Every once in a while it’s nice to start over. That paradigm certainly plays a part here on the floor at Architect’s Wife—our showroom “flips”, as it were, help keep things fresh and vibrant and interesting and fun. Extending the concept to our website was a very easy step… After a long time with a very static web presence, we’ve relaunched our site with some fun new features and capabilities.
We’re bringing a series of collections to life and featuring a variety of products and furnishings that are now available to order online. It’s a small start, but will be growing as we add more collections to the mix and showcase more of what’s possible here at AW. We hope you enjoy the updated site and find some inspiration!
Check out the four collections below and stay tuned for more!
Once in a while you come across a product that you immediately fall in love with. The colors, the texture, the fabrics, the stitching—the stitching! It all simply adds up to something greater than the sum of the parts. That product for us right now? This classic canvas and leather duffel bag from W Durable Goods. In fact, we love it so much, we want to share it with one of you via our first ever Instagram auction. How’s it going to work you might ask? Read on, dear friends. The details and rules are as follows:
Where and when does this go down? The action gets started at 12pm MST on Friday, February 22 on our Instagram feed @architects_wife. Simply jump on in, give us a follow, and check in after 12 noon on Friday and before 12 noon on Saturday (when the auction ends). Click ‘comment’ on the auction post and leave your information to bid. It’s that simple!
How do I bid? Bidding opens at 12pm MST on Friday, February 22 and closes at 12pm MST on Saturday, February 23. We’ll start the bidding out at $30, and we’ll see where it goes! To bid, click on the auction post and then just leave a comment. Place a bid at least one dollar higher than the previous bid, and tag the person who placed the previous bid. The post will be open for bidding until noon on Saturday, at which point we’ll close it down and announce the winner.
How do I pay? You will be sent an invoice from us via PayPal within 24 hours of the end of the auction. You will then have until midnight on Sunday, February 24 to pay the invoice. If you are unable to do so, the item will go to the next highest bidder.
Do you have other questions? Feel free to reach out via the Instagram app, and we’ll see you out there!
Architect’s Wife is currently looking for an experienced, results-driven sales and operations professional in Bozeman, MT. Ideal candidate will work well with existing team and focus on inventory administration, sales, and operations. We are looking for an organized individual who understands the importance of design and has excellent communication skills.
As a Sales and Operations Associate with Architect’s Wife you will:
WORK THE FLOOR
● Greet customers, and assist with furniture/art/lighting selections – explaining the features and benefits of each product
● Assist with overall showroom aesthetic
● Network regularly with contractors and designers
● Follow up in a timely and professional manner with customers on all requests or concerns
MANAGE INVENTORY
● Create purchase orders for store inventory and special orders
● Maintain records of inventory on hand, on order, and listed on E-COM website
● Place orders and track them with the vendor
● Receive the orders into inventory, inspecting, counting, pricing and tagging
● Update inventory locations in POS as items move off-site from showroom
● Communicate with receiving and storage facility
● Eliminate inventory shrink and damage
● Monitor inventory on E-Com
RECEIVING AND DOCUMENTING INVENTORY
● Document product information and item photos for items received into POS system
● Help unpack and store items arriving via UPS, FedEx, DHL or other deliveries.
● Verify accuracy of received products (does packing list = expected shipment).
● Report any damages or shortages, file claims as needed
● Verify photos are taken and recorded for any damages.
● Upload all inventory imagery into POS / ECOM system
Qualifications:
● Design or strong retail sales background preferred
● Ability to connect and develop relationships
● Strong computer and organizational skills necessary
● Excellent communication skills, written and verbal.
● Mathematical proficiency required
How to Apply:
Please provide the following:
● An up-to-date resume and brief cover letter outlining your experience for the position, send to allison@architectswife.com
Your childhood home: it’s a place where first memories are formed. These memories may involve 80’s gems like a seashell-shaped bathroom sink or Laura Ashley bedding. If the 90’s were your formative years, wicker furniture and faux finished walls ruled, and the “Friends” apartment color-palette inspired teenage bedrooms. Your parents’ design choices in your first home made an impression on you, whether it be a model to replicate or run from.
With that in mind, we talked to 6 Bozeman interior designers about their childhood home. What did they love about their house? Here’s what they had to say.
My parents built our house and it was strangely modern and ahead of its time. I say strangely modern because my parents are more traditional, but they chose to listen to their young architect who was very focused on energy efficiency and had a more modern aesthetic. They chose to spend extra money on energy-saving features, namely windows. My mom was an amazing landscaper and her handiwork softened those oversized windows. I also loved that my parents let us choose the paint color for our rooms, I chose blue.
