{friday finds: letters of appreciation}

It’s always a special treat when our customers take time to send a letter or e-mail of appreciation about one of Hirshfield’s hard-working staff. It makes everyone’s day.

Here are letters of appreciation for the exceptional customer service given by Hirshfield’s employees Beth, Charene, and Mike.

Dear Beth:

I just wanted to drop you a note to thank you for your great service!

I know I was frazzled when I walked into the store, after spending the morning with various building suppliers, I was anticipating more obstacles! How nice to experience the ‘Hirshfield’s difference’ – I appreciated your professionalism in helping with the selection of the exterior colors for my home – thanks for making the process fun and with great results!

I will look forward to the next meeting with the builder, colors in arm, and placing my order!

Thanks so much!

D.B.

Mr. H.,

My mother-in-law and I walked into the Coon Rapids store last Sunday, 4/22 at 4:25 p.m.

We looked at paint chips, then started asking questions at 4:45.

Charene answered them patiently, completely, and professionally.

She brought Mike into the conversation when I asked about full spectrum paints.

Mike looked up information, gave us technical specs, and made recommendations, including discussing the painter that my mother-in-law is working with.

We shut down the store. Mike cheerfully stayed at least 20 minutes after closing, making himself available until he answered all of our questions.

We appreciate Charene’s and Mike’s passion, knowledge, and fine customer service – going the extra mile.

Thank you.

We’ll be back.

J.M.
Coon Rapids

Dear Mr. Hirshfield,

This letter is to commend Beth Zentis, your Hirshfield employee at the Woodbury store in City Center West.

On April 4 we went to the store with two of our large living room pictures in hopes of getting paint to darken the wooden frames. Beth was most helpful in trying to find the shade of dark brown that would work to compliment each picture. We tried a couple different colors and then Beth suggested the perfect solution.  Beth took a paint chip and topped it with some semi-opaque metallic paint. Wow-that was exactly what we needed on those frames, which are now hanging in our living room!

Beth was most helpful, knowledgeable and eager to assist us in solving our problem. Our Hirshfield’s store is most fortunate to have Beth as an employee!

Sincerely,

W & M

 If  you see something in our stores that can be improved upon, please let us know. We want all our customers to have a good experience at Hirshfield’s. Thanks for supporting a locally owned company, we truly appreciate your business.

{friday finds: lustron homes}

Interior of a Lustron home

Lustron home in Minneapolis

Lustron walls before assembly

Thank you, Twin Cities Design Scene, for turning me on to Lustron homes. Steve Date, with MinnPost, wrote a piece on these very interesting post – WWII  factory built, metal homes. The Lustron wall panels, interior and exterior, are similar to the enameled porcelain of a stove top (on the non-stainless stoves). Steve also shares a video clip of the interior of one of the Lustron homes here in town.

If you’re planning a Lustron field trip in Minneapolis, there are five homes along 50th & Nicollet and two homes on the 4900 block of Cedar Avenue. About 2,680 Lustron homes were built over the two years the company was in business and there are approximately 1,500 Lustron homes left in the country.

{wallpaper week: eijffinger’s uni royal book}

I have deemed this week “Wallpaper Week.” Why? Because I have images from five incredible wallpaper collections to share.  According to our store personnel, more and more people are coming in and asking for help selecting wallpaper. I’m hoping you’ll see a room setting which inspires you to get excited about wallpaper. Whether you are a wallpaper newbie or always had wallpaper in your home, Hirshfield’s staff will help you find the perfect paper for your home and your personality.

{friday finds: design studio sample sale}

Tomorrow is the last day of the sample sale at the design studio and I was surprised they still have high-end, custom sofas, with great prices, left on the floor. Hence at the last-minute, I changed the friday find to the sample sale. Sorry I don’t have all the intel, as I was over there just when they were closing up shop.

The sale items are marked up to 65% off and the non-sale items are 30% off tomorrow.

The showroom is open this Saturday, 9:oo am – 1:00 pm. Here is your opportunity to visit the showroom as they normally are not open on Saturdays.

Gray sofa, nail head arm detail, larger linen-like weave $900 (includes pillows)

Arm detail from above $900 sofa

Pink velvet sofa $1,650

Chocolate sofa, linen-like weave, nail head arm detail, smaller scale $800

There are two of these plush, custom sofas available. In this photo the fabric may look like a ultrasuede, but it is a small diamond pattern. Very comfy as a napping, snuggling, and TV watching sofa. $900/each (It’s a steal)

The fabric on this sofa is similar to a silk velvet – low profile, tufted sides, wood arms  $1,900

How lovely is the patina on this sofa table?

