We Survived Christmas!!!

Congratulations...we survived Christmas!!!! Not only that, we survived 2011 with its lousy economy, unemployment, etc. Our hope is that 2012 sees an improved economy, our young men and women home from overseas, and Peace in our land.

On a personal note, I was once again very lucky this Christmas. I didn't get the rocks in my socks I probably deserved. One of my favorite gifts was a bottle of Titos Vodka. It comes all the way from the Lone Star state, Texas. Unlike its competition from Poland or Russia, Titos is made from yellow corn which is GLUTEN FREE. So for those of us with tummy issues this is a great alternative especially when we're getting ready to celebrate the New Year. The more traditional New Year's beverage is CHAMPAGNE, which can range anywhere from $3.99 a bottle to $140.00 for the very exquisite Dom Perinion. Us regular folks usually select J.Roget at $4.99 a bottle. DECISIONS! DECISIONS!! DECISIONS! Whatever you choose UFS want to thank you for your continued support and wish you all a Fantastic 2012.

~Claire Serafin Wiegand

Christmas Magic

Here at UFS the Christmas magic has filled the stores...Our employees decidedly believe in Santa. They keep asking how GOOD do you have to be? (If only we knew the answer to that, or exactly why they're asking?) Our customers are also full of holiday cheer thanks in part to the wonderful holiday beverage tastings. Did I tell you about the Tequila Rose, a passionate combination of Strawberry cream liquor with a splash of tequila? OMG!!!! That's a Merry Christmas in a bottle. My other favorite is the Original Mother's Old Fashion Apple Pie Liquor, mixed with a little warm apple cider and you'd swear you were eating pie. Yum yum.

If you need any supplies to help you celebrate the holidays we're here stocked and ready. Besides the consumables we have plenty of holiday decor, wrappings, etc. We won't even ask you if you've been good or not...hee hee hee!

UFS Christmas Savings

It's Christmas time! For most children this is probably the best time of the year. There's usually snow in the Midwest coupled with Christmas carols, hot chocolate, marshmallows and a vacation from school.

For adults it means those things plus the opportunity to take advantage of the sales. Here at UFS we love sales and as a result we have been giving 24 Days of Savings this Christmas season. On our website we have been sharing coupons with our customers every 2 days for your shopping delight!

Check back every 2 days from now until Christmas Eve to capitalize on our savings!

What are you thankful for?

Every year around this time I feel like people forget about Thanksgiving and skip right to Christmas shopping. Based on the tradition of this season I want to share what I am thankful for this year. I'm thankful for the obvious: family, friends, good health, etc. But I'm also thankful for much more. I asked the people at UFS what they are thankful for, here are a few responses I got....

Claire, Manager
Yes it's that time of year...Thanksgiving when we celebrate our founding fathers who mastered the art of celebratory eating, the turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, and everyone's favorite pumpkin pie. But also we have the opportunity to surround ourselves with the family who mean so much to us. It's Fun. Sometime during our party we all just need to spend a minute and remember our blessing and our great God who has given us so much. As for myself I am thankful for many, many things, my country, the young men and women who sacrifice so I can be free, my family both at home and at UFS, and our wonderful customers who are loyal and supportive. After 30 years we continue to do business on Adams Street and some may say it's a miracle, we say God has truly blessed us. Happy Thanksgiving!

Tina, Customer Service Desk
As you all know the holidays are almost here so let's take a few minutes to slow down, take a deep breath and reflect on what we have to be thankful for! We have so many blessings in our lives: family, friends, jobs, homes and the list goes on and on! I don't know about all of you but I know that I can remember a time when life was a lot simpler and the holidays were centered more on enjoying good company and good food than around gifts and the like. Why don't we all try this year to get back a little bit of those "good old days", try to smile a little more, say "Hi" to the people you meet and instead of buying a gift, make a donation to charity! Not only will you make someone else feel better but you will feel better about yourself too. Know that even the smallest gesture of kindness will come back to you tenfold, after all, isn't that what this season is all about? Try it, I know you'll like it! Have a fabulous holiday season!

So what are you thankful for? Leave a comment and let us know!

Trick or Treat!

