Our First Kids Etiquette Class

What a great group of young ladies we had for our first "Correspondence Etiquette for Kids" class. They learned all about types of written correspondence and using the proper stationery. They even wrote some wonderful thank you notes to their family and friends. They all left with their own stationery and were very excited about putting the skills they learned in class to good use! Here they are proudly showing off their certificates at the end of our class. From what their moms have told me, they can't wait to come back for another etiquette class, which indeed makes our hearts happy! Our series of "Because Nice Matters" will continue, with our next classes on April 23rd and May 2nd. Click here to find out more about them and register to attend.

"Spring Fling" Sale This Saturday!

Just a quick reminder to join us tomorrow, Saturday, March 27th for our "Spring Fling" Sale from 10-6. There will be lots of great specials and even special guests! Celebrate spring with us, shop for some great Easter basket finds and enjoy our Spring Fling event!

Easter Egg Mystery Sale - Pick an Easter Egg from our Easter Basket and inside will be a special sale offer or discount just for you! Everyone gets their own special sale. There will also be a few VERY LUCKY eggs, so choose wisely!

Prize Drawings - Spring Fling wouldn't be a fling without a few special surprises! We will have drawings all day for various prizes and gift certificates, such as:

$50 Gift Certificate to Dream Dinners

2 Tickets to Theatre IV

2 Tickets to the Barksdale Theatre

Goody Bag & $25 Gift Certificate to Utopia Spa

Lunch for two at The Brickhouse Run

One Portrait Session Gift Certificate from Anne Hwang Photography

Set of Snack Taxis

Boxed Note Cards from S. E. Hagarman

One Personalized Gift from Paper & Ink Designs

Handmade Clutch from Katie Lemon Designs

$100 Gift Certificate to Michelle Kuzmick Photography

$25 Gift Certificate for Silpada Jewelry

2 Pairs of tickets to Swift Creek Mill Theatre

1 Pink Stripe Crayon Apron from Princess Linens

Gibson Lane Studio Trunk Show Event - Designer Mary Davenport Williams from Gibson Lane Studio will be joining us at our Spring Fling event by appointment only from 10-6. She creates beautiful custom silhouettes of your children and even your pets! Call ahead to book an appointment for Mary to take your child's or pet's silhouette photo and take your custom order. All orders placed at this special event will receive FREE shipping and will be ready for pick up at our store in time for Mother's Day gift giving. This is a very special and creative way to capture the essence of your child or pet! We know there are a lot of pet lovers out there with special family pets they may want to bring in for a custom silhouette appointment as well, and they are welcome to come in for our event.

Girl Scout Cookie Sale - We are thrilled to have a local Girl Scout troop joining us for our Spring Fling too! They will be selling Girl Scout cookies on our patio from 10-1 on Saturday, so come help support their troop goals and stock up your pantry with yummy Girl Scout cookies!

We're really looking forward to welcoming Spring this Saturday with our special activities and "Spring Fling" Sale. We have lots of great new spring merchandise and invitations we are "Egg"cited to show off!

Very Unique Mother's Day Gift!

Don't these silhouettes just leave you speechless. Available framed or unframed, sizes from 5x7, 8x10, 10x20 and in stationery sets, with many beautiful backgrounds to choose from, each is created as a one of a kind treasure by Mary Davenport Williams, the owner of Gibson Lane Studio. We feature a display and take orders for these gorgeous silhouettes in our store regularly and they make a wonderful and unique gift for any mother, grandmother, pet lover (pet silhouettes available too!) and are very affordably priced for such a custom work of art.

We are pleased to announce that we are having a special event with Mary at our store, this Saturday, March 27th where you can schedule an appointment for Mary to take your child's silhouette photo and get your order taken by her in our store. You will also receive FREE shipping for all orders placed at this special event and the orders will be back just in time for Mother's Day Gift Giving!

Exciting things are happening at our store. Make it your personal goal to give great gifts! We can help you achieve it.

First Facebook Fan Sale!

Hey Fans...this is your sale weekend!! Our first ever, Facebook Fan Sale will get you 20% off your entire purchase (excludes invitations only) sale is on today & tomorrow all day long (March 12-13) and is ONLY for Facebook Fans! You can even use your discount on top of current sale prices ;)

Not a fan yet, well what are you waiting for? Click here to visit our Facebook page and become one so that you can take advantage of this great weekend sale. (Now would be a good time to get your friends to become fans too.)

Thanks for being a Fan!

It Was A Pleasure To Speak With You...

