It’s wall to wall packed and I’m frantically looking around for S. Panic in my eyes, a lady whispers, “Need a light?” I nod enthusiastically and she shines it into the grayish/blue candle holder. Sarah appears out of nowhere and I fling the glassybaby (GB) into her bag, fearful that someone might see that I’ve found the perfect color and try to steal it from me. We arrived an hour before the sale started and the line was already 400 people deep. Along the front of the building, there were people who had been waiting since 4am and were surely in the first group through the doors. Despite the large crowd, the majority of people are friendly. Everyone is hyped up on Starbucks and shares a love for the simple but beautiful glass pieces, so most people are willing to withstand a little pushing to find what they are looking for.
I knew I had to leave for work by 10am at the very latest, and we finally walked through the door into the crowd at 9:30, so for S and me, it was a bit of a mad rush trying to find the colors that were on our list.
When I felt confident I had found colors for everyone on my list, I scrambled out of the store and headed down to work, leaving Sarah with the responsibility of not going overboard buying too many, and making sure we had managed to get colors everyone would like (hindsight…that’s probably impossible, because they are all awesome).
I first heard about glassybaby through my sister-in-law Erica, she gifted my mom, sister, and me each one for Christmas 3 years ago. I love candles, and loved the way the colors changed as the glass warmed up, but didn’t know much about the product, and didn’t think much about them. A few months later, I spotted a bunch of glassybaby’s at one of my favorite coffee shops and then again at a new restaurant. I did some research, and started to feel more impressed. We threw Erica’s bridal shower at glassybaby, and then I started giving them to my mother-in-law and sister-in-law for their birthdays, collected a few more for myself and became a little more obsessed.
The glassybaby seconds sale is offered twice a year and is when the gb’s that don’t pass inspection are sold at a discounted rate of $28 for originals and $35 for drinkers. A few tips for future goers:
1. We arrived at 7am, doors opened at 8am and we were walking through the doors at 9:30am. If you have something to do or are on a schedule, arrive earlier.
2. Bring a basket or bag to put them in but big boxes aren’t worth it because people end up kind of squishing against each other – during the time we were there.
3. An online offer is usually posted as well, this time it was 10% off.
4. Two people is a good group size – one person to grab from the table, and one to shine a light in to see what they look like.
5. Arriving later is probably fine, there were still a ton of glassybaby’s left, and less crowd.
6. Go in with a plan and a list, if you’re looking for reds, grays, purples, or blues, it will be easier to sift through without getting overwhelmed.
I can’t give enough kudos to the GB staff, they were all amazing, nice, and calm. It’s a fun event, and a true testament to the loyalty of glassybaby lovers.
xx
-h