A new business run by two crafty sisters opens Memorial Day weekend in the village of Lake Nebagamon. Shade offers home decor and gift items as well as vintage pieces and repurposed furniture.
The shop’s opening is a dream come true for co-owners Dede Herrick and Shari Bridge, who both live in Superior. In February they learned Birch, the business that formerly occupied the shop space in the Village Corner, was closing. The sisters enjoy going to antique sales and auctions, and both have a knack for creating handcrafted items.
“I love to create and make things; I love that process,” said Bridge, a Desert Storm veteran. “When this space became available we thought we’d give it a try.”
They signed the lease April 1 and called it Shade, a combination of their first names.
Since then, the sisters and Shari's husband, Steve, have retooled the space — adding a wall, taking out the fitting rooms and turning the back area into a craft shop.
“We’ve dreamed about it for years, having our own shop,” said Herrick, who works at the University of Wisconsin-Superior in the cashier's office. “It’s been fun to get the creative juices flowing.”
There are a number of T-shirts and hats available, but the majority of items are handcrafted by the sisters and Steve Bridge, who recently retired after 32 years with USG Interiors of Cloquet, Minnesota.
“These are things that you are not going to find anywhere else,” Herrick said. “They’re unique and region-specific.”
The inventory runs the gamut from pillows and gnomes to signs and plaques. They repurposed items like cheese box tables, glass insulator wall sconces and a child’s pegboard fashioned out of half a rocking chair.
Custom orders are also being taken. If visitors want a shelf in a different color, a sign with their family name or a specific quote, Shade can deliver.
Creativity runs in the family. The sisters, whose maiden name was Kosobuski, said their grandmother was a painter who also knitted and crocheted. Their mother was the family seamstress.
“I’m the oldest of six kids,” Herrick said. “She’d sew our clothes.”
They’re hoping to inspire the creativity of others by hosting crafting workshops at Shade in the future.
The Lake Nebagamon community has been welcoming and their Facebook page has picked up likes and interest.
“Everyone here has been so nice and supportive,” Steve Bridge said.
Distance isn’t a deterrent for the Superior owners. The daily drive to Lake Nebagamon is enjoyable, and they have connections with the community. Herrick’s youngest daughter was married there; Shari Bridge took her kids swimming at the beach. Both used to shop at Birch.
“We just love the area here,” said Steve Bridge, and it's a nice fit for a seasonal business.
The shop will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday through Monday. A grand opening is being planned for June.