Handcrafted & Sustainable Recycled Leather Bags by Soruka

SUSTAINABLE It has been estimated that more than 500K of tones of leather are wasted every year. The traditional leather

Come Learn About Florida SNAKES

Rain Barrell talk/Earth Week

To celebrate Earth Week, Grumbles House is hosting a free talk Tuesday, April 19 on rain barrels. Join us at

Always Something New at Grumbles House

Chinaberry Mushroom Stakes seem to be the recent-yard-art-rage around Grumbles House. Hand carved and staked on stainless steel, they appear

Hand Painted Wood Décor from India

Dresses and Pants On Sale

  Dresses     Kim St. John owned a boutique in The Villages for 17 years.  Then Covid hit and

Let's Welcome Our New "Maker" To Cedar St. Boutique Marker's Room!

Emergency room nurse Debra Clark has found a creative outlet for her stress.  Labor & Delivery & Emergency Room nursing

Chimeneas for Backyard Fun

For those of you who have been requesting Chimeneas, they're HERE!  Some are 3 pieces (body, stand & lid), some

Got Gardenias? We do!

Oh my, they smell heavenly!  We recently bought winter blooming gardenias - Jerry's Veitchii Gardenias -one of the largest gardenia

Our Maker's Room New in December '21 at Cedar St.

Meet our "Rejeweled" Artist When I was young, I got an idea, thought about it a minute and executed.  NOW,

« Previous 1 … 3 4 5 6 7 … 16 Next »

SUSTAINABLE

It has been estimated that more than 500K of tones of leather are wasted every year. The traditional leather industry only uses the central part of the hide for their products, which results in 60% of the leather produced not being used and often ending up in landfills and rivers of our planet, creating a huge environmental problem.

At Soruka, they decided not to be part of the problem but part of the solution. Its mission is to create beautiful timeless collections while preserving traditional techniques, supporting sustainable fashion and the fair trade movement. Its aim is to be a zero-waste company, so they try to use every scrap of material. With great effort and joy, the artisans select the cutting and the right colors in order to transform waste into a beautiful bag.

Their expert artisans craft each piece by hand using unused leather that otherwise will be wasted. The result is a beautiful one-of-a-kind handcrafted piece made with the best quality leather and environmentally friendly.

HANDMADE

Each and every piece of their collection is made with integrity and kindness by artisans using traditional techniques, showcasing their expertise and craftsmanship.

The bags are designed in a timeless style that will outlive the micro-trends and seasons, every bag is a unique and unrepeatable piece of art. The manufacturing process involves little to no machinery, keeping the energy consumption low.

All their bags are made in India by small, independent artisans from rural communities, which they work closely to help grow their business and production capabilities.

The partnership with them is the best method of job creation in low-income environments and also a way to preserve generational craftsmanship.

All their artisans are trained adults over 18, who receive beyond fair trade wages. Economic empowerment gives them the opportunity to stay in their villages, and supporting their family, and they will be less likely to migrate to urban areas.

Join us Thurs., May 5 in the garden (or parking lot) at Grumbles House Antiques & Garden Shop at 10:30 a.m. to learn about Florida Snakes from Herper Rob Mathews.  This will be the 3rd year Rob has amazed us with his knowledge, shown us many of his “friends” and almost made us like them.  He LOVES snakes so he hopes to enlighten us to leave the good snakes alone and what to do if you come face to face with one.  From identifying “good” and “bad” snakes you may see in Florida to learning their habits, behaviors & what invites them to a property,  Rob is certainly entertaining and happy to answer your questions.   Join us!  It’s free – just another way we seek to build community in our little corner of the world.

To celebrate Earth Week, Grumbles House is hosting a free talk Tuesday, April 19 on rain barrels. Join us at 10:30 a.m. to hear Gabriel Vicari, of the Water Resources department of UF/IFAS Extension, Marion County talk about why it’s important to conserve rainwater, how to easily build a barrel to harvest in, and all the scoop. The talk will highlight the 2 different example barrels, the tools used to build them, and some locations to find “upcycled” barrels. She may build one for purchase if someone is interested. The Marion County Water Resource liaison may alos attend & speak.  She has a lot of information to share about septic pumping grants and cost-share info.   The talk & demo will begin at 10:30 followed by a Q&A period.

Join us outdoors in the garden area behind Grumbles House @ 20799 Walnut St. Dunnellon or call 465-1460 for more information.

Chinaberry Mushroom Stakes seem to be the recent-yard-art-rage around Grumbles House. Hand carved and staked on stainless steel, they appear to float atop the ground, preventing rot from the mositure.

Dresses

Kim St. John owned a boutique in The Villages for 17 years.  Then Covid hit and she had to close.  $5000/month rent is nothing to sneeze at so as the pandemic dragged on, she decided to bail entirely.  She hated to leave the clientele she built & the job she enjoyed for so many years but financially it was the only thing that made sense.