Halloween is less than a week away! I remember when I was child that was the talk of the school. "What are you going to be for Halloween?!" Everyone wanted to know and as children we were eager to tell. Now in my adult life I still get invited to Halloween parties but it's not the same as the joy of getting candy on that day. I've noticed that as an adult the same question seems to arise. Most years I pay it no attention, but this year I'm thinking of possible costumes. Thankfully we have costumes for 50% off already in our store. I won't have to go far to find something that suits my needs.

So what are you going to be for Halloween?!

Football Frenzy

I don't know what's better. The beginning of the school year to signify the beginning of High School football or the start of College football. Some people could arguably say that the season opener for the NFL is the best part of the fall as well. Either way it goes we have awesome deals year round to support any need that one may have. I must say I am a football fan and I personally prefer to watch the Junior Football League (JFL) in the area more than anything. We have a pop-up cooler at UFS that would be perfect to put water in for my nephew's entire team when it's his week to bring beverages. Because his games are on Saturday mornings the cooler can also double as a great tailgating tool Friday night for the high school games. I plan to go see my Alma mater play in October for the Homecoming game and will definitely need a cooler and chair for tailgating purposes. Nothing better than a cooler on wheels that has easy access to the beverages. Another great tailgating item will be the Bulls-Eye washers game. It's great for this time of the year.

I think I'm set for some great football! How about you?!

Probably the 2nd Best Part of the Year!!!

For the vactioner....

Clothes? Check! Shoes? Check! All packed and ready to go? Check! Check! This is the best time of the year! VACATION!!! I love vacation because you get to go to a new place [possibly] and explore the surroundings. The curiosity and anticipation that arises from traveling somewhere new whether near or far is exciting. This year we are using the holiday weekend to take a road trip to New Orleans, the Big Easy! There's so much to do and see in New Orleans I don't think we know where to begin.

Every trip starts with packing and where better to buy some new luggage than UFS? That's just what I did! I found a great deal on luggage for this extended weekend trip as well as some jewelry that I can wear. Getting ready to travel this holiday weekend? Stop into UFS and see what great deals we have!



For the Stay-cationer....

If you are staying in town this holiday weekend we still have items you can use! Start with the Commercial 6ft. table to put all your cookout needs on. We also have Kingsford bags of charcoal for $6.99 to use for your grilling experience. Having family and friends over this weekend? We have plenty of chips to add to your food selection as well as many beverages to choose from. Make sure to check our current sales ad for the hottest deals that end on Monday, July 4th!

Be safe this weekend and enjoy your time whether it be in town or out of town. UFS will be here the entire holiday weekend if you need anything, come visit us and we will help you the best we can!

A "Simple" Solution to a Somewhat Difficult Task

It's that time of the year again when the weather is warm and people are having tons of parties; birthday parties, graduation parties, family gatherings, everything that warmer weather brings. Speaking of graduation parties I have two to attend this weekend. That means I must find the time to go shopping! Wait, why stress? I can just get on the UFS website and order 2 gift cards, attach a card to both and I'm set! While I'm at it I had better get one for my cousin's birthday which is this weekend as well. I wonder if they send cards with the gift card so I can write her a message as well? I'll check into that.


I tend to procrastinate in everything I do, maybe I should buy one for my dad as well. Father's Day is coming soon and he does love the store. He walks around the store every time he comes in and I'm sure he would find some use for this gift card. Boy, these gift cards are definitely going to come in handy.The best part is that they will all be sent to me so I won't even have to try and find the time to go down to the store to pick them up before I attend all these parties.

I'm so thankful that UFS finally stepped into this century and started selling things online. Makes my life easier. I can't wait until they start to sell more than gift cards online. (I urge you to comment below if you agree!)

