Winter Wonderettes

One of the things I love most about my job is the importance I get to place on community involvement. Whether it's donations to local schools, or helping out various non profit groups, it's a pleasure for me to make us not just a store, but a part of the community.  So when the Coastal Repertory Theatre told us about their upcoming play that takes place in a hardware store, I knew we had to be part of it.

If you think their hardware store set looks rather realistic, that's because it is!  The pegboard and shelves are on loan from our store, along with many of the props.  When it came time to light up the stage with over 1,000 Christmas lights, we got them their special vintage-style bulb strings to make the scene feel like a 1968 hardware store!

They invited us to see the Saturday show, and after seeing the production I can honestly say, if you don't go and see the Winter Wonderettes it truly is your loss.  My friends and I haven't laughed so hard or had such a good time dancing in our seats in I don't know how long. The play was a top notch production that had us giggling nonstop.

Winter Wonderettes is running from November 22 - December 21.  Please don't miss out on this enjoyable, fun for the whole family, Christmas-themed production!

- Larissa Texter

 

 

Amaryllis Kits at ACE

Amaryllis kits make a fun and rewarding Christmas gift or project for the winter months.  -Jody, Hassett Hardware - Palo Alto

Cub Scouts Birdhouse Project at Our Half Moon Bay Location

We hosted a troop of Cub Scouts last Monday for a great project on making and painting birdhouses. The boys got a great hardware lesson in the different types of woodworking nails and tools and we had a lot of fun helping them learn and play!

Thank you, Troop 263!

Note: If you have a group who'd like to do a fun project at one of our locations, let us know!

Night of Lights, Half Moon Bay, 2012

The annual Half Moon Bay Night of Lights was a success again this year. We intend to be more prepared next year so that we can participate, but we had fun spectating this year.

Here's what we saw:

Homemade Vanilla Extract Recipe

Homemade vanilla extract!

Ingredients:

10 vanilla beans, split lengthwise - be careful to keep the gooey-inside-seedy-stuff in the pods.

1 liter of Vodka

Directions:

Place the vanilla beans in a bottle of vodka and seal.

If you're going to give these as gifts, find some pretty clear glass bottles and make smaller batches.

Store in a cool, dark area such as a kitchen cabinet for 3 weeks, shaking the bottle every week. Three weeks is the minimum, store it 6 months for the best flavor. After using, replace with more vodka. The same beans will continue to flavor the vanilla for up to a year.

Christmas Tree Stands On Sale

If you're in Palo Alto and in need of a Christmas tree - stop by Whole Foods on Emerson. Then bring in your receipt, and this coupon, to Palo Alto ACE Hardware and get 15% OFF any tree stand in stock!

Black Friday at ACE Hardware

We have some great coupons, sales and deals for you this weekend!

Stop by any of our locations - Palo Alto, Willow Glen, Half Moon Bay and San Mateo for incredible savings!

Fixing Broken Christmas Lights

 

Tip of the Week:

Got an old set of Christmas lights that are not working?  Our Sales Associate, Jorge, suggests trying the LightKeeper Pro fixit gun.  It comes complete with instructions and batteries!  If for some reason you are unable to get the string of lights working, then bring them in to one of our locations - Half Moon Bay, Palo Alto, San Mateo or Willow Glen.  We have teamed up with "Lights for Life", an organization that recycles your lights to raise money for cancer survivors.  Come and visit us for more details.  We look forward to seeing you!