Julie Phillips, owner of JP Collection, is one of my dearest friends. I first met Julie through my son who became friends with Julie’s son during elementary school right after Julie and her family moved to Greenville from Tennessee in 2001. Our families quickly became good friends. It did not take long for me to recognize Julie’s many talents. Julie’s cheerful, outgoing personality, compassionate and giving spirit, along with her strong faith in God, make it easy to understand why she is so well loved by those who are lucky enough to know her.

Not long after moving to Greenville, Julie began pursuing her dream of a career in interior design. It was not long before Julie had acquired a degree, started an interior design business, developed a web site and had clients … lots of clients. I have never met anyone who can turn an idea into a reality as fast as Julie can.

When my husband and I purchased a house on Lake Jocassee along with three other families several years ago it quickly became obvious to us that we needed professional help with some of the interior decorating. We hired Julie and with her help and expertise we ended up with a beautifully decorated, yet very livable lake home which all four of the families love.

Julie also helped decorate my teenage daughter’s bedroom several years ago. Since mothers and daughters don’t always agree on things, especially during the teenage years, I decided to let Julie and my daughter, Meg, make all of the decisions about the redecorating project. The only requirement was that they had to stay within a budget. Well, thanks to Julie, my daughter has a bedroom that she absolutely loves. The colors and patterns are truly a reflection of who Meg is, not of who I am. And my daughter and I did not have a single argument throughout the project.

Because of Julie’s great personality it is easy for her to meet people and network. She has numerous contacts throughout the design and building industries. Working with Julie on any kind of project, whether it be an entire house or just a small decorating project, is always a pleasure because she makes it so easy.

Julie’s clients and customers frequently become dear friends to Julie. She is genuinely interested in helping you achieve the look that you want in a home or business or in helping you find the perfect gift for someone special. Julie’s store has so many unique gifts and accessories. I recently purchased a couple of great wedding gifts from JP Collection. I like the gifts so much that I am reluctant to part with them and give them to the brides to be. I want to keep them for myself.

I consider myself very lucky to know Julie as a friend and as a decorator. Want to know what Julie gave me for Christmas last year? Read on ……My husband and I went to Australia last December to visit and travel with our daughter who had just completed a semester studying abroad. It was a wonderful trip but it was not exactly good timing for me. I had a new and demanding job back home and a house full of guests arriving for the holidays just days after we were due back in town. I had not had time to decorate the house for Christmas before we left so I had reluctantly resigned myself to the idea that there would be no decorations this year. When we walked into our house at midnight on December 12, exhausted after a 36 hour day of travel, we were greeted with the sights, sounds and smells of Christmas. Our entire house was completely decorated for the holidays right down to fresh greenery in every room. My kitchen and dinning room tables were even set and ready for guests. Well, I knew our 17 year old son who stayed behind had not taken a sudden interest in decorating so I immediately knew who was responsible. Julie had spent an entire weekend decorating our house for us. I don’t think I have ever been so surprised by or so grateful for a gift.

That is the type of person Julie Phillips is. Stop by her store, JP Collection, or give her a call for your decorating needs. You’ll be glad you did….. and oh , you’ll make a new friend to

Janie