If I could change one thing I would move our house closer to town and maybe not use parquet flooring :).
I grew up in my father’s childhood home in Great Falls. My parents bought the house from my grandparents who built it in the 50’s. It’s a ranch style house with lots of custom/cutting edge design features (for the time). It had radiant heated floors, built-in sound system, firewood storage that is accessed from inside and outside, lots of birch built-ins, even a little built-in spot for a projector. It was really thoughtfully designed with great outdoor spaces that were well blocked from the relentless Great Falls wind. My parents still live there; I think my dad has lived there at least 50 years now.
When I was little I would crawl inside one of the built-in cabinets (see picture). Also, the house has a HUGE driveway that we loved riding bikes and Power Wheels on.
I moved from Long Island to Montana when I was 14 years old so most of my younger years were spent in New York. My childhood home was very cozy and comfortable. It wasn’t big but tastefully done. We also had a pool and I loved that!
Looking back, I remember I would always rearrange accessories, furniture, and fluff pillows. I loved that I used to change my room around all the time [not] realizing years later I would go into the Interior Design profession! I would shut my door and move my bed, nightstand, desk, and armoire all by myself (poor wood floors!). I played in my room all the time. I would say that was my favorite space! Our kitchen and great room were also very open to each other and I liked that.
Ashley Sanford and Kelly Lovell
Clean Lines Consulting
We grew up in Tuscaloosa, Alabama (the deep south), in the same neighborhood that our grandparents, multiple aunts, uncles, and cousins lived in, and a hundred feet from where our mother grew up. It had a deep backyard full of trees and a creek running beside it. We have lots of memories of running down the ditch catching frogs and tadpoles and are thankful we never had any run-ins with the poisonous snakes that most surely lived there :). Our mother and her sister had an interior decorating business as well (which was the one thing we both swore we’d never do!) so our home was always changing. Because it was in the South, our house was full of items that had special family significance, like Great Aunt Ora’s fencing sword from college, or Granddaddy’s antique clock, and rugs that had belonged to someone’s cousin. It was also the place where our habit of dressing alike by accident began (it’s a habit that we still have to this day).
Our mom also encouraged us to develop our own style. This is the place where I dreamed up a periwinkle purple bedroom and got to execute the vision myself (Ashley). Looking back, probably the only thing we didn’t love was that periwinkle bedroom because we had to share it. Kelly was about as obsessive about order then as she is now, and as a 6-year-old, she ran a line of blue tape down the center to keep all of my mess on one side.
My childhood home was nestled in the rolling hills of a small town in Vermont. The woods, rivers, ponds, dirt roads and covered bridges were our playgrounds. My exterior surroundings were as influential as my actual house which is why I feel natural elements always find their way into my designs, whether through colors, textures or materials. These elements provide a sense of warmth and timeless quality that cannot be contrived. The house was small and cozy with a central wood burning stove, which I still miss to this day, tongue and groove accent walls, heirloom furniture pieces handed down from great-grandparents, braided rugs and farmhouse knick knacks……quintessential New England. What I love most about my childhood home was the mixture of materials and finishes and how they complimented the natural surroundings……and yes we even had butterfly wallpaper, seriously. I still love to incorporate a touch of whimsy in my designs because who doesn’t need a touch of whimsy!
As a child, we moved around a lot so it’s tough to pinpoint one thing I loved about my childhood home. For that reason, our homes were more about lifestyle rather than a certain look. For my parents, location was more important than functionality. One time we literally walked our belongings down the street and moved to a new home because it was on the lake in our neighborhood.
Our homes were always well appointed. We learned quickly that sitting on the arm of a chair was not okay, but every room in the house was accessible and kid-friendly. Everything was functional because moving knick-knacks is just one more box that needs to be packed. Now, as an adult, I’ve chosen to put down roots in one place and I’ve lived in the same house for eleven years now.
Father’s Day will be here before you know it, and we’ve put together a collection of great gifts for the father figure in your life. Is he a lover of the wild? A bibliophile? A foodie? Whatever his interests, we have something sure to make dad happy.
Stop by the shop at 23 West Babcock every Friday between 11:30 and 2, starting June 1st through the 29th and enjoy an old favorite—or try something new! It’s lunch at AW every Friday in June and we can’t wait to see you here.
Mother’s Day is May 13th, i.e., less than one week away. It’s time to kick it into gear, and get your special lady something that celebrates her! If you’re not sure what to get the mother figure in your life, we’ve rounded up 15 beautiful options. Whether she’s a reader, loves to entertain, or can’t wait to explore the wild, we’ve got you covered.
It’s time for spring cleaning starting with a Clearance Tent Sale in our parking lot!
