We are so honored to have such excellent talent among us.

To that end, we are pleased to give you a sneak peek of our of our newest boutiques. Our woodworker has been creating fabulous custom wood creations for our customers for some time….and this new line – truly heirloom quality – will be available online in the very near future.

This magnificent heirloom quality, custom wood line features intricate cut outs, and are, by their very intricate and extraordinarily nature, conversation pieces.

Without further ado….here’s one of the many new pieces that will be gracing our new boutique:

Roman Cathedral custom wood table clock

Here’s another picture of this gorgeous custom wood table clock, with our wood artisan, himself:

Dennis & the roman cathedral style custom wood table clock

Ms. Phipps was extended a personal invitation from the program’s curator, Preston Scott, to attend the opening ceremonies and present the book, complete with a custom wood presentation box made by our fine wood craftsman, in person during the festival.

Ms. Phipps presented the book to His Royal Highness Prince Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuck, Prince of Bhutan – the head of the Bhutanese delegation (consisting of approximately 140 Bhutanese artists, dancers, cooks, craftspeople, carpenters, farmers, and representatives of monastic life) for the event – during a book blessing ceremony on the opening day of the festival. Ms. Phipps was also formally introduced to His Excellency Lyonpo Minjur Dorji, Minister for Home and Cultural Affairs of Bhutan.

“The presentation of the book was very beautiful. They had the book, safely inside the box, tied with a white silk scarf. And, once they were ready to begin, both His Royal Highness, the Prince, and I, pulled opposite ends of the scarf to “reveal” the box, and then the book. Then, His Royal Highness , the Prince, signed the first page and His Excellency Lyonpo Minjur Dorji signed the following page,“ comments Phipps on the book blessing ceremony.

Once the Festival concluded, the custom leather guest book, filled with visitor’s sentiments, was taken to Bhutan and given as a gift from the Smithsonian Institution to the King of Bhutan – Fifth Druk Gyalpo His Majest King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck.

When asked about the Smithsonian book, Ms. Phipps commented: “It took a few days for it to really sink in – the Smithsonian chose my company to create something to give to a foreign dignitary [from the Smithsonian]. We get some really neat requests from very interesting people, but, this was, by far, the most notable from an artist’s point of view. I think every artists dreams of being contacted by the Smithsonian Institution, and to create something that is so important to them was a huge honor – and pretty overwhelming if I allow myself to dwell on it. And,” Phipps added with a grin, “that’s not even adding the ‘meeting a prince’ factor – doesn’t every little girl dream of meeting a prince? It’s just such an honor all around – definitely a once-in-a-lifetime event.”

About the Festival

The 2008 Smithsonian Folklife Festival featured three programs. In addition to “Bhutan: Land of the Thunder Dragon,” the other programs were “NASA: 50 years and Beyond” and “Texas: A Celebration of Music, Food and Wine.”

The Folklife Festival, inaugurated in 1967, honors people from across the United States and around the world. With approximately 1 million visitors each year, the Festival unites presenters and performers in the nation’s capital to celebrate the diversity of cultural traditions. It is produced by the Smithsonian’s Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. The Festival’s web site is: http://www.folklife.si.edu.

]]> http://www.savinggraceenterprises.com/2008/07/lead-artist-presents-book-for-smithsonian.htm/feed 0 http://www.savinggraceenterprises.com/2008/05/search-our-custom-product-catalog.htm http://www.savinggraceenterprises.com/2008/05/search-our-custom-product-catalog.htm#comments Fri, 16 May 2008 18:38:56 +0000 SGE http://savinggraceenterprises.com/go/2008/05/search-our-custom-product-catalog.htm In order to make the Saving Grace Enterprises experience even better, we’ve implemented a new search feature that will search across all of our specialty websites so you can quickly and easily find what you are looking for.

To begin your search, simply click on our “Search” tool and enter the terms you are searching for in the following form:

Visit or Company wide custom product search now

We are also pleased to announce that we are in the final stages of two more online boutiques stores. Please stay tuned to this website to see the website(s) launch messages. We are proud of our new sites (as well as our old sites), and are pleased to be able to continue to offer you more options online – just as we are able to offer with our local customers.

