patio. With a beautiful waterfall and pond, surrounded by hundreds of flowering plants, wine just seems appropriate. Come enjoy a glass and relax on the benches, or wander through the store. Chris worked more on the website today - the storefront is really coming along. The design work is almost done being implemented (there's a few other things to figure out and change); once that's done we'll start putting product online for you to browse and purchase. Be sure to check out the photo gallery, too - it's definitely in its infancy, but there are a few photos to start with. Chris and Janene will be adding to the photos as quickly as time allows, so that you can see the store in all its glory, and get a feel for our products as well as the fun we always have! Please join us this weekend for our big party - download a flier about it here!

Welcome to our blog!

Welcome to theweedpatchstore.com, and our brand new blog! Here we'll keep you abreast of new products, events, specials, and other information that you just need to know. We'll also keep a running blog about daily life at The Weed Patch, so that you can get to know us better! Please feel free to ask us questions if there's something you'd like to see addressed in these blogs - the best email address for that is sales@theweedpatchstore.com. Thanks, and welcome! Chris & Janene Don & Esther