Got a List and Checking It Twice...

Dear Santa:  We know you're busy working on your lists up there at the North Pole but we are in full holiday frenzy here at Huff Harrington, too:  our lights are a-glow, gifts are being gussied up, glittery wreaths are sparkly and the carols (a la Frank Sinatra and Edith Piaf, of course) are blasting over the music system.   We're all having fun being little elves.

We think your idea of having a list and checking it twice is wonderful!  After all, doesn't that make it so easy for everyone involved?  And while we never forget that this season is really all about the giving (and not the getting) we've all been wishfully day-dreaming about what we'd put on those little lists.  In fact, we love the idea so much, we decided to quiz our cute Huffingtons. We had fun imagining their letters to you, beginning with this sweet plea:

"Dear Santa:  I think I've been a really good girl this year. I've worked my little tail off at Huff Harrington Home.  I've unpacked boxes, re-arranged merchandise, moved furniture, taken the garbage out, called clients, wrapped gifts, moved more furniture and tagged zillions of items.  Please, please, please might this be under the tree?"

(So, darling Santa...please remember these hard-working and dedicated cuties when you're packing your sleigh...)

Linda (always chic and stylish): "I would love to have this exquisite 19th century French mirror at the foot of the stairs in my foyer.  It would offer that "last little glimpse” before heading out the door for a soiree.  It would make me feel as though I were in Paris every time I straightened my dress or fixed my lipstick." (Dan, did you hear that?!)

 

 

Linda's got her eye on this stunning Louis XVI mirror. We're not sure how the big guy in the red suit is going to get it down the chimney, but Linda usually figures these things out.

 

Allison's been coveting this sumptuous, elegant winter white leather jewelry box for a while now. Let's hope it's under the tree...

Allison:"I've had my eye on this exquisite jewelry box from Rowallan (Oprah also featured this fabulous company on her Top Twenty list this year) It's very Grace Kelly, very Orient Express and so terribly elegant. I'd love to have it perched on my dressing table or nestled somewhere in my..."

Meg and Ann: "WAIT! HOLD THE PRESSES!  Allison, we're so sorry, but the gorgeous Rowallan jewelry case just sold to an uber-chic client from Dallas.  So sorry, would you mind wrapping it and shipping it next day air?"

Allison (who oozes grace, tact and humor on an hourly basis), Part Deux:  Okay. (sigh)  I  have to admit our cute PJ’s jump out at me every time I walk by them. The fun crisp cotton prints (especially the monkeys) just make me happy, and so I have decided I have to have them.  Apparently, they have the same effect on our customers (we placed a rush order today for the holidays) and my daughter (they are on her wish).  She better be good…

Allison adores these monkeys, seahorses and octopuses - and all things preppie chic. We're pretty sure Katie will love them too...

 Emily (our adorable and super creative marketing maven): "With its mirrored top, delicate design & gold leaf finish this table is the perfect little accessory for any room. Paired next to a great sofa, it will keep any dessert or cocktail close. Now that’s a furniture piece that has its priorities straight; fabulous and functional!"

 

We can picture this snazzy drinks table chez Emily. Did you get that, Santa?

 Sarah (our sweet and smart gallery manager at Huff Harrington Fine Art):  “I knew this little jewel had to be mine the minute I saw it sparkling on the shelf at HHH. Bonus points for whoever wants to buy it for me – you don’t even have to wrap it! It’s pretty as a present just as it is. I’d love to take this beauty with me for a night out on the town – it’s the perfect size for my phone and some lipstick (all girl needs, oui..?). Santa, I hope you’re listening!”

Sarah's ready for a night of holiday parties with this adorable and sassy clutch. Watch out, all you elves.

Colleen (or as we've been calling this brand-new bride: Mrs. Strickland):  "Pain d'Alep  - my go-to hostess gift or stocking stuffer this holiday season.  Not only because this soap smells so amazing, but it is truly a gift with a fascinating story. Pain d'Alep is THE original soap! This castille soap, made from olive and laurel oils, has been made in the exact same way that is was made it in Aleppo, Syria, thousands of years ago by the same family. There are several imposters now a days but this is the only true Pain d'Alep."

