It has been an entire month since the last "Just the Thing" blog. However, in the world of retail, June is sort of the best month to take a little time to breathe and enjoy life before the SALE season (that is July and August) and the hectic fall season begin to arrive! This June has allowed for some of us to get some much needed R&R, but now it is time to buckle down and get ready for our BIG sales and our new Fall Arrivals.

This summer has been SO HOT that it is hard to imagine new fall merchandise arriving already...but it is!!! We make our best attempt to refer to the newest merchandise as "transitional", but let's all admit that in the south it's hot for so long that we just pretend it's cold and hope that by carrying our new "fall handbag" once Labor Day arrives that we will "wish" the cooler weather to arrive too!
So, with that being said, we'd love to introduce you to the first shipment of the NEW fall Trina Turk handbag collection that has already arrived. We are loving it! It is a really great look and actually does fit the bill of being transitional. How great would this look with a great khaki safari dress and gold sandals in September? However, you can't wait for then to buy it...these will be gone FAST!!!

Our Trina Turk rep told us that this tote was their most popular item ordered and that it sold out for them. Therefore, I doubt it will be around long...esp. at $185

This "Cameron" style is the prefect size handbag. It fits nicely under the arm, or it has a removeable long strap that allows you to wear it longer or cross body. So cute and priced at $225

We love the idea of these slightly "see-through" bags(79.50 & 89.50). Let's call these bags the "immediate gratification bags"...since you could start carrying them right away! The best part is that they are also dark enough to carry throughout the fall as well! The Trina Turk signature print is all over the bag, which keeps others from seeing what you are carrying AND the gold hardware really pops! How cute is the little cosmetic bag that comes with the bag pictured below? It's the little things that matter, huh!?!?


Ok, so these bracelets are NOT Trina Turk, but aren't they fabulous?!?!? They sell out everytime we get them in. Probably because they are super cool and because they are a great look for only $65! Get yours now!

Well that is it for now...we are off to the Atlanta Gift Show tomorrow to stock up on wonderful gifts for the Holidays. It's hard to believe we'll be looking at Christmas ornaments and decorations this weekend! We also hope to find tons of other new vendors to bring to the shelves of JTT soon! Thanks for reading and Happy Shopping!

p.s. SAVE THE FOLLOWING DATES: Columbia Devine Street Sidewalk Sale is Sat. Aug 7th!

Atlanta is participating in the Boutique Bargains Warehouse Sale and it is going to be AWESOME!!! July 23 and 24th..hope to see you there!!!

Atlanta Apparel Market

Early Friday morning Erin and Tracy were off to Atlanta to meet Terri at the Atlanta Apparel Mart. We were all so sad that Austin couldn't go with us. Her grandma was ill and she decided not to make the trip. We missed her!
Arriving around lunchtime, we hit the ground running in the search for great items for fall. It was a relatively short day with a lot of "note taking".

That night Terri decided to take us to "FlipBurger" for dinner, which is downtown on Howell Mill Road just off 75. A total "must go" if you are in the area!!!Tracy and Erin were amazed at how crowded this "burger joint" was, but then again Flip Burger Boutique is so much more than just another place to get a burger.

Mom's BF Glenn met us there, and they had been there before. Terri was so excited to get her favorite "smoked salmon burger" (which she had talked about all day by the way), but they didn't have it on the menu anymore. So sad for her (and us) because she totally had us wanting that burger too!

The variety on the menu was unreal. Tracy had a traditional bacon and cheese burger (I know, so boring) when there were such other exciting choices. Glenn had a crab cake burger. And Terri and Erin had Shrimp PoBoy Burgers. But, as you see below, Terri tried to go low carb with a lettuce wrap instead of bread. However, please check out the bowl of delicious fries that went along with the lettuce. Too funny! We were so full that we were actually reluctantly able to resist the "krispy kreme" milkshake - which I do believe would have set us all into a "diabetic coma". But, how good does that sound?!?!?

