6 sites transforming how you shop

It's not always about brand extension. These 6 small websites are pointing consumers to new strategies for buying, selling and trading merchandise.

Over the past 15 years, the Internet has transformed society. It has generated an entire industry, revolutionized commerce and altered the ways people communicate, connect and build relationships.

From a commercial perspective, online shopping has generated a shift in consumer behavior. According to two studies by the Pew Research Center, this shift is far from over. In September 2010, 58% of Americans went online for information about products to buy, up from 49% six years earlier.

The six companies profiled here are building strong momentum in the realm of online shopping. Their technologies can help consumers save time and money, but the websites also do something else: They expose people to new strategies for acquiring, selling or trading consumer goods. Plus, they plug in consumers to the new currents that will inevitably follow as technology continues to transform personal transactions of all kinds.

thredUP

Based in San Francisco, thredUP is an online clothing swap. Parents can exchange used clothes, as well as books and toys. The website bills itself as a time-saving solution for busy, thrifty parents. You don't have to rummage through garage sales, and the inventory is more abundant than what you'd encounter at the thrift store.

In the real world, clothing swaps are few and far between because they are time-consuming and difficult to organize. ThredUP's marketplace streamlines everything into one browser-friendly interface.

For basic swaps, thredUP customers pay $5 plus $10.95 in shipping fees.

ModCloth.com

ModCloth.com is a boutique-style online retailer that chooses small lots from a variety of designers, all retro in style. ModCloth features only a few of each item in each individual size, enhancing the uniqueness of its shopping experience.

In the real world, boutiques can be expensive and difficult places to shop because they tend to run out of inventory quickly. As a solution to this problem, ModCloth provides an extensive inventory of department-store alternatives.

Above all, the company engages in strong social-media efforts to engage its customers. Site browsers can vote on items that they'd like ModCloth to buy and sell.

The site transforms shopping by presenting a holistic experience online, an accomplishment that eludes many virtual retailers.

Etsy

Established in 2005, Etsy has gained a reputation as one of the world's strongest marketplaces for handmade creations. Its network provides people a place to sell their handcrafted clothing, jewelry, furniture, toys and other items.

Anyone with a handmade product can create a store on Etsy, and everyone can shop there. Brooklyn-based Etsy aims to foster a do-it-yourself culture. It periodically brings online users together for real-world social events that have nothing to do with commerce. Participants show up to learn new skills and socialize.

Lifesta

Lifesta is a marketplace for people to buy and sell daily deals picked up from sites like Groupon and LivingSocial, which bring out the "impulse shopper" in everyone with great face-value offers.

On Lifesta you can buy deals you missed, look for deals that might hold appeal or sell any deal you bought and won't use.

The site offers a way out for shoppers who may have been too eager in snapping up a great deal at Groupon for, say, a morning yoga class. Rather than be stuck with a voucher you'll never redeem, you can offer it on Lifesta at whatever price you choose. Lifesta gets its cut -- 99 cents plus 8% of the sales price -- and you get all or some of your money back.

Rehash

Rehash is another online community for trading clothes and books. The goal of the site is to provide a space for people to share items that would otherwise cost money or go to waste.

The majority of items in Rehash's database are secondhand, but items are typical of what a shopper would find in a mall. Products found on Rehash include Banana Republic tops, trendy ankle boots and Hollister T-shirts.

Rehash is owned by Orpheux Design, a Florida Web studio and creative agency.

Friendgiftr

Remember Facebook gifts? They were really fun and thoughtful -- until people realized that they weren't actually real.

Rob Carpenter decided to take Facebook gifts to the next level. In 2008, he established Friendgiftr, a business he has described as the world's first social-media and mobile-based e-commerce 2.0 company. Now, you can send real gift cards from about 150 merchants. Its apps aim to commercialize social networking sites and smartphones.