 

The marvelously and ever-so-Frenchy aromatic soap, Pain d'Alep.

 (Ann and Meg: "We giggling just a little because Colleen really didn't adore this soap when we first got it.  It smells delicously and potently French and we're thrilled she's loving it now.")

Colleen: "Wait! Can I have one more?"

(Ann and Meg: Oh, okay....since you're a glowing newlywed.)

Colleen:  "I just can't resist baubles for your furniture.  This on my must-have list and I plan on draping it over my favorite pieces.  We just got these in and they are all over every design magazine I've picked up lately.  Santa, can you hear me?!"

 

In Colleen's world, even the furniture gets jewelry.

Sam (our Renaissance Woman who does it all): "I'm too busy helping my holiday clients get ready for the season and I'm up to my eyeballs in fresh boxwood, glitter, tree ornaments and centerpieces. But I'd be thrilled if Santa could bring me one of those super-soft and pretty cashmere scarves I saw in there the other day.  Hint, hint..."

 

Sam's been known to harvest her own greens when she's decorating for the holidays so one of these nice cashmere scarves will keep her nice and warm while she's trimming and cutting.

Alva (our very dear retailing expert): "This Graf & Lantz  handbag/tote is the perfect “go with everything” bag to use every day.  I love that it has brown, grey and black colors, since those are my primary fashion colors."

 

Our European-styled felt bags are a perfect fit for our elegant and ladylike Alva.

Ann:   "When I put on the cashmere cape to model it for our recent ad (which originally was going to be called Holiday Hangover until we thought we'd better change it to Holiday Happies!), I felt like rolling up into a ball, on a comfy couch, with a glass of bubbly and a beautiful book, and imagined living comfortably coddled in cashmere for the rest of my life!  So that's when I started dropping hints like crazy .Santa, Baby!"

Here's a shot from our latest ad where Ann modeled the heavenly cashmere cape.  Ann's been obsessing ever since about wearing this on her next flight to Paris. Cozy, warm and pretty...what's there not to love? Bill, please wrap it up for her - we'll add the bow.

Ann, Part Deux: "OK, you know this is my birthday month, right?  So I get two picks, right?  Well here's the second one that has been haunting me now for months.  It's a painting at our gallery by Audrey Phillips called Light Vision which I can't get out of my head.  I don't have a place for it, and we have no room for more art, but I know that if someone else buys it and I let it get away, I'll never get over it.  That's the problem with original art.  Once it's gone, it's gone.  And the thing about abstract art is that it's often a slow attraction, but once it grabs you, it holds you tight.  I think I see where this is going ..."

 

Ann's dreaming about this subtle abstract by Audrey Phillips. Light Vision, 38 x 53, mixed media on panel. Yum!

Meg:  "I'm drooling over newly arrived slipcovered club chairs at HHH (in Belgian linen with a creamy white flange...so pretty) but my heartstrings are really being pulled by some newly arrived art at the gallery. Specifically, a series of paintings that just came in time for Christmas from one of our wonderfully talented French artists, Andree Thobaty. We met Andree a long time ago and I've always been struck by her abstracted Provencal landscapes. I'm thinking about a pair of these, in nice clean floating frames...hmmmmm.

Wait, do Ann and I even get Christmas day off?"

 

An armful of heavenly French abstracts from one of my favorite artists...I couldn't possibly want anything else (except maybe those Belgian linen club chairs...)

So, what's on your wishlist?  Let us know when you come in the store between now and December 24th and we'll make sure your favorite gift-giver checks it twice.  And we'll make sure it gets it onto the sleigh, all wrapped up in a pretty bow just for you.

Bon voyage, Santa.

Ho Ho Ho from the Huffingtons...

(p.s.: we're open Sundays now through December 23rd from 1-5.  That's a little more time for you to cross those names off your own list...)