Blair House Antiques — Local services in Knoxville

What was once an area treasure has gone downhill in service and selection. I was excited to bring my fiance back to my hometown to shop in this store, but our experience was poor from start to finish.

Upon entering the small parking lot, there was no room. There are 3 parking spots, which seems to be 2 for the staff and then 1 other for a single client.

It was January and rainy. The door was locked. A sign directed us to ring a (non-existent) bell.

The store was cluttered and musty. Many cases were nearly completely empty, and the staff blamed recent flooding, which we could clearly smell through damp vintage rugs.

My biggest complaint is that the staff is snobbish; there's just no kinder way to put this. I hope that they might read this and reconsider their business practices in light of 21st Century culture and technology. One might not enjoy millennials, but if one hopes to remain relevant, one might consider adjusting to be more accommodating to the growing demographic of buyers, rather than immediately judging them to be inferior or unworthy of time.

For antiquers, there are just so many better options, locally. Unless you want a chandelier, in which case I would really recommend you find a way to charm these folks, because they have a tremendous number of vintage chandeliers.

Full disclosure: we are certainly not perfect people, but we could have been helped to be better clients with better communication of expectations and a little gracefulness from our hosts. My fiance and I committed the terrible faux pas of taking a photograph of a detail on an old clock for the purpose of getting a better look. There was little help from the staff who seemed to be more invested in ignoring us than providing guidance, and it seemed easier to use the camera zoom than to ask for a loupe, particularly for a piece we weren't immediately shopping for; we had come in to look at vintage glass and antique engagement rings. We were then chastized and quite rudely prompted to ask for permission. When we apologized, it was not graciously accepted. We were instead told "I know what you did."

How odd. What a superbly strange way to treat guests, all around.

As I said, I still wanted to look at rings, and we had been waiting for someone to be available to help us, but I felt so uncomfortable after this exchange that we decided to leave, very shortly later, instead. This was just such an unpleasant experience.

To the staff: not everyone is so young as they may look, and (regardless) no one enjoys being scolded like children. Post your store policies in a visible place, if you want others to know what they are; don't assume everyone has the same "delightfully refined" manners as you, and (even still) rules which well might apply in a "fine jewelry store" hardly apply in every setting, anyway.

For example: I would not normally expect to see a dog, dog food, or french fries on the floor in a "fine jewelry store." If I did, I might assume that the management was informal and that they wished to create a more casual atmosphere. I would also be incorrect, apparently.

Business people: if you want people with cameras (i.e. everyone, these days) to know they're not allowed to use them in your store, perhaps this would be good reading posted on the front door of your establishment. It will be visible while folks wait in the cold rain, locked out on your stoop, searching for your...

Great experience. I recently took a amethyst and diamond ring set in a rose silver gold there that I have been trying to sell. I had originally bought For my girlfriend but before I had a chance to give it to her we ended up breaking up and I no longer wanted it. I cannot return it because I have lost the receipt. All day long I have been driving from Store to store and for some reason I was not getting any luck and when I did it like I was offered very low prices even though I paid $900 for this ring. Final place I went to was the Blair house because I had to catch a flight that evening. Not only did I find a store to be quite charming and the dog is adorable and the owner mentioned is head of security lol, Even though I knew I’d not get what I paid for it, They offered to buy it at a much higher price than what previous Places had offered me during the day throughout Knoxville. I would definitely recommend to...

When I entered the store, no one greeted me. They were helping the only other customer in the store but I would have expected for them to just say Hi or something. The place smelled bad but I did wait to look at a vintage ring that was in the case. The gentleman that was working knew nothing about the jewelry, could not answer even basic questions. Vintage jewelry is one of their specialties, so I did expect more. I love the ring I bought and I do think I paid a good price but the customer service was terrible. I got the impression that the person working knew nothing about anything and was barely able to write up my sale. When you are shopping at a place like this you need someone to help you. They did have a cute dog that was laying on the counter the entire time I was there. I think he needed a...