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Snow smacks Northeast; power could be out for days

Lights out for 3 million; travel snarled; 2 feet of snow in areas; 3 deaths blamed on storm

SOUTH WINDSOR, Conn. — Millions of people from Maine to Maryland were without power as an unseasonably early storm dumped heavy, wet snow over the weekend on a region more used to gaping at leaves in October than shoveling snow.

The snow was due to stop falling in New England late Sunday, but it could be days before many of the 3 million without electricity see it restored, officials warned.

At least three deaths were blamed on the weather, and states of emergency were declared in New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and parts of New York.

The storm worsened as it moved north, and communities in western Massachusetts were among the hardest hit. Snowfall totals topped 27 inches in Plainfield, and nearby Windsor had gotten 26 inches by early Sunday.Story: Snow cancels NY, Philly flights, makes road travel treacherous

"Look at this, look at all the damage," said Jennifer Burckson, 49, after she came outside Sunday morning in South Windsor to find a massive tree branch had smashed her car's back windshield. Trees in the neighborhood were snapped in half, with others weighed down so much that the leaves brushed the snow.

Compounding the storm's impact were still-leafy trees, which gave the snow something to hang onto and that put tremendous weight on branches, said National Weather Service spokesman Chris Vaccaro. That led to limbs breaking off and contributed to the widespread outages.

"We can't even use the snow blower because the snow is so heavy," Burckson said.

The 750,000 who lost power in Connecticut broke a record for the state that was set when the remnants of Hurricane Irene hit the state in August. People could be without electricity for as long as a week, said Gov. Dannel P. Malloy.

This outage will be worse than one caused by Irene, said Peter Bloom, 70, of South Windsor, because he relies on electricity to heat his home.

"I'm going to put another blanket on. What else can I do?" he said as he gassed up a snow blower to clear his driveway. "At least I'll save a few bucks on my electric bill."

The severity of the storm caught many by surprise.

"It's a little startling. I mean, it's only October," said Craig Brodur, who was playing keno with a friend at Northampton Convenience in western Massachusetts.

Some inland towns got more than a foot of snow. West Milford, N.J., about 45 miles northwest of New York City, saw 19 inches by early Sunday.

New Jersey's largest electric and gas utility, PSE&G, warned customers to prepare for "potentially lengthy outages" and advised power might not be fully restored until Wednesday. More than 600,000 lost electricity in the state, including Gov. Chris Christie.

Along the coast and in such cities as Boston, relatively warm water temperatures helped keep snowfall totals much lower. Washington received a trace of snow, tying a 1925 record for the date. New York City's Central Park set a record for both the date and the month of October with 1.3 inches of snow.

But in New Hampshire's capital of Concord, more than 22 inches fell, weeks ahead of the usual first measurable snowfall. Trees downtown still bright with fall colors were covered with snow. Some didn't survive — a large oak tree that had stood alongside the Statehouse fell, partially blocking a side street.

By 8 a.m., Dave Whitcher had already been clearing dozens of parking lots in and around Concord for eight hours as part of his work as a property manager.

Holding up his shovel, he said, "Me and this guy are going to get to know each other real well today."

Residents were urged to avoid travel altogether. Speed limits were reduced on bridges between New Jersey and Pennsylvania. A few roads closed because of accidents and downed trees and power lines, and more were expected, said Sean Brown, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Two of the airports serving New York City, Newark Liberty and Kennedy, had hours-long delays Saturday, as did Philadelphia's airport. Amtrak suspended service between Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pa., and commuter trains in Connecticut and New York were delayed or suspended because of downed trees and signal problems.

Philadelphia saw mostly rain, but the snow that did fall coated downtown roofs in white.

In southeastern Pennsylvania, an 84-year-old man was killed when a snow-laden tree fell on his home while he was napping in his recliner. In Connecticut, the governor said one person died in a Colchester traffic accident that he blamed on slippery conditions.

And a 20-year-old man in Springfield, Mass., stopped when he saw police and firefighters examining downed wires and stepped in the wrong place and was electrocuted, Capt. William Collins said.

