Event Blossom Comes to Dogwood Square!!!

Dear Brides & Brides to be,

We are pleased to announce that Dogwood Square, in our never ending quest to make your wedding day that most special of all days, has added a new supplier to our list of wedding suppliers. This is a new company who specializes in unique wedding favors. Their name is Event Blossom.

As with the other wedding suppliers we use, Event Blossom allows you to order samples of their products so you can see the favor and decide if it is just the right one for your special day.

Just like the other suppliers we use, you purchase the favors from Dogwood Square, however the shipment actually comes directly from the supplier who is in California. That way you are always assured that the items will be in stock since they can keep a much larger inventory than we can. And they ship fast!!! They say that most of their favors will ship within 1-3 business days. The exceptions would be certain personalized, or custom products which may take a slightly longer time, usually in 3-5 business days.

Because we have been so busy trying to fill all of our holiday orders, we don't have their favors on the Dogwood Square web site. So please visit Event Blossom and have a look at the items they offer. The page will not have prices since they are a wholesale site so for prices on an item, you can e-mail us.

When the holiday rush is over, we will have enough time to add their items to Dogwood Square so be on the look out for the new favors.

We also have several other new things up our sleeves...so be on the lookout and keep reading Dogwood Notes.

Until next time...

Della

Thanksgiving

Dear Friends,

We hope you and your families have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving!

Until next time...

Della

UPS Raises Their Shipping Costs by 5%

Dear Friends,

You don't know how badly I hate bringing you this news. One of the things we depend upon so much in this business is the various shipping carriers. We, like you, believe that the charges we have to charge are too high already and now we have to announce that UPS' shipping costs are going even higher. At least it is not going to happen until after the holiday season. Here's the official blurb about the cost increase:

"As 2008 approaches, all of us at UPS would like to express our appreciation for your continued business. To help you plan for the coming year, we want you to know about new UPS rates and services that will take effect December 31, 2007.

UPS published small package Daily Rates will change as follows*:

• UPS Ground and UPS Standard to Canada services will increase 4.9%.
• Air and International express services will increase a net 4.9% through a combination of a 6.9% increase in rates and a 2% reduction in the air and international fuel surcharge.

Changes will also be made to accessorial charges.

• Delivery Area Surcharges and Residential Surcharges will increase by $0.10.
• The Additional Handling charge will increase by $0.50 and the charge for Address Corrections for UPS Ground packages will increase by $1.00.
• The charge for Declared Value will increase by $0.05 per $100 of Declared Value, with a minimum charge of $1.80, and you, as the shipper, will have the option to bill Declared Value charges for Freight Collect shipments to your account.

To see the complete list of accessorial changes, please visit ups.com/rates."

As you know we always pay for your shipping if your order is $50 or more, but for those of you who order less we always check around to see what the lowest shipping price is.

Again, we are sorry to have to bring this information to your attention, but felt that you needed to know why the costs of your order might be higher than you expected it to be.

Until next time...

Della

Dogwood Square Now Takes Discover Card

Dear Friends,

I just got off the phone with the nicest lady. I had called her because I couldn't get a reply to an e-mail I sent her. She told me that she had meant to cancel her order because she wanted to use her Discover Card and she couldn't find that card in those that Dogwood Square would take for payment.

She is from a small town in Michigan near Detroit and said that the economy there was really terrible. She said that even though it is time for shops to start hiring extra people for the holiday rush, no one was hiring this year. Things were so bad that many stores were already advertising 50% off sales just to get people in to buy.

She said that there were a lot of automotive workers where she lives and that the automotive industry was really in dire straights this year. And that there were a lot of people moving because they had lost their jobs.

Now how does that play into the bit about the Discover Card? Well, she said that Discover Card offered bonus points for everything you bought using their card. She said she had gotten coupons good for meals and gas and other things. So she and her family had stopped using all their other cards and only used their Discover Card now. And with the way the economy was going, every little bit helped.

I did end up cancelling her order after all, but she promised me that she would keep us in mind and would buy from us next time. And, because of her, I looked up Discover Card and, sure enough, they do offer a lot of benefits which people all over the country can take advantage of. So it was a no brainer for me, Dogwood Square now takes Discover Card.

I've said this so many times, but I think it is worth repeating...The very best thing about having this business is talking with our customers, whether on the phone or over e-mail. We absolutely have the very best customers!!!

Until next time...

Della

BeBeSounds Monitor Gives New Parents "Peace of Mind"

Dear Friends,

Many of your know that I am a new grandmother. My wonderful little granddaughter was born in April and is now growing "like a weed."

Today I want to talk with you about a gift her Mom was given at one of her baby showers. I was so impressed with it when I saw it that I decided to carry it on the Dogwood Square website. It's called the Angelcare® Movement Sensor w/Sound Monitor.

This monitor has allowed my son and daughter-in-law to be assured that little Brynlea is OK and breathing fine anytime she is in her crib. They have put her to sleep in her own bed in her own room ever since she came home from the hospital.

I remember when my son was born some 29 years ago. Back then every new mother and father was scared to death about SIDS. I can tell you, I was. I kept his crib right next to my bed so I could reach over in the night and touch him and be assurred that he was OK.