Here’s what happens next…

Idea Cafe is opening up the selection of the one winner to the vote of Idea Cafe’s entire audience (and the world, if they wish to show up and vote).

In addition to the votes we will get from Idea Cafe’s current audience, Dee & Saving Grace Enterprises is inviting our friends, family, clients and customers to support our chance of winning the $1,000.00. Simply go to the Al Marks’ inventive mind small business grant finalists page, click on the link to cast your vote, and vote for “Dee Phipps” (our founder).

Please note that voting on the grant winner is a privilege reserved for registered Idea Cafe Regulars. But if anyone who wants to vote is not already a Regular, they can quickly sign up at the “voting booth” so they can access it through Idea Cafe’s “Members’ Door”. There is no charge to sign up as an Idea Cafe regular and it just means you will get special privileges (such as being able to vote for Dee & Saving Grace Enterprises), plus receive Idea Cafe’s “Biz Tips” newsletter twice a month. You can get off the list at any time, but we are asking that you do not do so immediately so that your vote will be sure to count.

Idea Cafe is accepting votes from now until midnight Pacific Time, Saturday, August 11, 2007. Within the next days after that, they will tally the votes and announce the grant winner. The winner will be determined by the number of votes cast by Idea Cafe’s regulars (remember if you are not a regular, you can sign up to be a regular at no charge, and have the privilege of voting!) and announced online on August 15, 2007, Idea Cafe’s 12th anniversary online.

Learn more about the Al Mark’s Inventive Mind Grant by visiting the small business grant center at Idea Cafe. And, please make sure to vote for our founder, Dee Phipps, before Saturday, August 11, 2007 at midnight, Pacific.

To celebrate, we are declaring this week (July 23 through July 30) “Inventive Mind week” at Saving Grace Enterprises. To celebrate in a way that can only be declared inventive, we have set a goal of creating 10 new products over the next 7 days. Some may be modifications of some of your favorite products, some may be a little crazy and silly, but, they will all be new. This is a mighty goal, we know, but, we are determined to produce 10 new high quality products that you will love!

Here’s where the fun comes in. One way we want to celebrate this terrific honor is by inventing for you and with you – our friends, clients, colleagues, and visitors. As you know, this is one of the things we thoroughly enjoy, and what’s more, it gives you the benefit of owning a beautiful piece of “useable art” that has been designed specifically for you – your life, your work, your play – your world!

If you have a suggestion or would like us to create a new product JUST FOR YOU, simply drop our founder and lead artist, Dee, an email (or give her a call), and we will work with you to create a product designed especially for your unique needs and your specifications.

On Monday, July 30, we will release our 10 new products for your viewing. Make sure to check them out!

The field of semi-finalists for this grant will be reduced to finalists and the winner will be determined by the vote of IdeaCafe.com’s 32,000 members worldwide and announced online on August 15, 2007, Idea Cafe’s 12th anniversary online.

Learn more about the Al Mark’s Inventive Mind Grant by visiting the small business grant center at Idea Cafe.

Because it’s important to take extra time to celebrate Christ’s birth, spend extra time with friends and family, and give our artists and staff a well deserved break, Saving Grace Enterprises has modified our hours this season as follows:

• Friday, December 22 – Tuesday December 26: Closed
• Wednesday December 27 – Thursday December 28: 10 am to 4 pm Eastern standard time (-1 hour for central standard time, -2 hours for mountain standard time, -3 hours for pacific standard time)
• Friday, December 29 – Monday, January 1: Closed

On January 2, we will resume our regular studio hours from 10 am to 5 pm Eastern standard time.

Fide forti fortuna,

Dee Phipps,
Lead Artist
Saving Grace Enterprises

If you are like most people, probably not.

Most people can not recall the majority of gifts that they’ve received from their friends and family a short year later (and, often, they can not remember after a few months have passed.) Sadly, the fact is that unless your gift is something extraordinary, unique, and carefully thought out, the ones you love the most will not remember the gift, nor the sentiment attached – unless, that is, you forgot the occasion – then, you will be remembered for that – forever.

This is a little discouraging, isn’t it? But, if you think about your Christmas last year, you will know that this is a fact.