Taste of Spring

The birds are chirping and the sun is shining...well maybe not but it definitely looked like Spring in our store this weekend. There were a plethora of people here for our popular Easter Wine, Spirit, and Beer tasting. This was the biggest tasting we have had so far this year and it was lots of fun! I teamed up with one other friend and came to enjoy the tasting fun. There were over 100 different craft beers, wines, and spirits.
We definitely liked the summer flavors that we tasted in the craft beer section. If you enjoy beer I invite you to come to the store and check out our new beer section (Coming soon to the web!) that is stocked with all of the craft beers from this weekend's tasting as well as many others. We also tasted many different wines and picked some favorites out of the bunch (Like our Facebook page and I will share them with you!). I didn't taste many spirits, however my friend and several other tasters seemed to enjoy them. There were quite a few new vodka flavors that I noticed as well as other liqueurs that looked to be popular. With all that free stuff how could one not enjoy themselves?

If you missed our tasting this weekend then I'm sorry to hear that, but don't fret there is another one coming soon. Just make sure to either sign up for our Email list, follow us on Twitter, or fan us on Facebook so that you don't miss out on any more of our great events at UFS!

When is the right time to plant flowers? Anytime is the right time, but now is the best time! I was walking through the store today and I thought even though the weather is a little cool I should plant some plants and flowers. We have just about everything you need right here at our store. We have a trailer load of plastic pots to start your planting season right. There are a variety of these pots in our store just waiting for homes. After you get the soil and plastic pot go ahead and pick up a bag of our Organic Seed Starter Mix to make sure your plants grow healthy and strong. While this is definitely my first time planting flowers on my own I think this should be fun. What else is needed? Hmmm...

Oh that's right we come to the seeds which can also be found in our store. We have pretty flower seeds. (I hope I don't kill these flowers!) I see that we also sell watering cans, I think I should pick one up along with a water hose. I think when the weather gets warm again I'm going to get much use out of all of this!

Sealy, Corsicana, Englander....Oh my!

How much do you really know about mattresses and how they affect your sleep? Did you know during the early part of sleep each night your brain recovers? Ever notice how hard it is to focus when you're sleepy? Well, sleep deprived people have one part of the brain that shuts down while other parts will kick in to compensate. So anytime you deprive yourself of sleep you make it harder not only on your body but also your brain. Let me offer a suggestion for those sleepless nights. Come to UFS Furniture Outlet and pick out a new mattress set!

We have mattresses on sale at UFS Furniture Outlet Center as I type.
A few pointers to keep in mind while shopping for a mattress is to make sure the new mattress has: support (The mattress should definitely support your body and cradle its curves.); comfort (The perfect mattress will be comfortable for your body.); space (There should be enough space for easy, free movement.); and comes in a matching set (We have so many mattress sets to choose from!). Some of the brands to choose from are Sealy, Corsicana, and Englander. Come in and do the SLEEP test. No, we don't want you to sleep on our mattresses in the store but we would love it if you come in and S-Select a mattress; L-Lie down in your sleep position; E-Evaluate the level of comfort and support; E-Educate yourself about each selection (We have excellent salespeople to help with this part!); P-Partners (if you have a sleeping partner) should try each mattress together. So what exactly is stopping you from coming down to our store and trying one out? Check our current newspaper advertisement or commercials, both of which have links on our homepage.

A Taste of France

Did you make it to our Bordeaux Wine Tasting last night? If not, you sure missed an exciting event. A little over 80 people came to taste phenomenal Bordeaux wines, socialize, and network. The wines were available to be bought as well at this tasting. It was a great opportunity for people to come out and try new wines to possibly add to their collections.

Not sure what Bordeaux wine is exactly? That's okay, I researched it for you just in case you didn't know. A Bordeaux wine is any wine produced in the Bordeaux region of France. According to my research, on average over 700 million bottles of wine are produced a year. 89% of wine produced in Bordeaux is red, while the other 11% is compiled of sweet white wines, dry white wines, sparkling wine and rosé. There are approximately 60 appellations of Bordeaux wine.

I hope that small description helps you. However, that's not the point here. The point is that if you are interested in trying new things and you like wine you should come to our next wine tasting. (Stay tuned. Details coming soon about that one!) This is my personal invitation to you to come join other wine drinkers young and old at our next tasting.

Any Day is a GREAT Day for a sale!

