Information overload.

Well pals, A LOT has happened this week. We have been keeping a secret for the past two or three months and were going to announce it this week, but we kind of got the rug pulled out from underneath on that one. What we were going to tell you was that we were going to re-open our shop Rhymes With Orange, at the same address but using only half of the space starting mid-April. We were going to sign the lease this last week for a year, but that has fallen through. So, new plan...re-do our blog, build a new huge online shop, and continue to do pop up shops once a month at various locations! Still very exciting, and we are ready for a change, we're just still wrapping our heads around the idea that shop will be closed forever...

Speaking of the shop, we are having a pop up shop in just over two weeks for the last time at our old store.

April 17 & 18 from 11 am until 6 pm 

at Rhymes With Orange, 223 McDermot Ave in Winnipeg.

We have started selling off furniture and fixtures on kijiji, but whatever we haven't sold by then will be available for purchase on the 17th and 18th. All of those lamps and radios and tables that you guys tried to buy over the past few years but we weren't selling at the time? Well it's your lucky day!

You can go to our Facebook page for photos of what is all available on Kijiji right now. The links with prices and measurements will be underneath the photos. We will continually add more the the list, so keep checking back! If it doesn't say sold underneath, it's still available!

We're so sad to part with these beauties :(

In other exciting news, we will be getting rid of our studio as of June 1, and I (Erin) will be moving into a 2 bedroom that we will also be running our business out of! I am trying to get rid of at least 1/3 of my stuff before June 1, so today I added a bunch of really great stuff to Thought Shapes under the housewares and vintage clothing sections, so go and check it out!

I will also be having a garage sale at the studio on Saturday, May 16th from 10 am until 5 pm. You can go here for more info. Mark it on your calendars! It will be the last time we have an event at the studio, and it's going to be a good one!

One more thing: have you guys heard of/tried the wonderful app called "Whurl" yet? Insert obvious pun to go and give it a whirl if you haven't yet! I posted a bunch of other stuff that I am selling over there and you can follow me, just search "ohsolovelyerin". The idea of the app is genius and quite simple- for all of you vintage lovers out there on the hunt for that perfect vintage piece but you haven't had any luck finding it, you just post a picture of what you are looking for and let the whirl community do the rest! Did you see something in a blog post or on a tv show and just have to get your hands on it? Or if you're anything like me and have ever broken one of your favourite mugs/bowls/etc and need a replacement, then you really need to check this out!

I have already had a bunch of sales because I had exactly what certain people are looking for! I'm going to be using it a lot, and I encourage you guys to try it out!

Download Whurl here.

Ok, that's all for now. It's a lot. We know.

Thanks for checking in. We'll be back more frequently starting really soon.

Pop up shop!

Well, we have some exciting news: we are doing a pop up shop in our old store this week on Friday and Saturday! We have a lot of new and old inventory that we need to get rid of and thought that a pop up shop would be just what we need, and just in time for Valentine's Day!

 We will be open from 10 am until 8 pm, giving you lots of time to come and check it out or to come pop by to say hello. We've missed you guys and could not be more excited to be back in that space, doing what we love! There will be lots of women's clothing, as well as housewares and accessories, so be sure to swing by. 

*We will only be taking cash and credit cards, so start saving those pennies!

Galentine's pop up shop

Feb.13 & Feb.14

10 am - 8 pm

at Rhymes With Orange

223 McDermot Ave, Winnipeg.

We hope to see you all there!

xo, Erin & Stef

End of an era.

So, I started writing this post on the last day that we had our shop open, but the day quickly got away from us and now we're already a week into January! All of December was pretty much a blur with birthdays, Christmas, our busiest month at the shop ever, as well as dealing with closing it up and preparing for the big move out of the store. Then came New Years eve, and here we are at January 7th! We have spent the last week relaxing, catching up on much needed sleep, spending time with friends and family and are getting pretty antsy to get back to work! We apologize for the lack of posts over here for the past few weeks, but we just couldn't find time, but not to worry-this new year is going to be really great, we can feel it in our bones. We have a lot of really exciting things in store and we will be filling you in in the weeks to come! Until then, here are a couple of shots from the last day or two at the shop, and the blurb I attempted to write but got sidetracked with everything else that was going on.

We definitely drank a few bottles of champagne that last day...

And just like that it was done.

