Vintage Wares 2016

WORDS Sammy Gibbons, Sue Derfus, Barbara Arnold, Tom Giffey DESIGN Serena Wagner + Eric Christenson LISTINGS James Johonnott

new home for old stuff EAU CL A I RE’s GOOD AND STURDY V INTAGE RE LOCATE S TO NORTH BA RSTOW STRE ET

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words: SAMMY GIBBONS

“I’m excited to see how customers who have been around since the beginning respond to the changes.”

-JON SHEMICK, GOOD AND STURDY V INTAGE

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

t may seem as though the announcement of Good and Sturdy Vintage’s move to a new downtown location dates further back than the merchandise the store sells.

But, just like those ugly ’80s sweaters that are now considered hip, it is coming back and will be bigger – and have more patterns – than ever.

Jon Shemick opened Good and Sturdy at 218 Water St. in 2012. The store sells mainly clothing, but also art, furniture, and a variety of curiosities that are no younger than the 1980s. A few antiques are available, this isn’t a traditional antique store.

“I have been a buyer and seller of old things for a long time,” Shemick said. “After moving to Eau Claire, I decided that there was a niche I could fill by opening the store.”

Shemick learned that the owner of the shop’s Water Street home planned to tear down the building, forcing him to relocate earlier this year to 217 N. Barstow St., a space close to Phoenix Park and the heart of downtown Eau Claire.

“It's challenging to find the right kind of space, and I am committed to keeping the store downtown,” Shemick said. “After months of searching, I’m happy to have found the new space on North Barstow and am looking forward to being settled again there.”

Shemick announced the move on Good and Sturdy’s Facebook page on March 1, and at the time he hoped the new shop would be ready in April.

However, as of this writing, it remains unopened. According to Shemick, that is due to a few setbacks during the moving process, including a multi-week

bout of pneumonia. Fortunately, he is well again and making progress with the new shop.

“The major store renovations are complete. I'm working on getting all of the smaller details in place now,” Shemick said, adding that the store likely will re-open in July.

Shemick is excited to re-open his shop as well as for all the possibilities that could come with a new location.

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“One positive aspect of the move for Good and Sturdy is that it gave me the opportunity to change some things that I didn’t love about the old space,” Shemick said. “I’m excited to see how customers who have been around since the beginning respond to the changes.”

Good and Sturdy Vintage • 217 N. Barstow St., Eau Claire • (715) 8397999 • goodandsturdy.com • Find it on Facebook

9 Great Reasons to Go Vintage D O N ’ t be a f raid to dive into the vibrant world o f vintage

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words: SUE DERFUS

he world of vintage goods is colorful, quirky, cool and maybe right around the corner. If you haven’t ventured into that world yet, there are at least nine good reasons to give it a go.

1. Get a distinctive look. Even if your housemates are also vintage shoppers, you’re not going to end up with the same Ramones t-shirt. Nope. No accidental twins. No “here’s-our-uniform-thisseason” look.

2. Get back to your hunter-gatherer roots. The Chippewa Valley has a terrific selection of vintage stores. Just the same, you may have to work a little bit to find something that works for you – the perfect hippie inspired earrings, for instance. It’s the opposite of going to the mall or even to the grocery store. But who walks off with a bag of groceries feeling like they’ve just made a conquest?

3. Go off grid, or maybe just off rack.

There’s a little bit of “sticking it to the man” when you go vintage. You won’t allow the corporate world to decide what you wear simply by limiting styles to what’s trending now. If you want to trend 1965 instead, you just go right ahead and do it.

4. And then there are hats. If you happen to be a hat wearing person, you know what I mean. Some of us want to wear hats, or shave with a folding, straight edge razor, or mix cocktails from our bar cart. In other words, if you have a special interest, you might need to go vintage in order to pursue it.

5. Mix it up, generation-wise. Most antique items are at least 100 years old, but vintage items are at least 20 years old. This means vintage items reflect life as lived in near generations. Depending on how old you are, you could both channel your grandmother and confuse your mother when you buy that vintage lamp. You could collect vintage vinyl and discover your father singing along to them. Or you could find yourself sifting through books that you remember reading under the covers by flashlight as you

stand right along side an enthusiast of a younger generation.

6. Own a piece of the past. Chances are, you won’t be buying a piece of the Sputnik satellite, but your vintage finds were significant to someone. Some child loved that Gilligan’s Island lunch box. If you buy it, you own a little bit of cultural history and some personal history as well.

