Reno Gazette-Journal from Reno, Nevada • Page 31

3E RENO CENTER Wells Avenue, Reno Arch, West First Street, Arlington Avenue, Lake Street MONDAY, OCTOBER 9. 2006 RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL RGJ.COMRC Window dresser draws in downtown customers BY SUSAN SKORl'PA sskorupargj.com The fading art of retail win embodies a Western theme with the floor of the window covered in dry pinto beans to highlight cowboy-themed kitchen towels, art, boots and other items. "Stuff sells," Schneider explained one morning as she rearranged things in the main window for Halloween. Merchants are happy to have their items end up in the display, where they often catch the eyes of passersby, she said. When she's working in the window, Schneider starts early in the morning with painting and other preparation work.

By noon, she's out of the window, which becomes hot from the early afternoon sun whether it's winter or summer. The next morning, she'll fill the window with her planned scenery and merchandise. In December, when the National League of Cities meets in Reno and the Christmas season starts, Schneider and Black plan something elegant with chandeliers, white feathers and silver and white merchandise. Schneider gets paid about $200 a month to decorate the windows, most of which buys the paint and fabric needed for decorating. The mall lets her place a sign with her name, business name and phone number in the window.

"I don't get rich off this window, but people know it," she said. able for sale from the mall merchants. "It took on a life of its own," Black said. "We get phone calls. Ask any cashier people compliment them." "She makes it look easy," Black said of Schneider's style.

"But it's a God-given talent." In July and August, for the Hot August Nights special event, Schneider filled each window with antique-mall merchandise related to com-medienne Lucille Ball and her television shows in the 1950s through the 1970s. For October, Schneider painted the walls and floor pumpkin orange with stark black tree limbs. She garlanded the ceiling with tiny Christmas lights, and arranged dark wood furniture with kookie highlights, such as a ceramic spotted leopard and a tambourine decorated with a Cheshire cat face. Black wooden barstools dangle by one leg from the ceiling. In one corner, a mannequin is mostly hidden in a dark floor-length hooded cloak.

Loosely draped black and white cloth flows from the ceiling, and a black umbrella also hangs upside down. Schneider also decorates two small windows on either side of the mall's main Sierra Street door. This month, one is filled with Halloween dolls, while the other dow design is alive and well in downtown Reno. The windows of Sierra Antiques Art, 100 N. Sierra are regularly decked out like an old-fashioned department store, where display windows once announced the seasons and special events with scenes of artistically displayed merchandise.

"The power of display is everything," said Jessica Schneider, owner of Decorating with Style, who has dressed the front windows of the antiques mall on the corner of West First and North Sierra streets since its opening several years ago. Schneider changes the scenes about once a month, taking about two days to arrange displays and do any necessary preparation work, such as painting. "They're very labor intensive," she said. When the former JCPen-ney Co. Inc.

department store building became the antiques mall, Schneider did the interior decorating, mall manager Lena Black said. At the time, plans were to rent out the window space, which has plenty of floor space along the main front glass. Instead, Schneider decorated the windows with items avail 'mw-if' 1 ll I l.N SUSAN SKORUPA RENO GAZETTE-JOl RNAL Jessica Schneider dresses the front windows of a downtown antique mall. Fur and leather sale planned Booth Benefactor says schools make a difference i i 1 I I Vi 'i MOVING DIRT New projects in our neighborhood Condominium project planned for Kings Inn What: deNovo condominiums, 104 luxury condominiums housed in two towers on the site ot the Kings Inn. About 1 2,000 square feet of retail space is planned, including a Famous Murphy's restaurant, a dog spa and a boutique grocery store.

Where: On Arlington Avenue, across from the Sands Regency Casino Hotel. When: Construction is slated to begin in March 2007, with the first units scheduled to open in summer 2008. How much: Prices range from the upper to about $1 .4 million for the two-story penthouse units on the top floor. Total construction costs are estimated at around $80 million. Floor plans: One- and two-bedroom units, two-bedroom lofts and two-story penthouses.

Sizes vary from 650 to 3,000 square feet. On RGJ.comrenocenter: Log on to see the architect's Powepoint presentation, artist's renderings and floor plans. BRIEFLY 4: Colorado artist on display at Stremmel Gallery "Ambiance," oil on canvas, 32 32 inches, is part of an exhibition of works by Colorado artist Len Chmiel on display through Oct. 21 at Stremmel Gallery. Entitled "The Colors of Spain," this exhibition of Chmiel's latest paintings reflects landscapes observed during his travels, including recent trips to Spain, England, Portugal and throughout the United States.

