If Chip and Joanna Gaines came to the Rocket City, I’m certain that Sweet Pineapple would be Joanna’s favorite store.  The lovely gift shop on Airport Road has leather bracelets, dangling earrings, and cute clothing like I’ve seen her wear.

The Perfect Little Gift Shop

Sweet Pineapple is locally owned by Gina Garrett, who initially opened the gift shop in Huntsville’s 5-Points area.  Soft-spoken with a friendly smile, Gina said, “I always loved gift-giving, and I grew up with a mom who is very talented at that and is always so thoughtful.  It’s funny—I have a sister, and we would go to stores she’d called ‘fun stores’ when we were growing up.  They were little gift stores where you found unique things and always got really special customer…

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The Mint Julep Difference

I visited Mint Julep Market on a rainy Saturday afternoon—the perfect day for browsing their bounty of upscale gifts from local artisans. The collaborative team at Mint Julep Market works very hard to offer a unique shopping experience to their customers, and that’s just what I got. Although the market has 15 curators, each one has intimate knowledge of all the gift collections.

Mint Julep owner and mother of three, Hillary Dunham, told me, “The people we work with are experts in their field.  They bring exceptional things from all over the world back to Huntsville.  They’re a wonderful and fun group of people to work with.”

It’s fair to say that Mint Julep operates far outside the box.  In one large, open area, you…

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Matt Curtis Real Estate has just helped you find your dream home in Rocket City, but you might have one small problem.  Many times you find your dream house, but the back yard is what you could consider a blank slate.  It might be a simple concrete patio and beautifully growing grass, nice, but not what you would consider an outdoor living space. Across The Pond has everything you need to transform your backyard into the outdoor living space of your dreams.

Across the Pond started as a 900 square feet water garden store ran out Treavor Cole’s landscape offices.  It was born of Treavor’s love for backyard ponds.  Customer kept coming and asking for a large variety of products.  In 2003, Across the Pond opened and now has 24,000 square feet of retail…

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The Christmas and New Year holidays are finally behind us, and hopefully you have been able to get all your holiday décor packed back up and stowed away in the basement or attic.  For many, this leaves your home feeling a little empty or drab.  The New Year is the perfect time to give your home some attention and spruce up your décor.

Your home is your living space and should be decorated to your unique style. My home is extremely unique since it is made from 1800s logs from TN and re-constructed in Madison County, AL in the 1970s. Rocket City is very lucky to have a plethora of unique shops that can help you furnish your home with distinctive décor that will be aesthetically pleasing while showing characteristics of your personal style.

While …

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Downtown Madison makes for a fun afternoon near the Rocket City. Main Street, a  perfectly compact and quaint little strip alongside the train tracks, is anchored by Old Black Bear Brewing Company, and has a lineup of shops familiar to a small town lover: a cafe and a restaurant, a salon, a boutique, keepsake and antique shops, a sweets shop, and a fitness studio, among other tenants like an attorney’s office and artist studio. It’s a diverse group of businesses. Between retail therapy and a bite to eat, it can make for a fun afternoon close to Huntsville, all tucked away in the middle of Madison in under a tenth of a mile’s walk, if that.

 

Main Street Cafe has a menu that looks a little fancier than their name might suggest, some good outdoor…

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As 2017 is ending many people are starting to get a head start on planning their remodeling projects for the new year.  For many Rocket City women, a new kitchen remodel is one of the top remodeling projects on the list. Here is a quick guide to the top trends for kitchen remodeling.

Under Cabinet lighting

If your kitchen seems a little dark, or if you like to be able to better control your lighting for candlelight dinners, under cabinet lighting might be a great addition to your kitchen.   This sounds like such a small change but can give you so much more control over your lighting.  When we moved to Huntsville, the kitchen in our log home was very dark.   We had under cabinet lighting installed, and it is by far my favorite feature of my…

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Time to get out your calendar!  We’ve searched the ‘Net to find fun things to do in Madison for each month in 2018.  The goal was to find activities known only to the locals—things that may not be advertised.  

January - Limestone Flea Market 

The Limestone Flea Market is located on the left after you cross County Line/Old Railroad Bed Road.  You may not think it’s much—the sign isn’t that fancy, and all you see is a low, tin building.  But this flea market packs quite a flea market punch.  It is huge!  The Limestone Flea Market has just a little bit of everything:  Avon, homeschool books, rugs, glassware, classic arcade games, toys… We once bought my daughter a pretty, red duffle bag to tote to camp. Free admission.

Open Saturday and Sunday 9 am…

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My favorite time of the year is here, and what’s more fun that holiday decor shopping in the Rocket City! Bridge Street, Parkway Place Mall, and Pier One Imports sell exquisite decor, but our local retailers also will dazzle you with their holiday displays.  Whether you’re shopping for Hanukah, Kwanza, or Christmas, you don’t have to travel outside of Madison and Huntsville to prep your place for the holidays! Here are some quaint little local shops to browse….

Hook a Frog 

105 Church Street Suite C, Madison, Alabama | (256) 325-0572

It’s time to get your Pokémon game on!  Hook a Frog Fiber and Fun sells whimsical crocheted Pokémon ornaments.  It’s also a terrific place to buy gifts for the knitter in your family.  They have walls of yarn, they…

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Looking for a live Christmas tree this year?

It was a simple proposition when I was growing up on my family’s farm.  We all piled in the back of the hay trailer, and Dad drove us into the meadow to find a little cedar tree.  He sawed it at the base, tossed it into the trailer with the rest of us, and we’d take it back home—singing carols all the way.  We do it a bit differently in the Rocket City.  Honestly, it’s a whole lot easier, and it can be just as fun if you visit a place like Valley Christmas Tree Plantation.

A Christmas Tree from the Farm

Valley Christmas Tree Plantation is owned by George and Trish Brown, who have around 114 acres east of Huntsville.  This sweet couple and their lovely dog, Honey, live on a beautiful farm (that they…

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Urban Cookhouse, a Birmingham based fast casual “farm-to-table” style eatery has opened a new franchise at Huntsville’s premiere shopping destination, Bridge Street Town Centre. Urban Cookhouse, originating in Homewood, now operates 13 stores in 5 states across the southeast. If you like to feel good about the folks fixin’ your food, Urban Cookhouse shows promise: in addition to their focus on the using local ingredients and taking food donation requests by their website, the company’s Birmingham Summit outpost also hosts a seasonal farmers market to enable area farmers more opportunities to sell their produce. 

What’s the menu look like, though? Fairly light, comfy choices, a few surprises but nothing too exotic. The menu available online is…

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