7. Starve the dumpster. Buying vintage keeps good stuff from becoming garbage.

8. Support your local economy. Let’s say there’s a woman from Durand who’s settling a family estate. She hires an auctioneer from Menomonie to run the auction. A picker from Mondovi attends the auction and purchases a kitchen table. The picker sells the table to the owner of a vintage store in Eau Claire, who sells it to a family in Altoona. The family is now happy with their awesome vintage table. The woman from Durand, the auctioneer from Menomonie, the picker form Mondovi and the storeowner from Eau Claire are also happy.

9. Keep local treasures local. The vintage dress you admired in a shop down the street was most likely worm by a woman who lived within 100 miles of Eau Claire. That funky aluminum Christmas tree was saved for years by a family in Chippewa County. That plaid sport coat was proudly worn by a general surgeon who worked for a local hospital.

All of these great items can stay in the Eau Claire area. Or they can be sold to people in New York, Los Angeles, Munich, or thousands of other cities that are not Eau Claire.

There you have it: Nine good reasons to go vintage. Here’s a final one: There are amazing vintage shops in and around the Chippewa Valley, offering just about any type of vintage item you could want. Find a few of them and give them a try!

Sue Derfus is the owner and operator of Spaced Out Furnishings, 1604 Hogeboom Ave., Eau Claire, a vintage shop that specializes in mid-century modern and vintage industrial decorating styles.

VolumeOne.org 35 July 27, 2016

DEFINING DECADES W H E N I S S O M E T H I N G A N A N T I Q U E A N D W H E N I S I T A C O L L E C T I B L E ? T he D I FF E R E N C E B E T W E E N V I N T A G E A N D R E T R O ? words: TOM GIFFEY

ANTIQUE

The Merriam-Webster dictionary define antique as “being in the style or fashion of former times” – and that’s something the Webster folks should know about, considered their dictionary traces its origin to 1828. The general consensus is that something has to be at least 100 years old to be considered an antique. The 100-year standard was developed in the 1930s by the U.S. Customs Office, which was seeking a way to determine what kind of objects should be subject to an import duty when they entered the country.

(True antiques, it seems, are treated as artwork and therefore are duty-free.) At the time, the definition applied to handmade, pre-Industrial Revolution items. Now, with the passage of time, it’s soon to include things manufactured in the Roaring Twenties. As antique furniture expert Michael Flanigan told the PBS program Antiques Roadshow, “The one-hundred-year mark may be crude, but it’s helpful. We tend to think in terms of centuries. To have that as a gauge gives people a sense of time and distance.”

COLLECTIBLE

The definition is “collectible” is less clear-cut; it’s usually defined as something that can be collected – which means everything from stamps to Barbie dolls to Pokemon cards. (Hey, you’ve gotta catch ’em all, right?) Think of collectibles as the things you look for in second-hand stores or on eBay that are somewhere between one and 100 years old.

Flanigan, the expert cited by Antiques Roadshow, divides collectibles into three categories: artistic and historical treasures (Tiffany lamps, for instance), mass-produced items that are created to be collected (such as baseball cards or Beanie Babies), and things that become valuable because of their associations (a dress worn by Marilyn Monroe). Antique expert, author, and broadcaster Frank Farmer Loomis suggests using the more dignified term “semi-antiques/collectible” instead of simply “collectible,” writing that “the word ‘collectible’ just conjures up images of tube socks at flea markets.”

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VINTAGE

The term “vintage” is thrown around a lot, but there’s no clear-cut age range for its use. Merriam-Webster’s definition includes this: “used to describe something that is not new but that is valued because of its good condition, attractive design, etc.” RubyLane.com, an website for antique, vintage, and collectible items, says “ ‘vintage’’ should not be used in reference to an object less than 20 years old, and the object should be somewhat representational and recognizable as belonging to the era in which it was made.” In other words, something from the early or mid-1990s could be considered “vintage” if it gives off a strong vibe of that decade. Of course, the word is often used so broadly that it loses any meaning. As a commenter on an eBay message board quipped, “ ‘Vintage’ often seems to mean anything that was purchased less than 24 hours ago, is dirty and worn, or looks like it might be old if you don’t know anything about history and squint really hard.”

“(Vintage) should not be used in reference to an object less than 20 years old, and the object should be somewhat representational and recognizable as belonging to the era in which it was made.”

RETRO

This term is also hard to pin down to a specific era. The dictionary defines “retro” as “looking like or relating to styles or fashions from the past” and “fashionably nostalgic or old-fashioned.” Generally speaking, something doesn’t have to be old to be “retro” – it can be something brandnew that imitates the styles and fashions of some past era.