Parts of New York saw a mix of snow, rain and slush that made for sheer misery at the Occupy Wall Street encampment in New York City, where drenched protesters hunkered down in tents and under tarps as the plaza filled with rainwater and melted snow.

Technically, tents are banned in the park, but protesters say authorities have been looking the other way, even despite a crackdown on generators that were keeping them warm.

Nick Lemmin, 25, of Brooklyn, was spending his first night at the encampment. He was one of a handful of protesters still at the park early Sunday.

"I had to come out and support," he said. "The underlying importance of this is such that you have to weather the cold."

Adash Daniel, 24, is a protester who had been at the park for three weeks. He had a sleeping bag and cot that he was going to set up, but changed his mind.

"I'm not much good to this movement if I'm shivering," he said as he left the park.

October snowfall is rare in New York, and Saturday marked just the fourth October day with measurable snowfall in Central Park since record-keeping began 135 years ago, the National Weather Service said.

But the unofficial arrival of winter was a boon for some. Two Vermont ski resorts, Killington and Mount Snow, started the ski season early by opening one trail each over the weekend, and Maine's Sunday River ski resort also opened for the weekend.

___

Associated Press writers Ron Todt in Philadelphia; David B. Caruso, Colleen Long and Deepti Hajela in New York; Holly Ramer in Concord, N.H.; and Bruce Shipkowski in Trenton, N.J., contributed to this report.

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The Best Ever Smashing Pumpkins.

Oh My Gourd! These Are Smashing Pumpkins

Feeling the squeeze
Artist Ray Villafane began carving pumpkins on a lark for his art students in a small rural school district in Michigan. The hobby changed his life as he gained a viral following online and unlocked his genuine love of sculpting. Here are images of pumpkin carvings Villafane created over the past six years, including 15 new images being shared for the first time this year.

What an adorable little girl
"When I carve, I kind of go with the flow," Villafane said. "Sometimes I might have a preconceived idea, but sometimes I make up the idea as I go."

A Viking’s life for me
Ray Villafane's signature Halloween pumpkins are known for their intricacy and lifelike subjects.

Lean on me
In addition to carving pumpkins, Villafane also works with wax and sand. “He is not limited by any material,” said Andy Bergholtz, Villafane’s colleague and a fellow sculptor. “The man could sculpt the statue of David out of a stick of butter.”

It’s a werewolf!
Villafane advises would-be carvers to steer clear of perfectly round pumpkins. His favorite carving pumpkins have an oblong shape.

Knockout!
Villafane also encourages aspiring pumpkin carvers to work with thick pumpkins. “Pick up three pumpkins of the same size,” Villafane advised. “If one feels much heavier than the others, it’s got a thick wall.”

Torment
We’d rather not ask what this poor fellow did to get himself this distressed.

Glutton
Maybe this carving could inspire kids to cool it a bit with the Halloween candy?

Grumpy Gus
Funny detail: Villafane has made a name for himself with pumpkin carving even though he's allergic to pumpkins. "If I’m carving too many or too long, my skin gets really itchy," Villafane said. "If pumpkin juice gets anywhere near my eyes, my eyes itch."

Headache
This guy might just need to take two aspirin and call us in the morning.

 


Child’s play

Spooky
People often ask Villafane whether he crafts some of his pumpkin creations by putting more than one pumpkin together. His answer? Nope. With only a few rare exceptions – like this embellished carving – he makes a point of using just one solid pumpkin.

Native American chief
Villafane said an oblong-shaped pumpkin is best for carvers who want to create realistic-looking faces.

Misfit
Because everybody feels a little bit out of place at times.

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10 Homes That Turn Into Halloween Haunts

10 Halloween ‘Haunters’

10 amazingly decorated homes and the haunters behind them.| By Roger Fillion, SwitchYard Media

Favorite Haunts

They call themselves home haunters: People who rig up eye-popping Halloween decorations on their homes. These passionate revelers buy fancy props or make their own, like a vampire bursting from a coffin or a “scary tree” made from real bark and roots. Some go the high-tech route, wiring their homes for elaborate light shows synchronized to music. 

