Art Sparker made twenty-three signs for my Books sections. Thank you, Susan!!!
[See some of Sparker's creations, here on Redbubble.]
The lettering has a wonderful Edward Goreyish feel.
Some of the signs in place:
[The glare obscures the "&" in "History & Society" here.]
The books selection is a little sparse this week--it was picked over, over the holidays, and I've spent a couple days doing other things.
Such as...
II. Windows
Yesterday bink spent the afternoon window-dressing the thrift store.
(BIG thanks, bink!)
The shaggy remnants of Xmas displays were still in the two big windows--all the good stuff had been bought out of them.
We don't have a designated window crew, (I assume some of the volunteers did this in the store's early years but have aged out of getting themselves in and out of the elevated window spaces), so I've sort of taken that on.
But I'm not good at decorating BIG spaces, so I'm hugely glad bink was in charge yesterday. bink worked in theater many years ago and is good at setting a stage.
It's a bit early, but with limited supplies, the easiest theme to illustrate was Valentine's Day.
We've got lots of random red stuff.
Including a nice red bathrobe, below, right--you can't see in the late-afternoon glare, but the mannequin's underwear shows Batman saying, "Oh, SNAP!"
Here's bink & her work:
Heh, Bink got Tom Sawyered - Nice pop
ReplyDeleteof color for the season!
Nice window! I'm jealous of your shelf space. My store has itty bitty bookcases, jammed into the parlor of a house built in 1825, when people were quite wee. We barely have room to turn around in. The big move we're making this month is making a new section for Mysteries, pulling out the cozies from the regular fiction.
ReplyDeleteBut I like your "Cooking & Food" section -- now I know where to shelve the chef and restaurant critic memoirs, and Michael Pollan's book, and Fast Food nation. Right now, I shove them into the section I call "Defies Categorization".
The signs look fabulous! Classy touch to your book-space. Your little bookstore has come a long way since you took over. Congrats on making it such a fun and interesting place.
ReplyDeleteWindows are fun to do, despite the many limitations. But we should try to get some supplies like stick pins and fishing line that we keep for ourselves. Long term dream: one of your guys drills some more hooks, eyelets (whatever) into the surrounding walls/ceiling to provide more hanging options. I feel like this weeks big victory was getting the grandfather clock out of the window--the space now feels much more flexible.
Love the signs from ArtSparker. The signs are a nice touch and so much easier to see than the usual strips of tape on the edge of shelves.
ReplyDeleteCooking & Food is a good title for those more than just cookbooks.
Great job by bink on the windows.
Did you know that if you want people to look at a certain area put some red in that area? Red is an eye-catcher.
Kirsten
I love seeing what's on your book shelves. I would gladly read "The Hot Zone" again, but I think I'll pass on Dennis Miller's "Rants."
ReplyDeleteSPARKER: She even said she's like to paint the walls white! (The walls in the window area are dirty and scuffed.)
ReplyDeleteVIVIAN: OF COURSE we have a copy (or three) of "Fast Food Nation" too!
And that is indeed why I chose to include Food in the Cooking section.
LOVE "Defies Categorization" though: I might need to start such a section!
Like where do I put the books about trains???
I, too, separated out Mysteries & Thrillers from the regular fiction--Romance has its own section too. Those books are all 49¢, but they still sell slowly...
BINK: Hooray: THAT CAN BE DONE---the gathering of material and the guys attaching places to tie and hook things.
I am thrilled you want to do this--you are the best for knowing how to think about dressing big spaces. I look forward to doing our Easter windows with you! <3
KIRSTEN: Red. Works for bulls!
Actually, I think .. no, now I know because I just looked it up that bulls don't even see the red of the matador's cape, just its movement. But it sure catches our eye--it's nice to bike up to these bright windows at work, and nice NOT to see Xmas stuff.
STEVE: I've never read The Hot Zone--now you mention it, I will take it home (I use my books area like a library.)
I put out the full range of political opinion, but the conservative stuff doesn't move. But anti-Trump books do! The store in is a poor neighborhood of a liberal Democratic city.