A new T-shirt made to look like it was purchased at a 1980s rock concert would be “retro”; a T-shirt that actually does date to the ’80s is “vintage.”

go back in time at the foundry sale EAU CLAIRE WAREHOUSE OPENS ITS DOORS AND FILLS UP W ITH V INTAGE AND ANTIQUE TREASURE S

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words: BARBARA ARNOLD

ike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, hosts of the popular reality television show “American Pickers ” and owners of Antique Archeology and Frank Fritz Finds respectively, would have a field day looking for “rusty gold” at this year’s fourth annual Foundry Sale.

Mark the dates and times on your calendar: Friday, September 23, 2016, from 9 am to 5 pm, Saturday, September 24, 2016 from 9 am to 5 pm, and Sunday, September 25, 2016 from 10 am to 3 pm. Held in Eau Claire’s historic Foundry building at 1239 Bellevue Avenue, 15 dealers and junk artists will be offering one-of-a-kind treasures. There will be a mix of furniture, industrial, antique, junk salvage, shabby chic, handcrafted goods, collectibles, art, and class junk of all sorts, according to the Foundry Sale founder Mary Freeberg.

“Many of vendors who are participating this year are new, and they come from the surrounding area not just Eau Claire, “ said Freeberg. “In addition, the sale is inside a large industrial building, so weather conditions will not stop the show.”

VolumeOne.org 37 July 27, 2016

livin’ la vintage la crosse two cali f ornia women s et up s hop and laid down root s f or a cool traveling vintage clothe s bu s ine s s

PRAIRIELACROSSE.cOM

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words: SAMMY GIBBONS

n August 12 and 13, the Eau Claire cultural buzz will be amplified by the second Eaux Claires Music & Arts Festival. During the fest, local shop Red’s Mercantile will host a backyard, flea-market style gathering of craftspeople from the area and beyond.

Various vendors will showcase and sell their handmade art and products, from leather goods to henna tattoos, in the alley behind Red’s at 224 N. Dewey St. One visiting seller, Prairie La Crosse, will venture from their namesake city and bring their unique vintage wares to Eau Claire for the weekend.

Prairie La Crosse owners Hanna Compton and Kareena Sheely relocated to Wisconsin from southern California.

Sheely moved with her husband in 2012, and Compton moved in 2015 after falling in love with the town while visiting her longtime friend. It was in January 2015 that the women, both in their mid-twenties, united their separate online vintage sales and created a joint Etsy store, which they christened Prairie La Crosse.

A month later, they signed a lease for a brick and mortar building, which includes two antique-styled apartments above it that the two live in, and their shop space in downtown La Crosse, which opened its doors that August. The space, located at 535 Main St., has timeless, eclectic vibes – which is to be expected in a store selling vintage items – where exposed brick walls and wood floors enclose visitors in a cozy space of nostalgia.

Their sale items come largely from local donations. They also frequent estate sales and dig through piles at distribution centers, while keeping in contact with other vintage collectors that often give them items.

“When we first opened we had a wide array of styles we were trying to cater to,” Compton and Sheely wrote in an email.

“Over the year that we have been open we have really fine-tuned our selection to eras we adore the most. We pretty much exclusively sell pre-1970s, with an emphasis on 1910s-1940s. Women dominate our customer base, but we do have a wide selection of men’s clothing specializing in workwear and leather boots.”

Compton and Sheely want to emphasize the importance of vintage in modern culture through the store and their travels to places like Eau Claire. They hope to expand, both physically and with their business by hiring employees.

“Vintage is unique, one of a kind fashion that provides the community with a non-corporate, sustainable way of shopping,” they said. “By selling vintage clothing, our goal is to help cultivate a cultural identity of recycling and appreciation of past generations. Most of the items we come across still have so much life left in them, and they deserve to be worn.”

The Prairie La Crosse duo hope to continue making acquaintances with salespeople similar to themselves. They found such a chum in Red’s Mercantile owner, Becca Cooke, through the wonders of the internet. Cooke invited the two to set up a pop-up shop with their own goods for a day in her store back in March, and then that idea grew to include additional vendors, and plans for this upcoming Back Alley Pop Up on Eaux Claires weekend started formulating. Details of the event are still in the works, but the Compton and Sheely say it is sure to be a wonderful occasion where visitors can stop and pick up a memento or two from the festival days.

To get better acquainted with Prairie La Crosse, visit their website at prairielacrosse.com or visit their shop in La Crosse sometime at 535 Main St. The Back Alley Pop Up at Red’s Mercantile will be held August 12 and 13 in Eau Claire.

