It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year...

Well, almost! We know that time of year is upon us when we begin preparations for our annual Holiday Open House, sponsored by the Deaf Smith County Chamber of Commerce. This year's Open House is Sunday, November 15 from 1:00 until 5:00 p.m. We have been busy as bees getting ready:

Setting tables like this fun one. Pass the candy, please!

Adding decorations. Nativity sets are some of our favorite!

Creating displays. We love transforming something common, like oranges from the grocery store, into something elegant like this!

And baking. We'll have love lots of good stuff to eat at the Open House.

In addition to all the pretty things to look at and some great discounts we are offering for that day only, there's one more reason to come to the Holiday Open House. Prizes! We will have door prizes throughout the day (need not be present to win). Also, because we are one of the 12 merchants participating in the Open House, you can sign up in our store for a chance to win one of five $100 Hereford Bucks prizes! Check the Hereford Brand for the list of merchants and register at them all to increase your chance of winning! We can't wait to see you on Sunday!

Deck the Walls

In just over a month, the holiday season starts. Can you believe it's already here? Are you ready? Detten's Furniture & Flooring is giving you a jump start on getting your home ready for the holidays with our first ever Deck the Walls event.

On Thursday, October 22 from 5:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m., we'll host a come and go holiday preview featuring talented artist, R. Russell Brown. He'll be on hand with many of his original works for sale in many sizes in prices. You have probably seen his work as he is a commissioned artist for Happy State Bank and West Texas A&M University (he does the WTAMU Christmas card!) as well as other public and private entities. See more of his work here.

In addition to this special viewing and sale, we are taking 25% off all of our accessories, holiday decorations and in stock wall art (excluding R. Russell Brown), as well as special order holiday dinnerware today only. We're really excited about several new additions in Lenox's long line of beautiful holiday dinnerware, including this Merry Berry pattern -- that could be used year round for special occasions. Isn't it festive?

They've also added the trend of the 12 Days of Christmas on this whimsical set of dessert plates -- mugs are also available. We love these! How fun to host a holiday dessert event? Or use every day during the holiday season for breakfast or tea.

This is a great time to start your holiday gift shopping -- a beautiful piece or art, new set of dishes or punchy accent piece are gifts your loved one will cherish forever. If you're updating your home on a budget, accessories are a wonderful way to change a room without a huge investment.

And one more way to make sure your home is ready for that picky mother-in-law is to have the carpet, tile and upholstery cleaned! Book now through Detten's Carpet Care, mention this blog discount, and we'll take 15% off!

We invite you to come in, look, get great decorating ideas, enjoy some delicious appetizers prepared by Molly Meeks, have a glass of wine, visit with friends and get in a festive spirit!

Keep 'em coming!

That's what we keep hearing from you -- by email, Facebook, phone calls, out in public and even a few who have walked into our store just to tell us you enjoy our chalkboard billboard. We are having so much fun with it, and hearing from you reinforces us, especially in these tough times. Thank you, Hereford! The quotes have really made us think and we hope they have inspired you, as well.

One of our favorites so far, by Ronald Reagan, has garnered a few interpretations. Yes, we think alot of those policy ideas have started at a dinner table. But what about the idea of a family sitting down to dinner together every night? Don't you think America would be a "changed" place if every family sat down together for dinner at home at least most nights of the week? And we think that change would be for the better!

Many of our family dinner nights are spent around a table discussing our "ups and downs" for the day. One of our favorite nights is Wednesday, when we have an indoor picnic on the floor in the living room. We eat pizza and watch America's Funniest Home Videos together. We eat and laugh together and though it's not "at the dinner table," we are together and it is the best therapy!

So we'll keep the quotes coming -- and you keep the comments coming. We love hearing from you!

It's a Blank Slate

Well, not anymore! If you've driven on Park Avenue or gone North on Main from 60 in the past few days, you've seen our new chalkboard sign. We are so excited to add this fun billboard to our property. We plan to change the message often.

Right now we're advertising our Back Room Sale -- you will find serious markdowns on clearance items in our back room. These are nice, new items that just haven't found the right home yet, but we've had them a while, and we're trying to move them out of our warehouse. Now through Monday you'll find great bargains on occasional tables, student desks, odds and ends bedroom furniture, accent furniture, upholstery, and accessories. With markdowns from 50 - 75% off, you won't find better deals on new furniture and home accents! And check back often -- there are always clearance items in our store...you never know what kind of deal you will find!

Watch the chalkboard for more great sale events -- and maybe some wit and wisdom from time to time!

