In their continuing efforts to improve your shopping experience, InteriorMetalDesigns.com has redesigned its Website.

The new site is easier to navigate, and that alone is big news. It’s now easier to find what you’re looking for – just click a link at the top of the page and you’re right in the middle of . . . home products . . . garden products . . . gift ideas . . . products by Artist or studio.

But the bigger news is everything else they’ve added:

For starters, they added a blog – now that’s just asking customers to leave feedback. Have something to say?  They want to hear it! Leave a comment for everyone to read.  Or leave a comment-on-a-comment, or comment-on-a-comment-on-a-comment, or . . . oh, you get the idea. Or how about adding your review to a product? Be the first – or be the most helpful.

Not sure what you want?  Can’t decide?  Then the new Compare Products feature will help. Just click the Add to Compare link for each item you’re considering (below the Add to Cart box).  When you’re done un-deciding click the Compare Items button . . . and each one is displayed in columns side-by-side.  It just doesn’t get easier than this!

Need a closer look at a product photo?  Well, we’ve got you covered: just slide the button below the photo from the – side to the + side just like a volume button, and you’ll see the photo grow-shrink-grow-shrink-grow . . .now wait just a minute – would you stop fooling around?? (Uh, we were caught doing that too.)

See something you want to share with friends, or just want a quick connection to InteriorMetalDesigns.com’s site?  Bookmark the page with Facebook, Digg.com, Stumbleupon.com, Del.icio.us or Reddit.com – yes, it’s like tying a string to them so you never lose ‘em!

You can also sign up for price alerts – you’ll know right away when your favorite items are on sale!
Do you have a favorite artist?  Then cast your vote in the Community Poll! Not sure?  Want more info? One click tells you all about any one of the artists showcased on InteriorMetalDesigns.com.

Another fab features is the ability to show all search items on a single page, no matter how many there are. Choose how many products you want displayed on each page, all the way up to All! (Yeah, we know how that sounds….)

You can choose to view your search in grid or list format – whatever you prefer.  Pretty cool. And that’s not all.  You can sort them by Best Value, Name or Price, or filter them by Price, Studio or Artist.

InteriorMetalDesigns.com added a How it’s Made button and another About the Artist button to each product.  Pretty much anything you want to know is within one simple click.

This new design will change your shopping experience, raising it to a whole new, cutting-edge level. We’re betting you’ll be as surprised as we were at how much fun you’ll have.  And don’t be surprised at the long list of favorites that end up in your cart!

By the way, have you met Stanley yet? As some Midwesterners say, “He’s a hoot!”  You may just have to adopt him and bring him on home….

So . . . you want to knock their socks off when they see your home and Christmas tree this year?  Want to do something different, unique – something that won’t be out of date and worn out by next year?  How about something to start a family tradition around?  We’ve got the answer for you:  this year make it handmade!

Uh, no time, huh?  Not even for an ornament?  Well, yes, I understand. Really.  I mean, sometimes it makes me want to shout “Bah-humbug” and swear off all holiday festivities – they’re too stressful, there are too many expectations, they make me want to . . . .

Hold up.  Before we ride that red sleigh over the mountain edge into the dark abyss, let’s check out our other options.  Seems others have been down this same road and found some interesting solutions. 

What do I mean?  Well, I was online looking for original and unique holiday artwork and found some really cool things out there for reasonable prices!  In fact, it was really amazing – you can find all sorts of decorating items – and just think how cool they’ll be to give as gifts!

Here’s an example.  A Canadian artist named Terri Schuver has a line of holiday stuff that’ll knock your socks off.  Her hand crafted holiday ornaments are – really – hand crafted.  Each one, one at a time.  And she’s not the only one – just take a gander into the holly-jolly land of Google and you’ll see for yourself!

You can find ornaments, decorations, gifts . . . anything and everything for your holiday tree, inside and outside decorations, gifts for everyone on your list.

You may be looking for something different, something you can’t find in every single Big Box store.  Are you tired of the same-old, same-old?  Then this is the year for change.  Just a little online research and you’ll be celebrating with a new bounce in your holiday hitch.

Go ahead now – hop on that big red Technicolor sleigh and take the best ride of the season – all the way home to hand crafted, original holiday ornaments and decorations.  Ho-ho-ho, and to all a good night!

Shop Terri Schuver Designs

Artist Terri Schuver has made her Christmas collection available through InteriorMetalDesigns.com this holiday season.  Her collection covers a wide variety of tastes and styles and complements InteriorMetalDesigns.com’s line of metal art.

For the first time ever, Terri Schuver is making her handcrafted holiday metal works available through InteriorMetalDesigns.com.  Terri and her team released 41 Christmas pieces to InteriorMetalDesigns.com, just in time for this year’s holiday season.

Terri’s handcrafted Christmas decorations are varied enough to cover most people’s tastes, from Santas and angels to trees, wreaths, wise men, ornaments, stocking hangers and snowmen.  Terri incorporates a mixture of styles in her work, and this holiday collection is no exception: whimsical, elegant and traditional styles are available.

Chris Irwin, owner of InteriorMetalDesigns.com, said, “We’re really excited to carry Terri’s Christmas collection.  We carry metal artwork exclusively and Terri’s holiday line of metal works is a great complement to our other pieces.”

Terri Schuver is the artist extraordinaire at Prairie Dance, Inc. based in Canada.  Terri has a talent for taking a piece of metal and shaping it into pieces people are beginning to clamor for.  The fine detailing and unique finishes are Prairie Dance’s signature, and what makes each one a collector piece. 