Interested in the trials and triumphs of running a small business? Wondering how to write a thank you note for a gift, when you have no idea what it is? You really want to know how this business owner manages to call almost every customer she has ever met in her store by name and why she insists that "tweeting" is fun and mandatory. Well, she'll be glad to tell you all about it. If your business, school or organization is looking for some insight into these and other unique topics, invite Elizabeth Howard to speak at your next event or meeting or submit an article for your next publication. She would love to share her experiences with you and her calendar for 2010 is booking up fast.

Read more below and drop her an email to chat about how she can help you or your organization.

Elizabeth Howard started her online paper boutique in 2005 as a part-time venture, later leaving her full-time career in information technology in 2007 to open her own retail store, The Cordial Cricket. Her store, located in Chester, Virginia and online at www.thecordialcricket.com, specializes in custom invitations, stationery and gifts.

She is the wife to a fellow successful entrepreneur, who is always supportive of her creative endeavors and the mother to a very imaginative seven year old boy who keeps her on her toes. When not personally assisting as many customers as she can, or coming up with yet another creative shoe-string marketing idea, she enjoys motherhood, reading, blogging, social media and cheering on her alma mater, the Virginia Tech Hokies.

Elizabeth is a lover of all things classy, stylish, prim and proper. She keeps abreast of the current trends in the wedding and stationery industry as well as timeless and traditional etiquette in order to provide even more value to her customer’s service experience. Giving etiquette advice and answers to customers and brides, she now finds is a daily occurrence. She has been featured in and/or written for publications such as Stationery Trends Magazine and Gifts & Decorative Accessories Magazine. She enjoys speaking and writing on the topics of social, correspondence and business etiquette as well as the adventures of being a small business owner, using social media, blogging and marketing.

For media, writing or speaking engagement inquiries contact Elizabeth Howard at ehoward@thecordialcricket.com

Because Nice Matters

Here at The Cordial Cricket, we truly do believe that Nice Matters, and in an effort to share that enthusiasm and belief with others we are pleased to announce our new series of seminars related to just that topic. Whether it be a young child whose mother wants to raise to know the importance of a nice handwritten thank you note, the mother of a bride who wants to be sure she knows all the proper etiquette for her daughter's wedding correspondence, or those looking for jobs who want to brush up on their interview and business etiquette skills, we are here to help.

Because we work in an industry that is guided by of the world of etiquette, the matters of proper etiquette and being nice, are very close to our hearts. The owner of The Cordial Cricket, Elizabeth Howard, has years of experience on the subject and often does research to find the most current answers to some age old questions. Please join us on our journey of exploring Because Nice Matters by registering for one of our upcoming courses below. Share this information with a friend or two and contact us to keep us informed of the types of classes that you would like us to offer.

We are also happy to bring our classes to you, your business, school or organization of any type and can meet with you to create a custom class/seminar that will best meet the needs of your group. Because after all, Nice Matters, in any group, business, home, school or company. Click here to contact Elizabeth Howard directly for scheduling classes or speaking engagements for your organization. Elizabeth is also happy to provide etiquette related articles or content for your company's publications and newsletters.

Upcoming Nice Matters classes:

Correspondence Etiquette for Kids - Sunday, March 21st - 2:00-3:30
Who should attend: Girls and Boys ages 9-12, Class is limited to 10 students.

No child’s education is complete without this class! Join Elizabeth Howard, owner of The Cordial Cricket, as you study and practice this important life skill. The following lessons will be covered in this course: types and history of correspondence; writing thank you notes, apology notes, and letters; correspondence styles; selecting the proper stationery for correspondence; electronic correspondence; properly accepting and declining invitations and more.

All attendees will receive a box of 10 note cards.
Attendees must pre-register for this seminar. Registration fee: $20
Click here to register for Correspondence Etiquette for Kids.

Wedding Correspondence Etiquette - Friday, April 23rd - 6:00-7:30
Who should attend: Brides and/or Mothers of the Bride, class is limited to 20 attendees.

Brides-to-be and/or mothers of the bride will learn the proper etiquette for wedding correspondence such as:
Selecting your wedding stationery; proper invitation wording; invitation addressing and assembly guidelines; handling guest RSVPs; table cards, place cards and other reception stationery; overview of wedding programs
tips on writing bridal shower and wedding gift thank you notes

All attendees will receive a copy of the Crane & Co. "The Wedding Blue Book" - The Definitive Guide to Wedding Correspondence.
Attendees must pre-register for this seminar. Registration fee: $40
Click here to register for Wedding Correspondence Etiquette.