If the situation was different, we would all be excited to spend time at home. We are all in this together, and we’ll make it through it with creativity and grace. We’ll be offering a few ideas to break up the boredom and routine while you’re spending more time at home for the next few weeks. Let’s get started! 

One of the traditions John and Faye Cooper established as soon as they could afford to after re-opening the Original Mast Store in Valle Crucis was giving back to the community. Over the years, that tradition has grown and now includes organizations and causes in three major categories – human needs, arts and education, and conservation across all our home communities. That tradition is continuing, but this year, we need your help. That's where Gift Cards for Good comes in.

General stores have always been there for their communities. Now, we need everyone to be there for all.

As an old-fashioned general store, customer service is at our core. We realize you may not feel comfortable coming into the store right now, but you may have some needs that we can help with. So, we did a little brainstorming around the pot-bellied stove, and we think we have an idea – curbside pickup.

Do you remember visiting your grandma's house and getting a cut or a scrape? She knew just what to do to help. If you looked in grandma's pocketbook, we bet you'd find a whole arsenal of beauty and health supplies to keep her looking great from sun up to sundown. And they had other uses above and beyond outward health and beauty. It just so happens that many of grandma's go-tos are popular today, too!

This year’s Be a Sweetheart campaign runs February 8th and 9th. For 17 years, sweethearts have doubled their gift giving by embracing the greater community in their expression of love. For each pound of candy purchased on these two days, Mast Store will donate $1 to a food security partner.

Warning, warning … Valentine’s Day is quickly approaching. Now’s the time to make your gift selections to surprise your Valentine. We’ve scoured our stores to come up with nine gifts – some traditional and some you may never have considered for Valentine’s Day. We think they’ll connect with what’s important to your loved one and, by extension, to you, too. Let’s get started.

Have you ever wondered where the practice of making New Year’s Resolutions started? According to History.com, it’s a practice that’s at least 4,000 years old. The Babylonians made promises to the gods to pay their debts and to return items they had borrowed to curry favor. The Romans changed the calendar to start the New Year in January, named for the god Janus, who had two faces – one looking into the past and the other focused on the future. 

The holidays – it’s a time when lots of questions are asked. How do reindeer fly? How does Santa visit everybody’s house all on one night? And what would be a good thing to get John, Susan, and Beth? While the answers to the first two questions will require a lot of research and debate, Mast Store has the answers to the last question. Here are our top 13 gift ideas for 2019.

This is the final Fall Foliage Primer of the year. It looks like Knoxville, Greenville, and Hendersonville still have some locations of high color. Other reporting spots - Boone/Valle Crucis, Asheville, and Waynesville - have some spotty color (particularly Oaks, which are in their glory right now, and some Maples). There are still lots of activities to get out and enjoy, too. Check out what our reporters have to suggest as well bid you a fond farewell until next year.