Meet Ricko the Rhino

Who is Ricko the Rhino you ask? Mohawk Industries has teamed with the Birmingham Zoo in Birmingham, Alabama to let Ricko, the Eastern Black Rhino, live on their innovative Smart Strand Carpet for 2 weeks starting August 14. That's right -- 1040 square feet of carpet meets 2,800 pounds of Rhino (equivalent to 107 toddlers!). He's no ordinary 12 year old and he's not housebroken! Should be an interesting challenge.

You can read more about this exciting event and actually watch Ricko in action 24 hours a day until August 28 by following this link. We can't wait to see what happens!

tag...we're it!

Have we told you about one of our favorite accessory product lines, tag? For basic home accessories, especially for the kitchen and dining room, tag is the way to go. It really reminds us of Crate and Barrel, but you can get it from us in Hereford instead of ordering online or by telephone and paying to have it shipped!

For a quick, budget friendly update to any table in your home -- dining, accent, even buffets and mantels -- add a runner. Runners give a punch of color and completely change the table. Add neutral accessories -- candlesticks, crystal, dishes and other accents -- that you already have on hand, and you have a whole new look! Using a runner is also a great way to seasonalize your decor without investing in alot of knick knacks or a whole new set of dinnerware that you have to store away.


We have a great selection of runners from tag for everyday and for special occasions. Add a little glitz with a sequined runner; a little whimsy with a holiday peppermint runner that unbuttons into placemats; or a little fun with a bright striped runner.

A great basic item for your table is tag's round woven placemat. They come in a rainbow of colors (many more than shown here), and are great when you have a big crowd since you can fit more at a table than a traditional rectangular placemat. Plus, they're just fun! Dyed to match hemstitch napkins are also available.

One of our favorite tag products is their bubble glassware. The affordable tumblers are great for everyday use, (and nice for that big tall glass of iced tea!) but transition seamlessly into entertaining. In fact, our big family has been using them every day for over a year and we love them! Pilsners, goblets and generous margarita glasses are also available along with fun accessories, like a margarita salter.

Another great basic is tag's Flea Market pottery line. Placesettings of this white dinnerware are available, but we really like the serving/accent pieces that will mix with many dinnerware/china patterns and go with most kitchen decors. The canister sets, mixing bowl sets and platters are best sellers in our store.

And how could we forget tag's fun party line?! We love, love, love the party animal prep bowls. Fill with goldfish, animal crackers, M&M's, jelly beans -- whatever -- and you have yourself a party!

If you came to our girl's night out in June you took home one of these little solid colored prep bowls filled with M&M's and a Tootsie Pop. At just $12 for an assortment of 4, what a fun and affordable, reusable favor!

tag! You're it! Come in today -- there's lots more to see that we just can't fit on this blog!

Jan Barboglio

Detten's is proud to offer Jan Barboglio handmade cast iron and glass accent pieces.

Ugly Sofa Contest Winner

The competition was fierce and the vote was close. When the dust laid (and we're talking some major dust!), The "Blue Bong" came out on top of our first Ugly Sofa Contest. Congratulations to Laura Trevino who takes home a brand new sofa of her choice from Detten's. This won't be our last Ugly Sofa Contest, so watch for the next one about a year from now! Thanks to all those who entered and voted!

Our First Ever Ugly Sofa Contest

Detten's Furniture, Flooring & Gifts is having our first ever Ugly Sofa Contest! The lucky winner with the ugliest sofa will win a brand new sofa, up to $1000 in value from our store. Here's how it works:

1. If you have an ugly sofa that you want to enter, call 806/364-4073 or come by our store location at 209 East Park Avenue in Hereford, Texas to complete an entry form.

2. We will call you to schedule a time to come by and take a picture of your sofa. The photo will be used in the initial competition to select finalists. The photo of your sofa will become the property of Detten's Furniture, Flooring & Gifts and may be used in future advertisements and on our website and blog.

3. The sofa must be in your possession at the time of picture taking and through the end of the contest. It must be located within 60 miles of Hereford.

4. A panel of judges will select (3) finalists from the photos of the contest entries.

5. The three (3) finalist sofas will be picked up by Detten's for public viewing and voting at our store on June 24. Voting will take place in-store on June 25-27, with the winner being announced on Saturday, June 27.

6. The winning entry will receive one (1) new sofa or loveseat valued at up to $1000. Winner may choose from store inventory or may special order from one of Detten's upholstery vendors. Prize is not transferrable nor is redeemable for cash.

7. Entry Deadline is Saturday, June 20, 2009 at 5:00 p.m.