Nielsens Gifts Blog

Variety is the Spice of Life! Nielsens Gifts is not copied anywhere!

Nielsens Gifts - An Original... One of a Kind!

Have you noticed when visiting another city that all the stores are the same ones you have in your home town?  I remember when it was so much fun to shop in a special store unique to Chicago, a special one in Dallas, one only found in New York. Now all of those stores are in many cities-but they have lost their personality.  The owners are not individuals, but big conglomerates.  The stores have prestigious names, but many out source their work and are mere shadows of what made them famous. Big business was never Nielsens Gifts' goal. Nielsens loves knowing their wonderful customers in Tulsa and on the phone and on NielsensGifts.com. That is the way Nielsens' founders planned it.  

Founded in 1946 at the edge of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

I have been thinking so much about my parents, Dorothy and Arthur Nielsen.  They had a vision for their gift store 64 years ago.  They did not want a chain of stores. They wanted only one very unique business.  The store, Nielsens, started in a rental house in Tulsa.  They lived in the back and sold their wedding gifts in the living room and my dad made lamps of customers lovely vases and figurines and my mom made the hand sewn silk lampshades.  They wanted to bring beautiful decorative things to Tulsa from all over the world. Lovely things had not been easy to find during world war two.  They began bringing china and decorative accessories to help fulfill peoples dream of peace and prosperity.

New merchandise comes in almost every day!

I worked all weekend in Nielsens Gifts cleaning and doing some new displays of Julia Knight Serveware and Lladro and Kinzig Design Lamps.   We are excited to have Rosa Lladro visiting Nielsens on Oct. 16th. I got to thinking how much fun I was having and that there is not another store in the entire world with our exact mix of merchandise!  Although the choices are now made by myself,my husband, my daughters, Doug, George, Rhonda, Sadie, other Nielsens' sales associates and by our customers-not by my parents, we still abide by Art and Dorothy's  philosophy that Nielsens carry all price ranges of gifts and objects of art, but of only items of the highest quality!

Please visit our one and only Nielsens Gifts in Tulsa and on the web. Our son, Greg, designed our site and George works night and day on our web site.  There is not another like it! NielsensGifts.com.   There is no "out sourcing" at Nielsens!  

We are also available to talk with you on the phone 298-9700 or 1-800-665-1233 to help you find the perfect gift or china or flatware or crystal or home accessory.  We are happy to special order for you.  We gift wrap your selection for free and deliver in Tulsa and ship all over the world! We have Bridal & Gift Registry. Please let Nielsens be your unique gift store. Please let us be your personal shopper whether you need a special birthday, wedding or anniversary gift or if you need special corporate gifts, we will be honored to help!

A Gift from Nielsens is Treasured Always!

My parents always said..."A Gift from Nielsens is Treasured Always!"  They helped people send and give love to their friends and family through beautiful gifts - just as we do today.

As my gift to you for reading my thoughts...mention this blog and receive 10% off your selection - good through Sept 14, 2010 ! On NielsensGifts.com - please use code: blog at check out for your savings. Thanks for being a friend of Nielsens Gifts.  Love to you and your family, Andrea Nielsen

Kinzig Design Lamps are big hit with Nielsens Gifts' Customers

The Kinzig Design Lamp Artists

Susan Kinzig can be found designing in her San Francisco studio with her dog Mia. She received her degree from Kent State University and worked 7 years as a graphic designer. Combining her knowledge of design with her mechanical ability she began her career as a jewelry designer. Building upon her knowledge of metalwork and design, Susan expanded her creative outlook to include lighting.

She teamed up with her sister-in-law, Caryn Kinzig, to form Kinzig Design Home. They called upon other artists to blow colorful glass for the lamps. While Susie produces lamps in California, Caryn works on shades in Philadelphia.

The Kinzig Design Lamps

Traditional lighting with a twist! As Susan Kinzig & Caryn Kinzig design each lamp, their goal is to create beautiful and distinctive lighting that will endure the test of time to become the heirlooms of tomorrow. Each lamp is made from solid brass and copper elements that are finished using processes that will never chip or discolor.

Kinzig Design lamps incorporate highly designed, proprietary elements with vibrant hand blown glass. The glass is blown to Kinzig Design's color and shape specifications by two well regarded glass studios.

The richly colored shades are sewn from embroidered silks and other elegant fabrics and topped with their distinctive finials that enhance these uniquely crafted pieces.

Nielsens Gifts Discovers Kinzig Design Lamps 

Andrea Nielsen, President and Owner of Nielsens Gifts, discovered these beautiful lamps on her last day of Atlanta Gift Market in January 2009. This is where a number of new exciting products have been found by Nielsens Gifts over their 64 year history. Andrea's father, Arthur Nielsen, "found" some crystal from Ireland in a dark corner lower shelf of a Dallas Market Showroom many years ago and thought he might be able to sell... it was Waterford Crystal and Nielsens Gifts was the first store in the state of Oklahoma to carry Waterford.

Andrea Nielsen loves art and small business.  She was stopped by the beauty of these artful lamps and had an immediate connection to Kinzig Design when she found that the Kinzig sisters design the lamps together. She knew Nielsens was the place for these works of art because when her parents started Nielsens in 1946 - they started the store by selling their wedding gifts and making lamps.  Her father, Arthur Nielsen, made the lamps from customer's heirloom vases, etc. and her mother, Dorothy Nielsen, hand made the silk shades for each lamp. Andrea ordered a selection of lamps and Nielsens' customers love them!

All Kinzig Design Lamps Have Names

Roxy (a best seller) is a 29" table lamp with violet and blue colored blown glass pieces with an embroidered silk taffeta shade.Anna has a large carmel colored opaque blown glass with blue/carmel embroidered duppioni. One of Andrea's favorites is  Maggie, a 29" table lamp with a green "diamond" shaped blown glass with a green silk embroidered shade with floral / vine design and a double leaf finial. There are 17 Kinzig Design floor lamps and 53 table lamps to select from on NielsensGifts.com website. We always have several in stock and if not the one you want, they usually ship in one to two weeks. And, shipping / delivery is currently free on all Kinzig lamp purchases.  

One of the newest floor lamps is Benny... with green and salmon colored blown glass; vintage fuchsia colored embroidered silk shade with beaded trip. When you look at the Kinzig Lamps on NielsensGifts.com, click on the images until you get the largest photo; the image quality is almost as good as seeing the lamp itself.

We think you will be as impressed as we have been when you discover these unique, high quality and absolutely beautiful lamps. You will want to light your home with these beautiful treasures!

Maybe someday they will name a lamp for Art or Dorothy Nielsen!

Nielsens Gifts

8138-A South Lewis Ave.

Tulsa, Oklahoma 74137

918-298-9700 or 800-665-1233

NielsensGifts.com