Re-purposed, reclaimed, one-of-a-kind sofa table not on sale, but 30% off tomorrow. I had to share, it’s my favorite piece in the showroom.

In addition to the sofas, dining room sets, tables, accessories, custom upholstered chairs, chandeliers, lamps, and artwork are also on sale. I’m not saying, I’m just saying, I may have overheard some negotiating taking place when I was at the showroom yesterday. Go for it.

{bits & pieces: ASID kitchen & bath tour 2011}

Fifteen fabulous remodels comprise this year’s ASID Kitchen and Bath Tour. Sneak a peek of each project in Metro magazine’s September issue then see them in person, September 10 and 11.

{friday finds: hirshfield’s color call – the movie}

We thought it would be helpful for people to see what takes place during a color call. We asked Kathy Basil, from Hirshfield’s Design Studio, to show us how she works with customers during an exterior color call.

In addition to selecting paint colors, Kathy suggested changing the color of the shutters, adding a shutter, beefing up the light fixtures alongside the garage door, and trimming branches that blocked the view of the home from the street. Ahh, a fresh pair of eyes is sometimes what it takes to see the obvious.

What you don’t see are Kathy and Mrs. H heading over to another neighborhood where Mrs. H showed Kathy her favorite house. The color of the house was gold, and Kathy explained to Mrs. H why that color would not work with her home. Trusting Kathy’s knowledge of color and experience, Mr. & Mrs. H took a leap of faith, and went with her suggestions for the paint colors.

The couple is in the process of implementing Kathy’s suggestions and are very pleased with the changes, including the new paint color.  It took them a while to warm up to the huge change in their home’s appearance, but it helps when people you don’t know, stop and tell you how much they like the new paint color.

Check out the post Amy did earlier in the week highlighting Hirshfield’s color calls.

Check out Hirshfield’s video library at: youtube.com/hirshfieldspaint

{friday finds: paint to china and a photo exhibit of china}

Dateline: July 29, 2011, Camden

Hirshfield’s Paint Manufacturing

This week, more than a full shipping container of Hirshfield’s Platinum Exterior Flat 5790 was produced, filled and packed for shipping overseas to China.  Development of business relationships outside Hirshfield’s traditional markets is a growing side of HPM.

HPM’s Paul, Mark, Charlie and Nick (on top of paint) take a break before securing the paint for the ground trip to the west coast ports where the container will be loaded on a seabound freighter.

The paint order beginning its journey to a commercial project in China.

Hats off the Jason and the entire crew at HPM.

If you haven’t seen the story on Minnesota Companies in the Asian markets, click here.

Here’s a three-minute tour of the Hirshfield’s Paint Factory.

Since we’re talking China here’s an exhibit opening next week at the Nash which piqued my interest.

A special collection of photographs from Chinese artists will be on view at the Katherine E. Nash Gallery on the University of Minnesota’s West Bank campus beginning August 2, 2011.  Visit www.nash.umn.edu for more information.

{friday finds: diy carriage garage doors}

 What’s the first impression people have of your home? For many homeowners it’s their garage door as it’s placed closer to the street than the rest of the house. Beth (Hirshfield’s Woodbury) fell in love with this great DIY project and wanted to share it with our readers. Whether you’re looking to upgrade your home’s curb appeal or you’ve always loved the look of carriage garage doors, revamping your plain-Jane garage door doesn’t have to be expensive.

{friday finds: house beautiful 500+ favorite paint colors app}

Remember when House Beautiful came out with their 500+ Favorite Paint Colors publication last May…fast forward to May 2011 and they have a brand-new iPad app for all us color junkies. Here are highlights from their press release and a video clip.

“This app is an incredibly useful — and fun — tool for homeowners, decorators and their clients, and anyone looking to add a little color to their home,” said Newell Turner, editor-in-chief of House Beautiful. “Whether you’re searching for the perfect paint color to set off the artwork in your living room, or just looking for inspiration, our app takes a deep dive into one of our favorite topics — color.”

{accolades to apple valley }

Don’t you love when your plans come together? That’s what happened to Lisa when she walked into Hirshfield’s Apple Valley store and met Jen Miranda. Thanks for the note, Lisa.

Jen and Hirshfield’s manager,

I want to thank you for your great expertise!  You were so helpful when I came in not knowing exactly what I wanted to do in my foyer.  Jen, I appreciate the time you spent with me! All the colors worked out and I had all the tools I needed to complete my project.  I have had a few friends come over and their comment was, “Wow!  This looks great,” thanks to you!

Thanks Again!
Lisa