Prairie Dance is comprised of two women who see themselves first as moms and second as artists.  Terri and her business partner make every piece themselves.  They also work with a sketch artist and a tool specialist these days to help turn out the wide variety of metal work they offer.

Terri’s work is prized for its fine detailing, unique finish and durability.  Metal will last a lifetime and more with very little maintenance.  To view Terri’s Christmas collection visit InteriorMetalDesigns.com.

Kathryn Savyannah writes for InteriorMetalDesigns.com, which is owned and operated by Chris & Yvonne Irwin.  The Irwin’s passion for metalwork, metal art and functional artwork inspires them to provide home and garden décor hand crafted from metal and iron.  To view Terri Schuver’s Christmas collection, visit their online boutique at http://www.InteriorMetalDesigns.com.

Menorahs – Hanukah's answer to winter darkness, lighting the sky over the ancient lands of the Hebrews, the holy Torah, the Star of David… all the way to today's Jerusalem skyline.  Called the Festival of Lights with its myriad menorahs illuminating this centuries-old tradition, it may have been invented just for those of us who love candlelight.

Maybe . . . maybe. . . . . . .

Okay, okay – maybe not.  Or is it Hanukah with one k?  And hey, what the heck is a "Torah"?

Yes, that was a sad, audible sigh you just heard from the "enlightened" side of the world.  It's true:  most of us without a Jewish heritage don't have any idea what Hanukah is all about, and wouldn't recognize a menorah if it was monogrammed on our baseball caps.  But let's change all that in time for this year's holiday season:  let the non-Jewish of the world learn a little about a Jewish tradition.

Hanukah, sometimes called Chanuka, is also called the Festival of Lights.  It's celebrated on different days each year, like the Christian Easter holiday.  Because it rotates according to the Hebrew calendar, its eight days of celebration (more on that later) fall anywhere from late November to late December.  And yes – that's eight full days of celebration – eight!  In a row!  How did Hanukah get to be eight days long?  Well, it began a really long time ago with a storyline too familiar to the Jewish people:  persecution and war.  The Jews were ruled by the Syrian king then, who decided to outlaw traditional Jewish practices – he actually banned Judaism in Judah.  In the ensuing days the temple was looted, Jews were massacred and a different alter was erected in the Temple in Jerusalem.

But the Jews weren't going to take this.  One of the Jewish priests and his sons mounted and led a revolt against the Syrians, and the war began.  It took them two years, but they won their temple back and the right to worship as they chose.  Now here comes the really cool part:  as they prepared the new Jewish alter in the Temple, they lit the traditional menorah (you've got it: it's a light!) with the little bit of oil they had left – just enough for one day and one night.  But that was really bad, you see, because tradition required the Temple menorah to burn through each and every night without going out.  And it took eight days to prepare more oil (hold it, hold it).

Things looked bad, real bad.  But they lit the menorah anyway, trusting they were doing the right thing.  The few drops of oil in the menorah lit the Temple and new alter that day, and that night . . . and for eight more days and nights!

The Jewish leaders declared a holiday to celebrate this miracle.  Today candles are used in place of oil, and each year on the first day of celebration one candle is lit, then another candle is lit each day until on the eighth day all eight are lit.

Now, you have to understand the significance of the number eight.  According to the Torah (their book of knowledge, the one that holds their truths and beliefs), it took seven days to create the world.  The number eight is one number after seven, and to them it represents the Infinite or God (with a capital G).

But wait, menorahs have nine candles.  Here's why:  that ninth candle is the "workhorse," sometimes called the servant light.  It’s only job is to light the other candles, and it's placed at a different height than the other eight.  This servant candle allows the other eight candles to fulfill their sole responsibility:  to illuminate the reason for the celebration.  So on the first day two candles are lit, three are lit on the second day . . . and nine on the eighth.  That's the story in a nutshell.  Today the eight days of Hanukah, the Festival of Lights, is celebrated around the world.

And now you know why the menorah is such an important part of this holiday, so next time you see a menorah you'll understand a little more, and maybe you'll light a candle yourself….

Browse Menorahs

Most people shop at this site for two reasons: the unique, one-of-a-kind styling and the long-lasting quality of the products. Each item is hand crafted by the artist, which creates a unique, one-of-a-kind work of art. Hand crafted from steel and hand hammered in iron, they don't fade, crack, melt or stop working - they will last for many lifetimes.

"I want something different than what the big stores have, and I want it to last longer than the cardboard it's wrapped in." That's what Kathryn S. said when asked what's important when shopping for her home. And that's what InteriorMetalDesigns.com offers.

InteriorMetalDesigns.com carries unique, one-of-a-kind quality products, a boutique-style online store that provides a market for artists and studios to sell their metal works. Their diverse line of products includes coffee tables, beds, desks and lamps. But that's not all: there's a line of wine storage items - you'll laugh at some and be awed by others - even unique pieces for your garden. Their River Rock lamp and "mythical" furniture lines are quite impressive and very unusual.

InteriorMetalDesigns.com's search for artists who work in metal and produce professional products was challenging, and continues today for more of those hard-to-find individuals. Today they have an impressive list of artists who design and create each piece. Their profiles are available on the site so you can read about the artists who design and created each work of art.

InteriorMetalDesigns.com offers buyers an option to the same-old product availability with a unique and lasting product they guarantee. They're the perfect alternative for buyers looking for a fresh and innovative shopping experience.

For more information about InteriorMetalDesigns.com you can visit their site at InteriorMetalDesigns.com.

About InteriorMetalDesigns.com

InteriorMetalDesigns.com is a leading retailer of unique, handmade metal designs for the home and garden since 2005.