Vintage tees have been popular for a few years now, you used to have to dig around in a thrift store to find a gem, but now you can get reproductions just about everywhere.

OK, so I thought those tantrums in the grocery store only happened to others. Our trips to the store are now full of negotiation, diversion and outright bribery.

They say that only 40% of people actually mail in their rebates when they make a purchase. For me, rebates are a novelty they don't really exist in Australia. But since I've lived here, I've snaffled over $200 in savings thanks to rebates. I expect them to take ages to process and consider it a bonus when I actually get the check in the mail.

But, according to the Smart Money column in Sunday's business section some retailers are planning to stop using them. It'll be interesting to see how that affects the price on big ticket items. Will they discount more or less, perhaps this is the end of rebates altogether?

If you think you can only get scoops of whole grains, granola and goat's milk at a food co-op you'd be wrong. Most of my friends head to Three Rivers Market when they're after good quality produce and difficult to find ingredients. And they're not exactly getting around wearing tie-dye and refusing to shave their armpits.

Just to give those dedicated enough to log onto the blog today a treat, apparently there's one of the biggest garage sales happening in Knoxville this very moment.

It's in the Gulfwood neighborhood (if you're on Cedar Bluff headed from Middlebrook Pike towards Kingston Pike, take a left on Fox Lonas and the Gulfwood neighborhood is on your left after the traffic lights (look for the neighborhood sign).

Whizzing down Route 321, on our way to the Smokies a few weeks ago, we stopped off in Townsend. It's such a pretty area, houses perched on the river's edge, people cycling along paths and small clusters of stores.

It's also the polar opposite of bustling Gatlinburg. Does anyone else start to panic at the thought of spending an entire summer vacation cramming into shops and jostling along sidewalks? All that, after you've sat wedged in traffic jams and shelled out for parking?

Route 321 through Townsend, on the other hand, is idyllic. They’ve even added an IGA supermarket with a general store feel. And don't forget the surrounding craft and wood carving stores - the Great Smoky Art & Crafts Community has the nation's largest concentration of artists
There's also a twice annual Arts & Crafts Market The Fall Festival is scheduled for the weekend of the 29th and 30th of September.

Oh, don’t forget (in case you didn’t notice) it’s nearly football season and just as good as any excuse to cook out and shop. Yep, shop. The Southern Market is having their annual Tailgate party this Saturday between 10am and 6pm. Expect good food and lots of bargains.

The Southern Market
5410 Homberg Drive, Knoxville, TN 37902, Tel: (865) 588-0274

It’s free (apart from the $5 parking fee), and you can pick up hand made goodies, take a tour of the historic home (there’s a fee for that), kick up your heals with the entertainment and indulge yourself with some tasty food.

Ramsey House Plantation
2614 Thorn Grove Pike, Tel: 865 546 0745
www.ramseyhouse.org

So, this could be a bit of a theme now, but I’ve discovered yet another easy way to recycle. Bliss on Market Square sell funky colored nylon totes for tossing your recycling into. The set of four bags come in different colors and are marked separately for glass, paper, organic waste and metals. The set is just $17.95.

They’re super light for the trip to the recycling center, they’re easy to clean and not too offensive to look at.

Bliss
24 Market Square, Knoxville TN, Tel: (865) 329-8868
www.shopinbliss.com

It was great to see locals flocking to the new Mast General Store last week. The only disappointing thing, on a Saturday morning, was that there wasn’t much to do on Gay Street once you left the store. I know Yee Haw Industries are going to expand their retail operation soon, so that’ll be great. But as far as shops go, there’s not much else to do except enjoy a good cup of coffee at Downtown Grind.

Luckily for us the Farmer’s Market was happening and we could visit the other stores on Market Square.

As for the Mast General Store, it seems to have mass appeal. There were a lot of families and it wasn’t too dull for the guys either. Personally, we liked the old fashioned toys and candy.

The Mast General Store - 402 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN, Tel: 865 546 1336
www.mastgeneralstore.com

Our minds were firmly fixed on a good lunch, last Saturday when our plans quickly changed. We stumbled across a virtual Aladdin’s Cave. Not just one shop, but the entire 500 block on Union Street.

The building is due to be pulled down, gutted, whatever and the entire contents are up for sale. It didn’t look like much on the first floor, just a bunch of old shop fixtures and some small pieces of furniture. Wood frame, vinyl seated chairs that could be converted to look like West Elm’s Tribal range with a bit of hard graft (4 for $30), old diner booth seats, etc. Then the guy running this weird little clearance sale said there was a labyrinth of rooms downstairs with all of the junk we could handle. All you had to do was pick a door and dig around.