Unfortunately, we live in an age where often we are backed into the very, very dangerous “last minute buying” mode where ANYTHING – yes, sometimes even including the petrified fruit cake hiding on the back of the shelf – will do….I mean, *anything* is better than the dreaded forever-remembrance of nothing, right?

What if, this year, you became the hero of the holiday? Wouldn’t that be awesome? And, without even needing to stoop to the petrified fruit cake or (gasp!) gift cards? What if, this year, you could proudly say (on Thanksgiving day)…my shopping is done! And merrily go about your way to actually enjoying the holiday season from Thanksgiving through the New Year? No worries about the crowded stores, sold out items, and cranky sales staff.

We are talking an almost-Utopia!

And, to make it better, what if the gifts you gave were actually on the short-list of remembered gifts a year later, even 2 or 3 years later?

What if you could give a gift that didn’t cost thousands of dollars – but, would last far longer than any high ticket electronic?

What if….every time your beloved family member or friend caught a short glimpse of your gift, they were reminded of the warm gesture and loving care that you took to pick something out just for them?

What if I told you that was not just a dream.

Before you head off to your local big box to fight the crowds and desperately search for something that won’t be returned or, worse, end up at the back of the garage – forgotten forever, I urge you to consider a different plan this year.

Our skilled & experienced artisans are still taking orders for guaranteed Christmas delivery. It’s like Santa’s workshop around here, but, up until the 17th of November, we are accepting your custom designed Leather journal, portfolio, binder, and leather planner orders at: Legacy Journals

These are just the plain old run of the mill items that you can pick up anywhere. These are true use-able works of art – completely customized just for your loved one. We are even taking custom orders for jewelry and rosaries through the 17th (not to mention our very popular hand tooled leather products!).

If you aren’t quite sure what your loved one may like, let us work with you to design something that will take their breath away (please note, we are not liable for any medical expenses which may result from a lack of breath!).

And, if you are reading this after November 17th, wishing you had run across this sooner…..don’t despair. We will be taking rush orders (additional fees apply, and express shipping is mandatory) until November 22nd – just in time for you to proudly proclaim your Christmas shopping is done while you sit around the table on Thanksgiving.

As always, we at Saving Grace Enterprises are wishing you and your family a very, very Merry Christmas, and a joyful holiday season this year and every year.

So, we’ve brought in a new system to take phone orders, and are very excited about the “update”. This will not change how you place your orders in person, on the phone, or online. However, it will make a difference (for us) in *taking* your orders.

We are rolling out this new system on Monday, September 18, 2006, and it may take some getting used to for us. So, we really appreciate your patience while we get used to this new system.

Again, this will not effect your ability to order online, in person, or over the phone. Nor will it effect your order. It will just make things a little more efficient “in house”, and I’m sure there will be a short period of adjustment time for us while we get used to using this new system.

Thanks so much for your patronage, and your patience! This new system will allow us to serve you better (particularly when you want to place an order that matches previous orders), and we are very excited to be able to make your experience even more enjoyable in the future!

Because these modification requests benefit us (by giving us the opportunity to offer another new product), we will give you a discount on your order (from what the anticipated retail price of the new product). The discount varies from product to product, however, if you have a need, and see something similar on any of our sites (or our products inspire you to request a custom designed product), just give us a call to discuss your desired modifications.

Want an example?

A few months ago, a customer saw our portfolios, and wanted to know if she could order a portfolio with a 3 ring binder and some of our wonderful Arches pages to go inside for a custom artist’s portfolio/photo album. The design included the exterior pocket like our Hand tooled Zippered Leather Portfolio, along with the zipper closure (which is great for artists, scrappers, and anyone else who needs a little extra pocket to put things in and wants the “security” of a zipper to protect the contents inside! What we came up with was absolutely fabulous, and has been added as a product offering at Legacy Journals. Stop by Legacy Journals today to see our new Hand tooled custom leather photo album with zipper closure.

Another great example is, interestingly, based on our Hand tooled Zippered Leather Portfolio (really, we make customizations from other products! These are two recent examples that I wanted to highlight.) A customer called who needed a hand tooled zippered leather portfolio with a simplified interior as a retirement gift for a colleague. We worked with her to come up with a great hand tooled zippered leather portfolio with only 4 interior business card sized pockets. You can check out our basic hand tooled zippered leather portfolio at Legacy Journals.