Tombstones, fog machines, flying ghosts, or Freddy Krueger-like images are among the props you might see when you visit the home of a haunter.  

Their ranks include men, women, young and old. Celebrities such as movie star Dick Van Dyke and Chip Davis, founder of the top-selling group Mannheim Steamroller, are among those who also like to pull out the stops. Here are 10 amazingly decorated homes and the haunters behind the decorations.

Lafayette, Colo.: Haunting via online?

“Seeing the joy in people's faces, especially the younger kids and older generation, makes all the work worthwhile,” Alek Komarnitsky says of his high-tech decorations. Komarnitsky broadcasts his handiwork on a Web site, where web surfers from around the globe can view his Lafayette, Colo., home via three Web cams. Online visitors can turn the lighting on and off via their computer. Plus, they can deflate and inflate giant air-filled figures like Frankenstein and Homer Simpson. Komarnitsky says he spends less than a $100 a year in new equipment because he has “a lot of stuff” he reuses (electricity costs are less than $1 a day, he adds). Komarnitsky puts up elaborate Christmas decorations, too. His Web site and decorating have raised more than $60,000 in donations for celiac disease research at the University of Maryland. His two children suffer from the digestive condition.

Sandy, Utah: Family friendly, to music

Greg Shoop, of Sandy, Utah, initially planted a few tombstones in his yard. “It started out just wanting to have something fun for the trick-or-treaters,” he says. For Christmas, Shoop would synchronize Christmas lights to music. A lightbulb went off. “I decided I should also synchronize my Halloween display to music,” he says.  “Each year I add or update my display a little and add a couple of new songs.” Shoop -- who spends at least $500 annually to repair, upgrade and add props -- tries to keep his display “very family friendly” so young children aren’t scared.  “No people running around scaring people, props that are designed to startle people, and no blood and guts,” he says.

New Berlin, Wis.: Plants vs. Zombies

David Stolp adores the videogame Plants vs. Zombies -- so much so the New Berlin, Wis., resident applied that passion to Halloween 2010. Stolp, his wife, and two kids hatched a plan over dinner to decorate their yard with handmade wooden objects based on Plants vs. Zombies characters -- including zombies, plants, rays of sunlight. They planted a new object daily in a way that told a story. That unfolded over 37 days, culminating on Halloween with more than 75 characters. Stolp used Facebook to explain how each object fit in the story. The family used 16 sheets of wood and six gallons of primer. It cost more than $500. “We were just doing it for fun,” Stolp says. This year: some zombies and plants, plus pumpkin decorations and mad scientist characters. 

Springville, Utah: Imagination gone scary

Snow hasn’t stopped Robert Wolf from decorating his Springville, Utah, home. In 2003, the white stuff caused a short, halting the automated kicking legs he’d installed in his front yard as well as the computer power supply that operated his props. Since then, Wolf has expanded his offerings. His yard features tombstones, fog machines, singing skeletons, and a fake fire burning in a front room window. “I always wanted to become a Disney Imagineer, but I never wanted to move to California or Florida,” he jokes. Each year he adds new props. Among others this year: a gravedigger. Wolf also tries to come up with a new theme annually. Last year it was a carnival featuring real people dressed up as spooky clowns and mimes. “I easily spend $500 to $1,000 every year,” Wolf says. 

Minneola, Fla.: Lights! Music! Scare me!

As a nightclub DJ, Jay Peterson synchronized music to light shows. The Minneola, Fla., resident transferred those skills to a computerized Halloween display. Lights and special effects are synced to music. Passersbys are so bowled over they’ve encouraged Peterson to start a business. “People would say, ‘You should be doing this for a living.’” He took the advice and launched Jayslights LLC, creating computerized Halloween and Christmas light shows for homes and buildings. Peterson estimates he spent close to $10,000 for all his equipment over the years, including new light controllers, amplifiers and outdoor speakers. His 2011 Halloween plans: “A little bit more special effects.”