The much anticipated Mast General Store is set to officially open next week with a big bash scheduled to run for the weekend of the 26th and 27th. There'll be all sorts of opening specials and promotions and a festive atmosphere.

However, for those of us that are a little impatient, I had a call today from The Mast General Store and they’re actually having a soft opening this Thursday from 10am until 9pm. They’ll be open the same hours on Friday and Saturday (take note if you’re going out for dinner downtown) and on Sunday they’ll be open from noon until 6pm.

They’re already being good neighbors they’ve posted a local calendar of events for Knoxville on their website http://www.mastgeneralstore.com/coekv.php3

The Mast General Store - 402 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN, Tel: 865 546 1336
www.mastgeneralstore.com

Fancy a little bit of spice trading? Head down Chapman Highway and check out new Spice store Spiceorium.

They’ve got a bunch of regular spices along with some of the more obscure. Hands up if you thought Marigold petals were just for Indian weddings? Spices range from an incredibly cheap $1.99 a bag.

If you’ve got a recipe that calls for a bunch of spices and herbs, Spice pro and owner, Trish will blend them for you (no more large jars of nutmeg languishing in the pantry until next Thanksgiving). If you’re unsure of a particular spice, you can sample it and be sure to get Trish to freshly grind spices for added flavor.

Tea buffs will also be happy with a selection of 20 different types, tea diffusers, pots and cups.

Spiceorium – 5901 Chapman Hwy, Suite A, Knoxville, TN, Tel: 865 579 4142

I’ve got a latent fear of paint effects. Bagging, clouding, colourwashing, dragging, frottage, mottling, ragging, rag-rolling, sponging and stippling. They all look dead easy, but unless applied by someone who has a clue what they’re doing they look plain dodgy.

But, Ralph Lauren’s new Candlelight paint might just change my mind. It’s a practically goof proof top coat that oozes glamour. Swish it over any of their 500 colors and a candlelight effect is instantaneous.

This blog has been removed due to reader feedback.

Kudzu Furnishings are clearing out their warehouse, where they store an unbelievable amount of merchandise, to make way for new stock. You’ll find most of their wooden furniture and home accessories, ceramics, antiques and candles from Mexico and India discounted by 20% or more.

They’ll be selling off some scratch and dent stuff too – but nothing too trashed.

Dates:
Friday and Saturday August 18 & 19
10am to 9pm

Kudzu Furnishings - 5054 Kingston Pike (next to Homberg Place), Knoxville, TN, Tel: 865 584 2672
www.kudzufurnishings.com

Unfortunately for Knoxvilians, due to a number of factors, the Diana Warner Studio won’t be opening their new store on Gay Street in August. Instead, it looks like she’s hitting the big time and is planning to move her showroom and wholesale operation to Manhattan.

Of course we’re a little disappointed that her ‘eco-luxury’ goods won’t be for sale downtown but you will still be able to shop at her studio in Sequoyah Hills for a while longer and you’ve gotta feel good about a local designer striking out on her own in NYC.

Diana Warner’s glam accessories have been featured in glossy fashion mags and support ethical trade practices, with a percentage of her profits donated to third world causes too.

Diana Warner Studio – 1206 Kenesaw Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37919, Tel: 865 546 7351
www.dianawarnerstudio.com

The keen shopper, can always find something to buy anywhere. Even at an Interstate exit gas stations provide a welcome diversion from road trip tedium. Since the 1930s you could always be assured of a precious snow globe or tacky t-shirt at Stuckey’s.

Getting off to an early start on Saturday we’d thought of everything for the World’s Longest Yard Sale; ropes, blankets, a dolly and a babysitter (thanks Nana). We even took the truck instead of the more comfortable, fuel efficient car.

As a person who appreciates form over function every time, I couldn’t get over how cute the Dell ‘skins’ are. It’s like wallpapering the outside of your laptop, but much, much groovier.

From now until the end of the month, purchase any new Inspiron & select XPS notebook and Dell will personalize it for free using anything from college colors to a funky print.

Dell - West Town Mall, 7600 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN, Tel: (865) 769-2703
www.dell.com/fsi

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Big pat on the back for Kroger they’ve finally introduced the ‘Bring Your Bag’ to their stores. They’re non-woven bags you can re-use and they’re hot in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Ireland. I could bore you with why recycling is such an important task, but let’s face it, recycling can be hard work, ideally we’d love to do it, but sometimes we’re so pushed for time we can’t.

So I’ll tell you what’s in it for you. Those plastic bags you bring home from the store are getting thinner all of the time, you can’t fit much in them and the majority of them split so you can’t even re-use them. It’s also hard to carry many of them at a time because they break and the plastic handles cut into your hands.