She now lives in the Yankeetown area and we’ve happily sold the clothes she had left from the store for her for about a year now.  Space is always an issue in retail and we need ours back so she has agreed to liquidate beginning with all the bottoms.  All of the shorts, skirts, capris, long pants & jeans with KSJ tags will be sold at 40% off the ticketed price.  Beginning Feb. 9, we are adding all KSJ dresses to the SALE.  If you have a special occasion coming up, and you like brands such as Joseph Ribkoff, Clara Sun Woo & Mesmerize, come try on a few of these beautiful pieces.  You may just be the belle of the ball!

Thankfully a couple of our employees  helped to show off a few pair as the pants don’t look great on hangers.  We no longer have full size runs but come take a peek and see if we have some things you can use at great prices.  Jag jeans, Ethyl, Mesmerize, Lisette, Simon Chang and Clara Sun Woo are a few of the brands on sale.

Emergency room nurse Debra Clark has found a creative outlet for her stress.  Labor & Delivery & Emergency Room nursing for 40 years makes finding such a hobby a necessity.

She said she’s always been creative and dabbled in making arts & crafts but about 10 years ago she got serious about perfecting her skills.  She’s taken many, many classes in polymer clay arts over those years & since Covid, shifted her studies online and focused more on color theory.  “I can make jewelry for any outfit” she boasts, as she explains how she loves color palettes and enjoys making sets of necklaces and earrings sets to match her clothing.

Debra also enjoys making colorful clay trinket boxes with funky legs , fondant-looking-flowers & finials as well as sculptures. So far, I’ve only seen “Covid Girl” who is masked, in her jammies holding a bottle of wine & a wine glass as well as the coveted roll of toilet paper & hand sanitizer wipes.  She retails for $195.

Not all of Debra’s creations are pricey.  She has $5 pairs of earrings in her space.  Most of her necklace and earring sets start around $65 and climb to the $150 range for the most exquisite pieces.  Color, shapes and textures must roll out of her imagination readily as she has quite the variety – all handmade in her Jackson, Wyoming She Shed or her Lecanto, Fl studio.    She hopes when folks see what she makes, she’ll hear them say “Wow, I’ve never seen anything like that before”.

Come see!  She’s one of our artist in the new Maker’s Room at Cedar Street Boutique.  We’re open there 11am-5pm Monday – Saturday and Sunday 11-3.  The phone number is (352) 322-3968.

For those of you who have been requesting Chimeneas, they’re HERE!  Some are 3 pieces (body, stand & lid), some are 4 (rounded body, chimney lid & stand).  They are Mexican clay with checkerboard and different designs and colors, mostly in the terra cotta family.  They are all $189.

Waterproof chimenea covers should be used to prolong the life of your l chimenea. Do not fire chimeneas when wet. To prevent damage, only build small fires during the first2 use. Do not use charcoal or artificial logs in chimeneas as they burn too hot and may cause your chimenea to crack. Use paper to start a fire, not starter fluid.

Oh my, they smell heavenly!  We recently bought winter blooming gardenias – Jerry’s Veitchii Gardenias -one of the largest gardenia growers in America. They’ve been growing florist grade gardenias since 1976 right here in Florida. We bought bushes and topiaries in several sizes ranging from around $10 to $30.

We also carry Buttons Gardenias and Miami as well.

• Meet our “Rejeweled” Artist

When I was young, I got an idea, thought about it a minute and executed.  NOW, it takes forever for my ideas to come to fruition!  Sometimes that’s a good thing as they aren’t all good ones and need a bit of tweaking along the way.  But mostly, they have been thought through and deemed “pretty good” but obstacles appear all along the way.

     Ok, let’s face it, I’m getting older and slower to accomplish tasks.  Combine that with other’s lives (vacations, ill family members, changing staff to help and priorities) and our Maker’s Room didn’t come about as gloriously or quickly as I had hoped.  But there are bright spots.  I’m enjoying meeting, one by one, talented “makers” that are bringing us their wares to sell.  One of them is Sue Austin of All Wrapped Up who teaches some of the craft classes for us.  Besides the crafts she teaches, she makes a line of artful jewelry collages called “Rejeweled”.

      From vintage to new costume jewelry cast aside, lying in a jewelry box, she gathers and envisions scenes that come to life with her creative touch. If you have pieces that you no longer wear or want, she gladly accepts donations. Just email her at sueaustin1313@gmail.com or drop a bag or box by the boutique with her name on it, if you have donations. She can also create custom pieces from your jewelry to have as a keepsake from a loved one.  What a cool idea!

     I had hoped to have a Maker’s Room Open House Jan. 29, with all the “Makers” present to meet customers, show their craft, get customer feedback, enjoy a few refreshments and show off anything new they have up their sleeves.  But I’m spread a bit thin and with Omicron so very contagious, we won’t be doing that this coming weekend.  Instead, we’ll continue piecing the room together and plan the event to coincide with our March 5 Spring Maker’s Market.  And in the mean time, I’ll continue to introduce you to our talented makers.