Lehi, Utah: Handmade haunting

Rather than buy fancy lights and other gear, Levi Bradley makes Halloween props by hand. That means tombstones, a grave that breathes, or a zombie named Jared who rocks back and forth. “I make about 95% of all my decorations and props. I love to create things and then watch them work,” says the Lehi, Utah, resident. Bradley likes watching the expressions on tricker-or-treaters and parents. “I just love to walk around among them,” he says. This year’s theme: a Victorian-era cemetery. “Mostly with a creepy vibe and not much if any gore,” he adds. Bradley reckons he spends about $200 a year.

Kent, Wash.: A family affair

Gena Laws of Kent, Wash., says her synchronized lights and music are a family production. “Every January we have a family meeting and discuss ideas and brainstorm. We then vote on a theme for the year, changing our theme every year,” she says. “A blueprint is drawn up to reflect our theme, and I go to work programming all the lights, which can take up to 10 hours for a two-minute song.” Each “show” includes about a dozen songs. In March, the family begins building the large props, like "Bubbles" the vampire exploding from a coffin, or a horse bursting from the ground with the Headless Horseman on top. The display takes about 250 hours to complete. Laws is spending about $300 on materials this year. “The many comments, laughter, and sometime screams keep us going year after year,” she says.

Watervliet, N.Y.: Zombies and ghouls. Oh my!

Jeffrey Razzano of Watervliet, N.Y., threw himself into Halloween decorations after his daughter, then 21, became “very into” the holiday. He now installs in his backyard motion-activated lights and props, like the fictional Freddy Krueger from the “Nightmare on Elm Street” horror films, or Jason the villain in the “Friday the 13th“ films. Razzano also recruits volunteers to dress up as zombies and ghouls. Visitors are asked to donate a canned good or non-perishable food item that Razzano donates to local food banks. More than 400 people came last Halloween, and Razzano expects to open up the display for two nights this year. He estimates he spends $600 to $1,000 annually. The pay-off, aside from fighting hunger: “Seeing everybody so ecstatic and hearing their feedback,” he says.

Walden, N.Y.: Classic Halloween

Anita LaForte calls her 1870 Queen Anne Victorian house “the classic Halloween home.” While back problems have forced the Walden, N.Y., resident to scale back decorating the last two or three years, LaForte and her husband typically install tombstones in the yard. Lights, ghosts, and a fog machine complete the cemetery. Windows display skeletons, monsters made from Halloween costumes, and a cardboard cutout mimicking the gruesome “Psycho” shower scene. Spiders drop from the front porch ceiling. A voice-activated grim reaper flaps its arms and cries out on the front porch, and a screeching ghost also flies by. “Everything moves,” says LaForte, who estimates she’s accumulated “several hundred dollars” in props over the years.  LaForte hopes she can soon resume decorating in grand style. “Next year may be doable,” she says.

Omaha, Neb.: Halloween with a Christmas-y musician

Chip Davis, founder of the top-selling group Mannheim Steamroller, is known for his popular Christmas albums. But Davis also is a huge fan of Halloween, and celebrates the holiday with a big party on his 150-acre farm, 20 minutes north of Omaha. His house and barn are lit up with orange lights. Guests take a 30-minute hayrack ride where they confront a headless horseman who bursts from the woods screaming, “I lost my head!” The hayrack next stops at a huge, flaming cauldron with eight witches dancing to the beat of drums. “It takes about three cords of wood to keep the fire going inside the cauldron,” Davis says. The grand finale is a spaceship that’s crashed into a hill and is billowing smoke. Theatrical lights illuminate the spacecraft, as well as the eight-foot alien who emerges and speaks with a Darth Vader-like voice.  “I really enjoy Halloween more in some ways than I do Christmas,” Davis says.

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