Sonny’s Diamonds Jewelry is closing its doors after more than 30 years of doing business in Denver.

“It’s tough out there,” said co-owner Michael Nedler. “I’d like to say that the economy is coming back; I think it is, but it has a long way to go and luxury items are still not the top of people’s lists.”

Nedler, 60, said that the business was doing fine when he made the decision to close the store, but that he was just ready to move on.

“The plan was going to be that (my business partner) was going to take over, but it has just become so difficult to run a jewelry store as it is a very expensive proposition,” Nedler said. “He just plain didn’t want to take it on and I didn’t want to wait any longer.”

Nedler and his business partner Mark Allen moved the store in 2009 from its original Cherry Creek location — which was founded in 1979 by Nedler’s father, Sonny — to its current spot on South Colorado Boulevard.

At that time, the partners revamped the store’s brand to a rock-‘n’-roll-themed jewelry store, renaming it Sonny’s Rocks, in an attempt to separate it from the posh image of the higher-end Cherry Creek area.

“As people came in, they really enjoyed the experience and the look of the store, but there seemed to be a difference between what they perceived us to be and what we actually were,” Nedler said.

When the store continued to receive phone calls from people looking for rocks for landscaping projects and other purposes, and after sensing enough customers’ confusion over the store’s concept, the owners changed the name back to Sonny’s Diamonds Jewelry in 2011.

“Some people took it too literally when I thought it was clearly tongue-and-cheek,” Nedler said. “You don’t know until you try.”

Sonny’s is having a clearance sale through Saturday to liquidate its entire inventory.

Nedler and his wife are hoping to move to France in the next few years, but he and Allen have kicked around a few business ideas that the two may or may not try out.

“Ultimately what it comes down to, I’ve been doing this 40 years, and I want to retire,” Nedler said. “I’ve accomplished what I wanted to accomplish. I’m proud of it but I’m just ready for something else.”

Kristen Leigh Painter: 303-954-1638, kpainter@denverpost.com or twitter.com/kristenpainter

Bill and Louise had never visited the annual home show in the Lancaster County Convention Center before this weekend.

The Wrightsville couple nevertheless fit the 2013 show-goer profile to a T.

They’re not reassured by the state of the economy — or the world.

They’re well settled in the house they’ve lived in for 55 years.

But they’re not beyond investing in their home to make it more comfortable, attractive and enduring.

“We have to have a place to live,” said Bill, who declined to give his last name. “We might as well enjoy it.”

That could have been the theme of the day Friday at the Suburban Pennsylvania Spring Home, Hot Tub and Landscape Show at 25 S. Queen St.

The free event produced by Syosset, N.Y.-based American Consumer Shows continues Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

First-day traffic was steady at midday Friday despite off-and-on rain.

American Consumer Shows’ Larry DeMarco reported “a dramatic uptick” of about 30 percent in attendance this year at the company’s expos nationwide.

People might simply be relieved to get past the presidential election and the fiscal cliff, DeMarco speculated.

He noted with more certainty that the folks the shows draw “are not really do-it-yourselfers.”

But because of the lingering effects of the recession, relatively few of them seem to be upgrading to larger properties.

“More people are putting money back into their homes” than trying to sell them, said Patrice Colegrove of Mid-Atlantic Waterproofing in York.

“It seems to be the era for that,” added Colegrove, who was handing out miniature cinder blocks made of foam.

She acknowledged that the service she was pitching is a necessity: “If you’ve got water in your basement, you need to fix it.”

Same idea when the paint is peeling off your walls.

“A lot of people don’t want to, or can’t, venture on that ladder,” pointed out University Painters’ Jonathan Frank, who said his franchise in Millersville has seen growth of 35 percent a year since launching in 2008.

But other vendors said people are increasingly shopping for value-added products, such as triple-pane windows or solar panels.

There’s a corresponding move toward self-sufficiency, according to Matt Kemper, a sales agent for J.K. Mechanical Inc. in Willow Street.

Kemper said the company’s biggest sellers in that vein are geothermal energy systems, which prompted a lot of inquiries Friday.

People want to “enhance their comfort and save money,” added Kemper, who laughingly called himself a “comfort consultant.”

Indeed, said Ben Kauffman of Penn Dutch Furniture in Glen Rock, a bit of luxury has a place at the recessionary table:

“One thing we’ve seen since the recession, there’s a lot of custom work being done,” even though it’s pricier.

People aren’t keeping up with the Joneses, Kauffman added. “They don’t want what the Joneses have. … If they’re going to spend a couple of grand, they want it like they want it.”

Matt Breyer said customization and high-tech materials have taken on new luster, too, in the landscaping industry.

“There’s always opportunity in every market,” added Breyer, of Breyer Construction Landscape in Reading.

And exceptions to every economic motif.

“I’m actually going to be building a new home,” not renovating an old one, said Willow Street resident Frann Moyer, who was gathering ideas on solar installations, among other things.

“I want to go as green as possible,” Moyer said.

Janet Smith, Mountville, said she had the double goal of picking out new flooring for her home in Mountville and keeping her spouse, Karl, busy installing it.

“We do it ourselves,” she said. “My husband’s retired, and he likes to be a handyman.”

jrutter@lnpnews.com

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WATERLOO, Iowa — In the depths of winter when “every mile feels like two,” the annual Eastern Iowa Home and Landscaping Show is a sign spring can’t be far off.

The 62nd annual event opens Friday at the Five Sullivan Brothers Convention Center and runs through Sunday. Nearly 175 exhibitors are expected to participate, displaying the latest ideas and products for home, lawn and garden. Co-sponsored by the Waterloo Exchange Club and Iowa Show Productions Inc., it is the club’s annual fundraiser.

Barb Miller of Iowa Show Productions expects between 6,000 and 8,000 people will come through the show.

“Hopefully, we’ve had the snowstorm of the winter last week, and we won’t have to worry too much about weather. People look forward to the show because it gives them a touch of spring. Some people like to browse and see what’s new. Some people come because they already have a project in mind and it allows them to talk to several different contractors in a short period of time. Others just like to come through and see what’s new,” she said.

And, she added, “People want to come out and support the Exchange Club that helps children in the community through their programs.”

Exhibits will include new home contractors, remodeling experts, home entertainment, landscaping experts and kitchen specialists. Experts will be on hand with energy saving solutions and creative options for the home. Consumers can shop for lighting, plumbing, real estate, painting, flooring, windows, doors, siding, hot tubs, fireplaces, sunrooms, grills, lawn care equipment and much more.

A number of exhibitors are collaborating on exhibits, including a furnished Styrofoam house by Darin Dietz. After a year’s absence, the American Society of Interior Designers will return with two room displays. Katie Bell will show a contemporary bathroom, and Jim Aronson will present a sitting room with Oriental-eclectic style.

“It’s exciting to have them back. The public looks forward to seeing those displays,” Miller said.

Landscaped gardens, grills and energy-saving ideas also will be featured. There will be free seminars featured daily.

Hours are 3 to 9 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $6 for adults and free for youth 12 and younger.