“By selling vintage clothing, our goal is to help cultivate a cultural identity of recycling and appreciation of past generations.

Most of the items we come across still have so much life left in them, and they deserve to be worn.”

- P R A I R I E L A C R O SS E VolumeOne.org 38 July 27, 2016

vintage WARES lISTINGS Antique Emporium 306 Main St., Eau Claire • (715) 832-2494 • mgallery@sbcglobal.net • trocadero.com/ mgallery/ Antique emporium with a special interest in paper ephemera.

Eclectica on Grand 106 W. Grand Ave., Eau Claire •

Atelier - Designs by Lucianne 422 Olive St., Chippewa Falls • (715) 933-2510 • luciannefbd@gmail.com • facebook.com Chalkboard and rustic signs with custom writing available for any special occasion, plus vintage accessories and antiques that may be rented to enhance your event.

(715) 834-7811 • electricchrysalis@sbcglobal.net • eclecticaongrand.robustodev.com Antique jewelry and collectibles.

Jackson Mill Thursday 12-6; Friday 10-5; Saturday 10-3 • 930 Galloway Street, Banbury Place, Building 13, Suite 9, Eau Claire • jacksonmill.etsy.com Specialize in retro and industrial home decor and fused glass.

Egg Palace Antiques 4263 N. Prairie View Rd., Chippe-

Jean’s Antiques and Collectibles 514 N. Clairemont

The Attic Furniture & Home Goods 2015 Fairfax St.,

Eau Claire • (715) 225-9951 • JohnandMeg@theatticEC.com • theatticEC.com Featuring 8,000 square feet of space for up cycled, high-quality furniture, mostly mid-century furniture, home goods, and art. The Attic also provides boutique space to about a dozen crafters and collectors at the back of the store

Begga Town Antiques and Collectibles 605 Main St., Colfax • (715) 962-4398 •

Bethesda Resale Shop 3178 London Rd., Eau Claire • (715) 834-7875 • bethesdalutherancommunities. org Great reads, quality furniture pieces, barely-worn clothing and decorative items.

Casual Ore Formal 307 S. Farwell St., Ste 301, Eau Claire • (608) 780-2099 • casualoreformal.com • A custom jewelry company presented by metalsmith Elizabeth Griggs, specializing in custom-made rings, earrings, pendants, and more.

Cheshire Farm Antiques E10415 County Road D, Fall

Creek • (715) 877-2228 •

The City Mall Flea Market 16 W. Columbia St., Chippewa Falls • (715) 723-6047 • terry@24-7auction.com • chippewafalls.24-7auction.com An auction resource featuring vintage and antique items (and much more).

Colfax Antique Mall 603 Main St., Colfax • (715) 704-

6086 • colfaxantiquemall.net A diverse group of antiques dealers and items from local, regional and international artists. Booth vendors and consignment clients are also local and regional with some as far away as Indiana, Virginia and Florida.

Dell’s Architectural Antiques 121 Maple St., Eau Claire • (715) 834-8872 • dellsarchitecturalantiques. com Specializing in antique collecting, salvage construction, and log homes.

wa Falls • (715) 720-1071 • eggpalaceantiques.com Antiques and collectibles.

Encore Consignment Clothing Store 2420 London Rd.,

Eau Claire • (715) 833-2333 • encoreclothing@sbcglobal.net • encore-clothing.com Encore also consigns furniture.

Engelwood Antiques 2020 Townshop Road, Fall Creek

• (715) 877-3468 •

Finish by Design 111 W. Spring Street, Chippewa Falls •

(715) 723-6400 • jeff@finishbydesign.com • finishbydesign.com Finish by Design is a furniture refinishing and repair shop that has created a unique union of restoring, refinishing and re-purposing many types of antiques and architectural products with decorative faux finishing.

Good and Sturdy Vintage 217 North Barstow, Eau

Claire • (715) 839-7999 • goodandsturdy.com Specializing in vintage clothing, art objects, home furnishings, and curiosities. Antique to 1980s.

Goodwill - Eau Claire 3605 Gateway Dr., Eau Claire •

(715) 835-0532 • goodwill.org Goodwill has a large selection of all-ages clothing, used furniture, and basically anything else you could want. You can also drop off your old stuff here and purchases go towards creating jobs.

Goodwill - Menomonie 2500 Hills Ct., Menomonie •

(715) 235-8488 • goodwill.org Goodwill has a large selection of all-ages clothing, used furniture, and basically anything else you could want. You can also drop off your old stuff here and purchases go towards creating jobs.