Ugh. Today is finally here. We've been excited but also dreading this day for months now. Today is the day that we close the doors to our shop for good. We have been completely blown away by your support over the past three years, and especially this past month, we shattered all of our records and it's finally felt the way that we wanted it to feel in here for three years. It's so sad and I'm fighting tears just writing this post. So much has changed since we first got the keys to this place. We walked in completely overwhelmed and naive, in 50's dresses and positive attitudes. Sadly over the last year especially things have taken a hard turn, mostly in our personal lives, but we are getting through it and are holding our heads high as we walk out these doors for the last time.

Thank you. For reading our blog, for spending your hard earned money at our shop, and ultimately for believing in us! We have truly had the best time living out one of our dreams owning a shop! Now it's on to bigger and better things!

Not to worry, this is not the last this city has seen of us!
xo Erin & Stef

Shop Life.

So most of you probably know, but some of you still might not, but we are closing the doors to Rhymes With Orange in just under 3 weeks! It's so bittersweet, we have grown so much and learned even more in the past three years, but it really is time to move forward. 

That said, our partner Doug is officially out of the picture and we have the entire space to ourselves for the last month! We are putting new stuff out (and a lot of it!) every day and today we put out a huge batch of housewares that we had in storage. It's kind of exciting having the whole space to fill and we are cleaning and putting up Christmas decorations and re-doing our displays like maniacs, but it's starting to look really wonderful in here. Because Doug is gone that means that the majority of our men's section is gone, but we have saved up a few really great wool and plaid button ups. 

Everything in the shop is buy one get one 50% off!

We also just added a very large section of things that are only $10 a piece.

We are open every day from 11:00-6:00 and closed on Sundays. Come find us at 223 McDermot Ave and take advantage of our sales and get stuff while you can!

For those of you worried that you won't be able to shop from us anymore, not to worry! We will be launching a new online shop in January, as well as doing monthly pop up shops in our studio! We will be posting more information about that in the coming weeks. Who doesn't like to shop with a glass of wine and some cheese in their hand? 

We're suckers for mismatched vintage mugs, and these ones are now in the shop and selling for $5 a pop! 

This beautiful turquoise set of France glasses are $24 for the set of 4. 

This amazing cocktail (or shall we say cock-a-doodle-do) set with roosters on it is in mint shape and only $28 for the set of 6. 

These new brass necklaces are on our shelves and are the perfect stocking stuffer! They sell for $20-$25. The ones with letters come in two different lengths and we still have most letters left.

We will also be adding these bad boys to our Instagram shop just follow along at: @thelovelycloset

Ok, that's all for now. Thanks for checking in.

XO, Erin & Stef

Big news.

Well folks, some of you may already know this, but most of you don't. At the end of December, we will be closing the doors to Rhymes with Orange for good. Our lease is up at the end of November, and we have chosen not to renew it. The past three years have been a total roller-coaster, and it's time to take things in a new direction! It's bitter sweet to think about closing the doors seeing as how it's been way more successful than we ever could have imagined. At first it was hard for us not to think about closing as a failure, but it's really not. We had an incredible run, it's just time to move forward!

On the plus side, things are going to be changing drastically around these parts in the upcoming months. We are finally going to put our studio to good use. We feel like in the last year we've lost that spark to really enjoy what it is that we are doing. It's time to buckle down and get creative again; to start making, meeting, collaborating and truly be passionate about what we do once again.

We will be doing pop up shops upstairs as well as lots of other fun events that are in the works. So please keep an eye out. We will be doing a major blog overhaul, launching a new online shop, and much much more!

We wanted to say a HUGE thank you to all of you that have supported us over the last three years, and will hopefully continue to do so in our next chapter!

Obviously we have a lot of stuff we need to get rid of before we close, so we're having sales until then, so come on by! 

xo, Erin & Stef

Sales & discounts galore!

It's really mind-boggling that Summer is kinda sorta coming to a close! I feel like I'm just starting to relax and enjoy myself and now it's almost over? No fair!

Anyway, with the season changing soon, we do have some good news pals! We have so many fun cropped tops and adorable Summer dresses left in our shop so we will be doing an Instagram shop update over at @thelovelycloset today! If you see something you like, all you need to do is leave a comment below the photo with your paypal email address and then we will send you an invoice! We will be adding more stuff throughout the week so keep an eye out!