The under-the-mattress Sensor Pad detects your baby's slightest movements. If your baby goes absolutely still for 20 seconds, the Sensor Pad sends a signal to the Nursery Unit which sounds an alarm alerting you to check your baby. If you are out of the baby's room, the portable Parents' Unit (Sound Monitor) will pick up the alarm as well as other nursery sounds. In addition, the Nursery Unit has an optional "tic" feature. If the Sensor Pad senses movement, the Nursery Unit will continuously tick. If it doesn't, the ticking will stop.

This is one of the best products I have found to give new parents that "Peace of Mind" that your baby is OK.

You can find several different configurations of this monitor. We sell the one with the under-the-mattress sensor pad, a nursery sound monitor and 2 parents' units. That way you can always keep one of the parent units in your bedroom and another one can be moved around to the kitchen, living room, den, office or other room. The retail for this configuration is $119.99, but our everyday price is $99.00.

If you are looking for one of the best gifts you can give those new parents in your life, please consider this monitor. I don't want to be dramatic, but it may save a life!

Until next time...

Della

Join BlogRush

Dear Friends,

I want to announce that I have just joined BlogRush. BlogRush is a new service which creates more traffic to your blog. You can also join BlogRush by clicking on this link.

Until next time...

Della

Kate Aspen Has NEW Favor Arrivals!!

Dear Friends,

Do you know someone who is planning a wedding or shower this fall or winter? If so, our favors by Kate Aspen are really affordable. Here is a link to a page on their site which shows all of their new arrivals.

This page does not show any prices because Kate Aspen is ONLY a wholesale site. We don't have all of these favors on our site just yet, however, if you see something you are interested in, please e-mail me at dogwood_square@hotmail.com and I will be happy to quote you a price for that favor.

Also, remember:

1. You can buy just one of these favors if you want to see if it will work for your event.

2. If your order is at least $50 and you want regular ground shipping within the contiguous U.S., then you shipping is FREE.

3. You pay NO Sales Tax, if you live outside of Alabama.

4. Many of the Kate Aspen favors have quantity pricing meaning that the price gets lower per item, the more of them you buy.

Until next time...

Della

Blue Raven Shower Caps Won't Last Much Longer

Unfortunately, Blue Raven, LLC, the company who makes the funky shower caps we carry on our site is going out of business. It is owned by a couple of ladies, one of which is a family friend. Her name is Sandra Monteparo. I grew up across the street from her grandparents in Schenectady, New York.

Sandra and the other owner both have very demanding and successful "day jobs" and she told me not long ago that while they loved Blue Raven, they just didn't have the time to devote to it. So they are selling off their inventory and then they are going to call it quits.

I think I bought up the last remaining inventory they had in the country and it is now getting drastically low. By my last count, I only have 7 Love caps and 3 Daisy caps. Once they are gone, Blue Raven shower caps will be no more.

Welcome

We are going to use this blog to introduce new products, ask questions and hopefully get feedback from you about the site, the products we offer on the site or anything else you wish to talk about.

There are so many things going on right now it's hard to keep everything straight.

Let's see --

• First and foremost, this is a joyful time for us as we welcome a brand new addition to our family. Our first grandchild, a little girl, Brynlea Kyle, was born on April 17. She is beautiful and such a good baby. So far she seems to have her daddy's disposition which is very calm and low key.
• We are also working with a company to develop a new web site which we feel will make finding our products easier. We have had several comments from customers that they liked the products we featured, but couldn't find where to buy them. So we are trying to make navigating the site a lot easier. Because of that the site won't be ready for a couple of months.
• Next, we are in process of adding more products to our existing site:
• We have already added a new line of scented candles from the same company we buy our highly successful candle warmers from. It's called Jaime Clair. They have so many wonderful scents to choose from, you should check them out on http://www.dogwoodsquare.com/jamie-clair-candles/.
• We have added a completely new line of products this year in honor of our new little granddaughter -- Products for Babies and Children. So far you will find some wonderful gifts set from a company called Baby Aspen who is a sister company to Kate Aspen from whom we get many of our wedding favors. You can see these gift sets on http://www.dogwoodsquare.com/store-categories-Baby-Aspen_3016914.html. We are also working with a company called Halo Innovations, Inc. They make wonderful sleep sacks wearable blankets, swaddle blankets, and layettes sets which all carry the First Candle/SIDS Alliance gold seal for product safety for newborns and babies. We have our stock in, but we just haven't had the time to add these products to the site yet. We have also just signed an agreement with Unisar BebeSounds which is a company that makes all types of gadgits like baby movement sensors, flexible digital thermometers, 1-second lighted ear thermometers, battery operated nasal aspirators, continuous fever monitors and many other neat products to give parents peace of mind when taking care of babies and children. Our stock of these products won't be in for about 2 weeks.
• We have not forgotten the gardeners and have made a new arrangement to sell some wonderful products from Potting Shed Creations, Ltd. Just in time for Mothers' Day we will have "Blooms from the Heart", mini "Gardens-in-a-Pail", "Pocket Gardens" kits, several varieties of "Garden-in-a-Bag".

If you have any suggestions of new and unique products which you would like to see us carry, please comment.

Please visit our site often to see our new products and selections. If you have forgotten our address, we are at http://www.dogwoodsquare.com.

Till next time....Della