His fluid and expressive oils have been published in two books on oil painting, and have been collected by museums and major corporations across the United States. Reno Center team Jackie Green (team leader), 788-6528, jgreengrgj.com Pete Krajewski (assistant team leader), 788-6332, pkrajewskirgj.com Merrie Leininger (Artsentertainment), 788-6426, mleininger8rgj.com Martha Bellisle 788-6327, mbellisle3rgj.com Sue Skorupa (downtown development), 788-6323, sskonjpa3rgj.com Jen Gilford (Parks and recreation), 788-6333. jgrfford3rgj.com Caren Roblin (Wells Avenue), 788-6311. croblinSrgj com Candies Towell (Photographer), 885-5564. ctowell3rgj.com based on your Insurance your That's why we home ana life Continued from IE "We've had some good years and we wanted to put some back into the community," he said.

An additional donation of $1,000 went to the pep squad and cheerleader uniforms. Elementary schools have the best potential to make a difference, Lissner said. "The sooner you start, the sooner you recognize that a child is behind," he said. Lissner follows the cash with the gift of his time, volunteering with the school's SALSA program, a leadership program for fifth- and sixth-graders. Transportation for field trips also is a huge expenditure.

For several years, Janice Goodhue has been giving about $10,000 each yeat for field trips, including providing transportation for fifth-graders to go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. "They've never seen the ocean," Gixxlhue said. "They've never been over the Golden Gate Bridge." She encourages others to give as well. "You have priorities with your money," G(xdhue said. "It doesn't have to be a big sum." In 2001, Goodhue helped finance a class trip of 15 Booth I PHOTOS BY TIM DUNN RI NOGAETTE JOURNAU Volunteer Dorothy Gates tries on one of several furs that will be offered for sale at Assistance League Thrift Shop.

'Nordstrom of thrift shops' ready to release valuable collection Vv A Rena Winchell models one of the fur i llMlHil A i tl special-education students to Disneyland. "1 saw them off at the airport, and it just touched your heart," she said. "It's been a pleasure for me." Coldwell Banker's Darrell Plummer agrees. "Anything that helps those children see opportunity in life," he said. "Get their kids out and expose them to things in life outside the school books." Caldwell Banker organizes an annual charity golf tournament, which raises as much as $1 2,000 a year for the school.

All of the tournament money goes to a foundation set up for Booth. "I always have a wonderful group of agents that volunteer their time," Plummer said. "Our intent really is to help the children." In addition to the golf tournament, agents on occasion have dressed as Santa Claus for the school. Another time, Plummer was among a group of agents who served as judges for a Btxth science fair. In return, the students find ways to say 'thank "When the kids come to our office once a year ro sing Christmas carols, our staff is all standing around with tears," he said.

to Java Jungle about 45 minutes later. Middleton said the group hopes to gently remind drivers of larger vehicles that bicyclists have the right to share the road every' day, and to encourage others to get out ot their cars and rrucks and use a more healthy form of transportation. "And I always meet someone new," Middleton said. Suff report Cyclists take to the streets to promote road-sharing 8t Jones New York and Li: Claiborne (brands) there." The shop, which opened in October 1995, raised nearly $210,000 in 2005-06. Jones credits the sorters in the back room the women who go through all the donations for the store's success.

"These 3 ladies I theryj ies really know what redoing, she said. Proceeds from the thrift shop, which is staffed by volunteers, go to Assistance League projects, including: Operation School Bell, which provides clothing for underprivileged children. Food Pantry, which provides food to needy senior citirens. Senior Sampler, which helps support senior crafters. Assault Survivor Kits, which aids sexual assault victims.

jaclue Green Need a new fur coat for the upcoming season? How about a leather jacket? You're in luck. When the donation sorters at the Assistance League Thrift Shop noticed an abundance of fur and leather coats in their bins, they decided to hang onto them. For the past few months, they've been putting aside furs donared by customers and League members alike for a fur and leather sale on Tuesday. Two of the fur coats were appraised for $2,000 each, said Nola Jones, public relations chairwoman for the Assistance Volunteer League. They've collected 1 5 real fur coats, including some mink coats, as well as many faux fur coats and coats with fur collars.

The fur coats will sell for betw een 100 and $S0O. The others will be SlliHI i Street Vibrations might be over for another year, but the bikers were back in downtown last week, asking you to share the road. Bicyclists of all ages did a Crirical Mass ride through the streets of Reno on Friday night. The ride takes place at 5:30 p.m. the first Friday of every month, according to bicycle activist and University of Nevada, Reno instructor Gwynne Middleton.

Middleton said Critical Mass is a movement to bring bicycle awareness to drivers. She said the pack will push off from the plara next to Java Jungle on First Street and pedal south on Plumas or Arlington streets. They slow ly loop around to Virginia sometime before hitting Moana and then back up coats priced $25 and above. About 40 leather jackets ill be for sale between 1 0 and $40. Some Reno shoppers have called the Assistance League store the "Nordstrom of thrift shops," Jones said.

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