It was back to work early Saturday morning. We all had a great day seeing not only jewelry and handbags that we loved, but also checking out the great clothing that we have added to the Just the Thing collection! This new line below is super cute and perfect for Fall in the hot south!

We have to admit that by 2:30 when a certain showroom offered us either a glass of wine or a margarita, we kindly accepted. (wouldn't you?) Seeing as all of the showrooms fill our tummy's all day with candy and snacks, it was nice to have something refreshing to wash it all down! One of the perks!!!

We just had to take a photo of our "pick" for best looking showroom! How great looking is this all white room with the orange accents. Even if you don't like orange because of your college football affilitaion, you have to admit this is super pretty!

With a visit to Hobo to stock up on some great small leathergoods for fall, we had to snap a photo of our favorite Hobo employees Lauren and Kurt. We have worked with them for years and it is always fun to visit with them during market.

Then on to By boe to see owner Phillipe. How cute is he? And his wife and little girl are just as cute. Do you see the many, many floors behind us that we spend our days walking and shopping. It is so fun, but so much work. And you wonder why the wine is neccessary at 2:30?!? :-)

Phillipe's showroom is equally as cool with the white and orange accents. We stopped in there late in the day to have a cocktail and enjoy some music with their DJ. I think if you look closely at the photo, you will see Terri talking to the DJ...making a request maybe?!?!?

In the true spirit of our friend Anne Postic...aka "the Shop Tart" (who has the best blog in Columbia, SC)...we took more photos of our delicious meals.

Be sure to check out Anne's blog at http://www.theshoptart.com/ to follow the latest in fashion and food in Columbia.

Saturday night, because Tracy was in the mood for some seafood, we ate at C&S Seafood in the Vinings. We all had the scallop appetizer with calliflower on top...delicious!!!!

Followed up with Panko crusted flounder...which was also DELICIOUS!!!

After dinner (and after the dessert that we didn't resist this night) we headed to the bar at the St. Regis Hotel. Erin and Tracy got to cruise in Glenn's convertible and it was a gorgeous night. Tracy is still trying to figure out how to get 2 car seats into the back of a BMW convertible and trade in her gigantic SUV. A girl can dream, right?

Aside from all of the fun we had, which we did have fun, we got a lot of work done. We are very excited with the merchandise we have on order and cannot wait to fill the stores with it very soon.

As for now, our summer sales have begun in both Atlanta and Columbia to make room for all of the new items that are on their way. Come see us soon - Happy Shopping! T

Brand New Blog and what is to come!

Well, we are into June...we can't believe Spring is almost gone and Summer is on it's way in.

Just the Thing has had a lot of changes in the past 6 months. We closed our Athens, GA location after 3 years and we have missed our loyal customers there. The Atlanta location has had many cosmetic changes to the interior and exterior of their store. They will gradually be adding apparel to their collection.

The Columbia store has added on another 1000 sq feet and expanded into clothing as well. Both of the stores are really trying to focus on keeping the clothes retailed under $100.

And let us not forget our High Point location...we had a great market in April! We appreciate the customers who always come see us twice a year and we REALLY appreciate the local ladies who work with us and help make each market happen! The staff at each of our Just the Thing locations is what makes this all work so well.

One of the most exciting things for us this year has been the use of Facebook in our advertising. We have loved the opportunity to show our most recent product with the "click of a button". We reached 1000+ fans and continue to grow our customer base online every week. We are thrilled with the addition of this re-vamped website and thank Mark Pointer for all his hard work. Be sure to sign up for our email mailing list, as well as become a "fan" on Facebook. We always give special offers to those customers first.

We at JTT are constantly challenging ourselves to change our product by keeping up with the trends and bringing customers what they want! We want to do better everyday and continue to keep our customers happy and excited...after all, y'all are the reason we do this!!!

Be sure to check back on this new blog often. We will announce special sales as well as update new product photos on here. Terri, Tracy, Austin and Erin are heading to the Atlanta Apparel Market next weekend, so stay tuned for pictures of what is ordered and what will soon be filling the shelves at JTT!!!

Thank you, as always, for your support and friendship! Happy Shopping, T