More good news! Our shop here in Winnipeg is overflowing with stuff and it's time to clean house and make room for new stuff. For the next week we will be offering 25% off of everything in the shop (excluding sunglasses)! Come swing by Monday to Saturday from 11:00-6:00 to take advantage of the sale!

One last piece of info for you cats. We are offering 50% off of our sponsorship program with the code "OSLSUMMER" for the next two weeks!

Check out our sponsor page for more info/to buy a spot for the upcoming Fall! The discount applies to the three month packages as well!

Xo, Erin & Stef

Exciting news!

We have some exciting news to share with you guys today...  You are now looking at our new studio space!!!

We are so pleased to announce that we finally found a studio space that is perfect for us that just so happens to be located in the same building as our shop! The above picture is just the 'before' photo because we don't actually get possession of the space until the middle of the month, but we were too excited to keep it a secret any longer! We have already been scheming and dreaming up decorating and design ideas for the studio and will be sure to document the whole makeover process with plenty of progress and inspiration photos!

The reason we have been in the market for a studio space is because we have really been wanting to expand our online shop into something more than just an Instagram "shop our closet" type of thing so we needed a bigger space with better light to take photos. In the past we have just taken photos in our shop but this has always proved to be a bit challenging because of all the inventory that we already have in there, so we wanted sort of a blank canvas to start fresh.

We are also really excited for this new space because now we will have a designated area where we can work on blog post DIY's and recipes (did we mention that the studio also comes with a kitchen?! We are really excited about that!) Over the past couple of years our brick-and-mortar shop has been our primary focus but this year we really want to bring our focus back to our blog and our online presence, and we think that having a separate space to work on those things is the perfect motivator.

Eee! We're so excited!! Well, that's all we have for now but be sure to keep your eyes peeled in the coming weeks for more progress updates and photos!

Hope you're all having an excellent Monday!

XO, Stef & Erin

Instagram shop update today!

Hi friends! Just a heads up that we will be starting a shop update over at our Instagram shop: "thelovelycloset" at noon today! All of our prices include shipping worldwide and all you need to do is leave a comment with your paypal email if you want to buy something. There are lots of cute printed tops and dresses that will cheer you up if you have the Winter blues, or will get you in the mood for Spring! 

We also recently made an Instagram account for our brick and mortar shop Rhymes with Orange. You can follow us along at: "rhymeswithorangeshop" 

Also if you live in the area, come by the shop today and take advantage of our storewide 25% off sale!

Have a happy Saturday!

xo, Erin & Stef

Christmas love at Rhymes With Orange.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here... and we couldn't be happier! We have been anticipating creating festive window displays for two years now, since last year our front window got smashed in at the beginning of December (perfect timing, hey?) So this year we made sure we were ready to hit the ground running and get our Christmas displays up ASAP! We dusted off our aluminum Christmas trees and even purchased some new hanging gold stars to go with our metallic theme for the front window. We wanted it to have a sort of classic 1960's Christmas feel: plenty of reds and whites accompanied with metallic gold and silver along with a few pops of cobalt blue and green. Ah yes, such a festive combo! All of the twinkle lights and old lamps give the store such a warm glow, especially when the sun sets!

We are really pleased with how the shop is looking so we snapped a few photos on a snowy evening last week. Take a closer peek at what the holidays look like on McDermot Avenue this December:

 Stripes + bows.

Twinkle lights, aluminum trees, & shiny gold stars... just a few reasons why we love the holidays oh so very much.

Vintage party dresses and fancy cardigans galore! All the makings to get all dolled up for a night on the town!

Merry Christmas from our home-away-from-home to yours! Have you all started decorating yet?!

XO, Stef & Erin

Business life.

I feel like it has been awhile since we talked about what's been going on at our brick-and-mortar vintage shop here in Winnipeg, so here is a little update. Honestly things have been pretty awesome. Sales have been doing great and all-in-all we have had a pretty stress-free summer which we are super thankful for. It has been a busy year so we decided to take as much time off as possible this summer to relax and recharge our batteries. Normally we work together for the majority of the week, but we spent most of the summer working separately so that we could each have more time off which was obviously super great... but by the end I started to really miss working together! It's nice to be back into more of our regular routine now that the weather is cooling off and fall is creeping up on us. It's always more productive (and let's face it, more fun) working together because there are always a million things to do and talk about. (ha!) It's also hard to believe that our trip is just around the corner! T-minus 27 days guys! Wow, that's sure coming up quickly!