Greater Midwest Mercantile 403 South Barstow Street,

Ave., Eau Claire • (715) 552-2770 • A hometown business that has a large inventory of over 3,000 square feet.

Jean’s sells Washburn County area furniture, jewelry, vintage clothing, depression glass, and toys.

Laurie’s Junque W4570 Old Town Rd. Mondovi • (715)

926-5435 • facebook.com/LauriesJunque/timeline Laurie reuses old antiques, or refurbishes old furniture to look rustic and unique. She holds only two sales per summer.

The Market Place of Stanley 613 S. Broadway, Stanley • (715) 644-1015 • facebook.com Featuring antiques, collectables, vintage items, jewelry, furniture, wood creations, baked goods, and more.

Olde Creamery Antiques & Refinishing 35408 Greene

St., Independence • (715) 985-2503 • facebook.com Two floors complete with furniture, glassware, stoneware, tools, and jewelry. Also offering complete refinishing and repairing of new and old furniture, canning and trunk repair, plus much more.

Ragstock Oakwood Mall, Eau Claire • (715) 835-6710 • ragstock.com • New and used clothing at affordable prices. Ragstock carries a wide selection of fashion forward items for men and women.

Reimagine 1717 Western Ave, Eau Claire • (715) 5779085 • reimagineec.com • Renewed, upcycled furniture, vintage finds, antiques, and many locally handmade products.

Retro Distortions 312 E Madison St., Eau Claire • (715) 563-0987 • facebook.com Retro nostalgic emporium.

Eau Claire • Jewelry, diamonds, used and antique pieces, bullion gold, silver coins, paper money, guns (new, used and antique), new/used accessories, and much more.

• (715) 836-7397 • facebook.com/RiverTraderAntiques/ Antiques and collectibles at reasonable prices.

Hope Gospel Mission Bargain Center 2511 W. Moholt Dr., Eau Claire • (715) 839-9498 • hopegospelmission. org This Eau Claire based business sells clothing, house wares, and above all, loads and loads of furniture. Like many others, Hope Gospel’s profits support local programs in the area.

Salvation Army 2211 S. Hastings Way, Eau Claire • (715) 834-1224 • usc.salvationarmy.org/eauclaire A nonprofit, international organization that helps whenever and wherever possible. Donated funds, thrift store items and volunteers help make this one of the most recognizable charities around the world.

River Trader Antiques 110 W. Grand Ave., Eau Claire

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Sandy’s Clothing & Art/Francie’s Finds & Consignment E13298 Cty Rd V, Augusta • sandysclothingand-

art.com Sandy’s has added vintage clothing and Francie’s is always re-purposed.

Savers 2833 Mall Dr., Eau Claire • (715) 835-8500 • savers.com/Default.aspx Featuring an ever-changing selection of secondhand items.

The Shed 1519 Mayer Rd., Altoona • (715) 832-8585 •

ebprescott73@yahoo.com Indoor flea market featuring antiques and homemade goods.

srderfus@gmail.com • spacedoutfurnishings.com An online resource for everyone with even the slightest interest in Vintage Industrial and Midcentury Modern furnishings. Visit online at their website or at Etsy.

Spaced Out Furnishings

Stone Street Collectibles 131 S Stone St., Augusta • (715) 286-5283 •

Time and Again Antiques 606 Second St., PO Box 421,

Chetek • (715) 924-4000 • chetekantiques@yahoo.com • chetekantiques.com Featuring over 40 dealers in two adjacent buildings providing friendly, small-town service and an enjoyable shopping experience.

Town and Country Antiques 244 Main St. E, Menomonie

• (715) 231-3222 • lchase@wwt.net • facebook.com/antiquestownandcountry/ An entertaining and ever changing multi-dealer shop with 25 dealers offering a wide variety of treasures and antiques in historic downtown Menomonie.

Triangle Art and Antiques 335 Main St. E, Menomonie • (715) 953-4242 • triangle.antiques@gmail.com • facebook.com The Triangle Building (built in 1906) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and features experienced dealers and beautiful art and antiques.

Vintage Junkies 930 Galloway St., Banbury Place, Building 13, Suite 203, Eau Claire • (715) 495-0740 • vintagejunkies-lovelyfurniture.blogspot.com Turning ugly furniture into lovely furniture.

The Wood Shed 105 W Lincoln St., Augusta • (715) 286-5404 • woodshedheirlooms.com/index.htm Authentic Amish and furniture and accessories in oak, pine, cherry, and other woods.