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PrintTime for a little spring cleaning
Twig Garden & Home, Delaware County Community Market, Carmen's Distribution Systems Inc. and Blue Frost Cupcake
Let the light shine
Jason Mangum’s Twig Garden & Home in German Village is a home décor and floral design store that offers one-of-a-kind items to brighten your interiors. For the month of April, he’s offering 20 percent off all custom lighting, including lamps, wall sconces and chandeliers. Most lamps are custom-made, such as a barrel chandelier made of wood branches and a lamp fashioned from sewn burlap.
Most of the furniture is made from reclaimed wood that has been newly constructed. There are some antiques, such as a large bread bowl, and Guy Wolff pots are popular. You’ll also find serving pieces, diffusers, custom pillows, hostess gifts, candles and soap. Prices start at $12 and can go up to $2,000.
Mangum studied interior design and learned the florist trade from his grandmother, so the store also is a full florist and event business. All flowers are fresh, and he says the plants are reasonably priced.
Twig Garden & Home, 495 S. Third St., 732-4947; twiggardenhome.com. Open Tue-Sat 11 am-6 pm, Sun noon-5 pm; closed Mon.
Working together
Richard Dinovo created the Delaware County Community Market in 2010 to enable members to purchase high-quality, handmade items all year while supporting vendors and local nonprofits. When you shop here, 20 percent of your purchase goes to the charity you select from a list, 5 percent to DCCM and
75 percent to the vendor. The idea won the Innovation and Business Award from the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce.
You’ll find locally produced fruits and vegetables in season, baked goods such as breads, pies, sweets and desserts, plus a selection of gluten-free items. For a fast meal, there’s soup, pizza, quiche and $5 box lunches. You also can find unique handcrafted general merchandise and gourmet jams and jellies.
Delaware County Community Market, 222 E. William St. (take Rt. 23 or I-71 north to Rt. 36 in downtown Delaware), (740) 363-1126; dccmc.com. Open Mon-Fri 10 am-6 pm, Sat till 4 pm, Sun noon-4 pm.
Spring cleaning
Carmen’s Distribution Systems Inc., one of the nation’s top suppliers of vacuum cleaners, floor care items and janitorial supplies since 1970, does a big online business. Its four Columbus retail stores now are a growing part of the company, with good prices to get your house spotless.
Vacuum brands here include Hoover, Panasonic, Eureka, Miele, Dyson and other names offering uprights and canisters. New vacuums start at $59.99, and you sometimes can find used and rebuilt items. Marketing director Adam Elliot says Carmen’s is the only regional repair center for all Dysons. You’ll also find buffers, commercial sweepers, filters, chemicals, belts, pads, cleaning supplies, shampoos, waxes and window cleaners.
Carmen’s Distribution Systems Inc., 85 S. Hamilton Rd., 864-0190; 5520 N. High St., 846-9915; 9709 Sawmill Rd., 761-0199; 320 S. State St., Westerville, 882-8400. Open Mon-Fri 9 am-6 pm, Sat till 4 pm; closed Sun. The online store at carmensvacuum.com offers free ground shipping on orders of $100 or more.
Sweet talk
Two friends and former cardiac nurses, Melissa Worthington and Briana Irby, have switched to baking. The duo opened Blue Frost Cupcake, a gourmet bakery, in December. You have a choice of 10 flavors made daily and competitively priced.
The thrust here is high-quality ingredients, including Callebaut and Ghirardelli chocolate, Madagascar bourbon vanilla, sweet cream butter and Saigon cinnamon. Cupcakes such as pumpkin ginger, carrot and key lime use only fresh ingredients prepared that day. The signature cupcake is blue velvet, with a blue fondant flower on top. Regular cupcakes are $2.50 each or $13 for a half-dozen, and minis are $1.50 each or $16 a dozen. Cupcake balls on a stick are $1.75. The shop’s Facebook page announces a flavor of the day Monday through Thursday mornings, and if you’re one of the first 50 customers that day, you get a free cupcake for mentioning it.
Blue Frost Cupcake, 657 High St., Worthington (south of Dublin-Granville Road), 844-4850; bluefrostcupcake.com. Open Mon-Sat 10 am-6 pm; closed Sun.
Send sale and bargain suggestions two months before sale to: Bargain Bits, Columbus Monthly, P.O. Box 29913, Columbus, Ohio 43229-7513, or pressreleases@columbusmediaenterprises.com.
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