This is your chance to get high-end designer pieces at a great price! We’re cleaning out our warehouse full of products we have used to stage homes, items purchased at auctions, and slightly damaged items. Shop designer furniture, rugs, lighting, as well as antique one-of-a-kind finds up to 80% off! Bring your friends and make a morning of it – we’ll provide the donuts and coffee.
Where: Join us downtown in the Architect’s Wife parking lot…under the big white tent!
23 W. Babcock Bozeman, MT 59715
When: Friday, April 20th and Saturday, April 21st from 10:00 am – 6:00 p.m.
Can’t make the Tent Sale? You’ve got a whole WEEK to save big in-store at our annual Spring Cleaning Sale happening April 20th – 28th, 2018. Get 30 % off storewide* and 10% off art.
All sales final.
Prices as marked.
Sale is for locals only – no online orders.
Large items purchased at Tent Sale must be picked up by 6 pm Saturday, April 21, 2018
On the top floor of the Emerson Center for the Arts and Culture, Cherlyn Wilcox’s studio is pulsing with creativity, energy, and today a mix of classic jazz. The abstract artist often calls her studio a mess, but there is a pleasant harmony to the groupings of oil paint, acrylic, graphite, and colored pencils. Dozens of canvases line the walls, on shelves, on easels, and propped against the wall. The range of Cherlyn’s work is impressive; the pieces in the North East corner are dark and moody, full of rich blues and greens; high on the top shelves on the South wall sit canvases with light blues, pinks, and yellow, evocative of her Hawaiian roots. “It’s never this clean in here (she laughs), but I’m enjoying it while this photo shoot lasts.”
On studio vibes: “Music is a must,” Wilcox says. “Music helps to shut off part of the brain, so I can just let the work take place.” She doesn’t start a painting with a plan or even a color scheme. “The first layer is a warm up. I see marks and the way the colors are working together, and one drip or brush stroke determines what my next move will be. I like to listen to music that fits my mood, and then just do what feels right on the canvas. I’m getting better at letting accidents happen. It’s a challenge, yet most of the time, they move me in the right direction.”
On the creative process: “Each canvas is a new emotional experience. I’m in the studio painting and working and thinking, and want those feelings to be expressed on the canvas. I’m taking the complex things in life, the highs, the lows, beauty, my environment, and translating these emotions into a piece. I appreciate the spontaneity of the process and freedom that abstract art allows me.”
On all the feels: “Ideally I just want someone to get lost in the emotions of my work because I do when I am painting it.”
On motivation: Cherlyn has been able to commit to being a full-time artist for about 5 years. She goes to her studio five days a week, even if she leaves for a dog-walk almost immediately. “Sometimes it’s just not going to happen, and that’s okay. It’s important to make an effort to be in the studio, sit with my art, and often just being there generates excitement.” Multi-tasking also makes it easier to stay motivated. “I’m always working on multiple pieces at once. I work on canvas and paper, and it’s nice to mix up the mediums. The approach is so different starting to work on a large canvas rather than a smaller paper piece; it is nice to balance them out.”
On calling it a day: “I can’t get too attached to the piece, or I’d never add another brush stroke. While painting, I often take a step back and turn the piece. It will change the whole feel, or I get an immediate sense that it’s wrong, totally wrong. When I think a piece is finished, I’ll sit with it awhile, about a month. It’s a fine line though; I can’t look at it too long or I’ll over critique it.”
Cherlyn lives in Bozeman with her husband, Paul, and their two pups, Zeppelin and June Bug.
Stop by her studio space in room 217 at the Emerson or shop her work hanging in our downtown furniture store. For direct inquiries contact her at cherlynw@gmail.com .
Thank you for inviting us into your studio, Cherlyn!
This must be love… Architect’s Wife is now THE go-to gift-buying shop for any and all occasions. Come and check out our new concept store for unique and one-of-a-kind finds. Whether you celebrate Valentine’s, Galentine’s, or just Treat-yo-Self day, spread the love for all of those special someones. I’ve rounded up some of my favorite gifts for the day of love. From jewelry to games that will make you fall in love with your best friend’s laugh all over again; I challenge you to step away from the box of chocolates and give a gift that will be memorable!
From Left to Right: 1. Show her you’ve got style, Ketema Cuff, $120 2. Let her know you get romance, New Romance, $60 3. Shelter her from the storm, Ribbed Beanie, $120-$149 4. Whisk her away on a romantic weekend getaway, Feed Bag, $335 5. Up Her Selfie Game: Photo Booth Prop Set, $16 6. Set the mood, Montana Forest Candle, $ 34; End with a big wet kiss, Hot Lips Matchbox, $5.00