Inspiration: Garage Sale Mania!

In years previous, our Garage Sales have garnered a reputation of being really fun, a great place to stock up on all things Smoking Lily and a little crazy. However, we have been learning through the years how to turn down the crazy and keep it fun for all who attend. You have probably all heard the rumours of line-ups around the block, but we have devised a strategy to combat this. This year, we open the doors of our studio at 1 pm and keep them open until 7 pm. We will be putting out fresh stock throughout the day, replenishing the selection and thereby negating the need to rush in first thing. Last year this strategy worked very well, and with the exception of the line-up for the very first wave of enthusiasts, we had no line-ups past 2 pm. I will be updating the blog throughout the day and letting you all know how it is going, if there are any line-ups and snapping pics of the most exciting deals of the day. So if you have to go to work today, feel free to visit us afterwards - and don't worry there will still be plenty of Lily to pick up and enjoy.

Update 2:45 p.m. - There is no line up outside and lots of goodies to choose from yet!

Update 4:20 p.m. - It's official, the last dress has been sold but there are still lots of awesome skirts.

Lily Garage Sale Update!!

With our annual garage sale in T-4 days, all of the Lily girls are buzzing and whirring around the studio. Printing and sewing and making big messes, it's pretty fun in our neck of the woods. Here are some pics of everything that needs to be sorted so far!

Be sure to come out and join the fun this Friday, April 15th, from 1:00 - 7:00 pm!!

The Mother of all Garage Sales

Phewf! That was fun!

Thank you to all our awesome customers who attended the Garage Sale in droves. It was all very exciting, but you managed to negotiate the sale with decorum and respect, nary a jabbing elbow or garment snatched from a competitors hands! Giggles and squeals abounded, you were an absolute pleasure to mingle with.

For those of you who couldn't make it, we will keep you posted as to future extravaganzas.

p.s. there were a few limited edition items pulled from the Garage Sale and delivered to the Vancouver shop today! For you lovely loyal Vancouver shoppers who couldn't make it over to Victoria. See you soon.

About the Garage Sale and a bit of fun

Hello!

We would like to all to know that YES the Garage Sale will happen sometime. We do not know when yet, so please do not ask. This will be the very first spot that we will make the announcement, so check back frequently! To tide you over, here is another form of a good deal- some random old photos of various shots taken around Lily over the years. If you are an ex employee and are embarrassed by any of these photos, I sincerely apologize and will remove them if you let us know. For the rest of you, enjoy!

Garage Sale Visit

The once a year, charity fundraising, extravaganza that is the Smoking Lily Garage Sale is a kooky thing to behold.  So much work goes into preparing for it and then in only 3 short hours of frenzied shopping it's all over.  I decided to head over from the Vancouver shop to behold the Victoria spectacle.  It was fun working with the Victoria crew.  We're in phone contact a lot, but there's nothing like discussing new designs with the people who'll be sewing them while holding the actual fabric - very satisfying.  But that was all prior to the sale.  

Day of, we had to batten down the hatches and great ready for the frenzy.  Dedicated customers in the know lined up really early to get first dibs on the deals (5:30 am was the earliest I heard - impressive!).  The doors opened at 10:00 and the scene was happy chaos.  Lots of darting about the racks, digging through $5 bins, and giggling while trying on mounds of serious scores.   I enjoyed catching up with old Victoria customers and meeting new ones.  

The photos above are a couple I took within the first 10 minutes of the sale.  Then I had to put my head down with Nicole and Beth and Trish behind the till.  After 3 intense hours, we took a brief break then put the studio back together.  People began silk-screening scarves and all was back to normal.  Incredible!

Our VIP Party Winner & Love for the Petite Anglais Skirt

I am one very excited Lily Lady today! Not only did we finally come out with our Spring Petite Anglais Skirt (how adorable is this new ship print!?) but I get to announce our contest winner today for the VIP party on Friday.

I must say we have all enjoyed reading the amazing comments here at the studio over the past few weeks. Your posts were all so creative, personal and just so positive!! Choosing one Lily Lady was a very difficult task...

Of all the comments posted, there is a place in my heart for Susanna! Susanna won't be able to attend our Garage Sale because of her Dad's 90th birthday party and would have had to come all the way from Vancouver to be here... she actually popped into the Victoria shop when she was in town a few weeks ago and I must say I fell in love with this awesome teacher! Picking up one of our Port Dresses and chatting with me about her love for Lily I'm happy to invite her to our private party on Friday night!!

Suzanna, I don't actually have your contact information so please send us an email at sales@smokinglily.com so that we can confirm your attendance.

Thanks again to all of you for your awesome posts... we better see all of you on Saturday shopping your little hearts out at the Charity Garage Sale... bye for now, Tee xo

The Offical G.S. Tote

So we have officially started production for our upcoming Garage Sale! Everyone at the studio has taken on a project; from printing tee's, sewing skirts, or designing new accessories, we're all very busy!
This year, Steph has designed an amazing G.S. Tote. Made from hot pink vinyl and lined with anatomical hearts, this bag is the perfect tote for your G.S. finds or just to carry about town. The best thing about this new bag? The "skull and scissors". Steph you rock!

Yes, it's happening...

For those of you dying with anticipation over whether our annual Garage Sale will be happening at the studio this year.... YES IT'S HAPPENING!!

When you might ask? This month? This weekend? Check our blog daily as the date gets closer to find out... we will be announcing the date just days before on our blog. And for those of you who haven't experienced the Garage Sale madness, check out this video from a previous year.