We recently changed up our front window displays to make them more "back to school" inspired. This is my favorite time of year to make displays because there are always so many cute props that we can add like a stack of pastel books, vintage thermos', and obviously layers of cute knits! Here is a little peek at our current front windows: (The light was also extra pretty this morning and left some dreamy looking reflections on the windows too!)

Knits with cute collars poking out are fall essentials.

Our home away from home!

Looking for a unique vintage camera bag? We always have a bunch!

If you are ever in town be sure to come visit us! Xo

Rhymes With Orange featured on A Beautiful Mess!

Our brick-and-mortar shop, Rhymes With Orange, was featured on A Beautiful Mess today in their lovely At Work With... feature! We were so excited when we were contacted by Katie to do the feature right before we left for Thailand and are glad that things have finally settled down so we could participate! In the feature we shared a peek into our daily work lives and what it is like to own your own business.

Hop on over to A Beautiful Mess to take a closer look at our feature and read our full interview. A big thanks to Elsie, Emma, and Katie for supporting our vintage shop! You gals rule. Also a big congrats is in order because these extremely talented ladies just launched their new app which we are totally loving, so if you haven't already, be sure to check out #abeautifulmess on iTunes.

Psst... speaking of Instagram, if you like what you see in our vintage shop but aren't a local we also just re-opened our instagram shop so be sure to check out @thelovelycloset for lots of vintage and vintage-inspired gems! We will also be adding more pieces today!

Lots of love, Stef & Erin
XOXO

2012 in a Nutshell.

Here is a round-up of our favorite posts and highlights from 2012!

JANUARY:

-We celebrated our blog's first birthday! Yay!

-Our vintage boutique Rhymes With Orange also had it's very first press feature! So exciting!

FEBRUARY:

-We shared a cute DIY post on how to make your own scalloped felt iPad case.

-We each gave our tired old dressers a makeover and shared the results in this before & after post.

MARCH:

-We posted a simple tutorial on how to properly set your table with your favorite retro dishes.

-It was Stef's 25th birthday!

APRIL:

-We were lucky enough to go on a month long trip to Thailand, Malyasia, and Bali with our husbands! (photos found here: part 1, 2, 3)

-We also shared a little taste of Thailand with Erin's Tom Yum Soup recipe.

MAY:

-Our little mobile shop got a lot of amazing press in May! We were featured on Conde Nast Traveler as well as the MSN homepage! What an honor!

-We also did a fun spring outfit post with our cute new B.A.I.T. shoes!

JUNE:

-It was Stef's 3 year wedding anniversary in June so in honor of that she shared her 

wedding photos!

-We also made a fun DIY retro wood wall art post.

JULY:

-Our favorite thing to do in summer is eat outside so we shared some tips for hosting outdoor dinner parties.

-On Canada Day we had our first event of the season with our trailer, Olive! It was also one of the hottest days of the year!

AUGUST:

-Erin celebrated her 2 year wedding anniversary in August and shared her wedding photos!

-Stef and Emery went on a little summer trip to New Orleans!

SEPTEMBER:

-Come autumn we decided it was time to give our shop a little facelift so we bought an old hutch and gave it a makeover and we had fun creating back-to-school displays in our front window!

OCTOBER:

-In October we finally opened our vintage kiddo's section! We were so glad to finally check that off our to-do list! Erin's sister Megan also took the cutest promo shots for us featuring our friends' cute little ones!

-After our kid's section was officially launched we went back to Thailand for business/holidays and this time we also made a stop over in Tokyo where we got to visit a Cat Cafe!! (which was a major highlight for us!)

NOVEMBER:

-We were so honored when Elsie asked us to feature our home tours on her blog A Beautiful Mess! (You can check out Erin's home here and Stef's home here.)

-We officially opened our new online shop called 'The Lovely Closet' which you can shop here. Our blog also hit a major milestone during November: we reached one million views! Wow, we are still totally blown away by that!

DECEMBER:

-In December Erin celebrated her 28th birthday and Rhymes With Orange celebrated it's first birthday! Wow, can't believe we have successfully been in business for a year already!

*Whew!* What a year! Time sure flies! So curious to see what this year has in store for us...

Happy 2013!

Love, Stef & Erin

XO