What is Presidents' Day? Where did this holiday even come from? Is this just another holiday made up by retailers to have a sale on merchandise? Well I looked into this holiday that gives some of us a 3 day weekend off of work while giving others extra hours at their job.
I learned that back in 1971 the United States government set an official day to be celebrated honoring two presidents born in February, President Washington and President Lincoln. Before this day was set many people honored President Lincoln on his birthday which is February 12 and then honored President Washington on his birthday which is February 22.

Well down at UFS we celebrate President Washington and President Lincoln as well as all other presidents who have held office. However we also think it's a good idea to do as our peers and give our customers an excellent sale to shop. With that being said come to UFS Downtown Outlet Center and enjoy 20% off our everyday low priced general merchandise.
Now I must say that sounds like a good deal, but I must add that excludes electronics, oil, beverages, tobacco, discontinued, sale, clearance, appliances, furniture, and mattresses. If you know us you know that we still have a gigantic selection of items for you to choose from to receive 20% off. That's not the only sale we have for Presidents' Day though!!! Of course we have furniture on sale too! We have a Chaise Recliner by Franklin in 2 colors, sage & mocha for the great price of $299.00 as well as a 7 piece room deal (mentioned in an earlier blog) for $599.00. We have too many deals for me to name in this blog, but check out our website where the current newspaper ad is located or even just come into the store and walk around!

Sightings of Spring

What is Spring Fever? I know for many of my fellow Midwesterners we feel this syndrome every year when the restlessness of winter meets the excitement of warmer weather. According to some theorists spring fever is actually "A feeling of restlessness, excitement, or laziness brought on by the coming of spring". I know many of us have felt this way at one time or another. (I sure have!)

How do you cure "Spring Fever"? That's an excellent question friends. My suggestion is to head into UFS Downtown Outlet Center and find a great deal on spring purchases. Who wants to think about spring when there's still snow on the ground though? The best cure for winter blues is shopping for the next season. The best place to get deals for the spring is downtown at the outlet center.

Need a new lawnmower? Great we have one that could be exactly what you are looking for! Picture yourself walking behind a lawnmower on a nice sunny spring day. We have just the mower you need! The Kohler YardPro Courage XT-7 with a bag....can't you see yourself walking behind this lawnmower? Let UFS be your one stop shop for your lawncare needs, pick up large yard waste bags while you are buying your lawnmower too.

A pleasant spring afternoon wouldn't be complete without birds chirping. Once you pick up your lawnmower and yard waste bags stop and take a look at the Song Bird Cedar Lodge Feeder for the low price of $12.99. The birds will really love your yard with this feeder. No bird food? No worries, we've got that covered too! Pick up a bag of Wild Bird Feed for $6.99 in our store too.

Great deals and great prices for the spring at the UFS Downtown Outlet Center. Kick those winter blues and cure spring fever before the spring starts.

Staying warm and fuzzy all over....

What better way to spend winter months in the Midwest than inside on a sofa? That's my favorite thing to do! I enjoy a glass of wine and a good book or any good television show any night while watching the snow fall or the temperature drop. Just like me, many of my friends have lived in the Midwest all of our lives and every winter we complain about the weather. Our favorite way to cope is hanging out together at home watching TV and enjoying adult beverages. We are all young and fresh into a job or career and living on our own. New living room furniture is all but expected in this new phase of our lives; however, most of us can't afford it. (Come in and ask about our financing!) While walking through the furniture store I found something that spiked my interest as well as made me think of my friends who could use it as well. We have a room group with a sofa, loveseat, 3 tables, and 2 lamps ranging in price from $599.00-$799.00. (That's a good range, right?)


The motion furniture I found at the store seemed like a great solution for nights alone as well as nights with friends. This furniture comes in leather, which is my preference, as well as other fabrics. At first glance I imagined myself sitting on the couch with a glass of Riesling in the cupholder (Yeah a cupholder in the furniture, cool right?!) and a book watching the snow fall. Then I imagined my friends sitting on the couch with a cocktail while watching the biggest NBA game for the week. The sofa and loveseat (with cupholders!!!) are priced at $1,448.00 and there's a sofa and recliner option as well. That's priced at $899.00. (Not too terrible!) I think after I pick out my furniture I'll make sure to go across the street and pick up a couple of bottles of wine as well. They'll come in handy once everything is delivered. Sound like a good idea? I think so!