A lot of our furniture will work well in the new house (my crazy floral chair is going to be so good there), but I feel like we need some more vintage pieces and antiques in the mix too. I’m not in a rush to furnish everything immediately, let alone before we’ve even moved in, but I have been scoping out the antique shops up in Minocqua and the surrounding areas.
I passed on a couple of cabinets that I liked, but didn’t love. This sweet little dresser though? Sold!
I don’t know the name of the place I bought it from because I didn’t notice a sign — just “ANTIQUES” scrawled across the windows in giant letters. It was right next to Paul Bunyan’s Cook Shanty. The dresser is in pretty good shape, aside from the top. I’m hoping I can give it a good cleaning and restore the finish with a little furniture polish.
I also bought some bronzed baby shoes from the same place. I’m not going for the little knick-knacks right now, since we truly have no place to put them yet, but I couldn’t resist. That might be a little weird, and I carried them around the shop with me, fully aware that it was a little weird, but I had to have them nonetheless. At least they’re easy to bring back with us!
Lydia
August 7, 2013 at 2:34 pmGreat find, love the Empire dresser. I bought one for my daughter’s room, changed the knobs (mercury glass from Anthro) to update it a bit. LOVE IT!
Making it Lovely
August 7, 2013 at 2:41 pmThat sounds cute! I’m not sure if I’m swapping out the knobs on this one or not. I’m keeping the wood finish though — no plans to change it up with paint or a full refinishing.
Kelly Perris
August 7, 2013 at 2:56 pmI hope you and the family went to Paul Bunyans! My kids love that place! Yummy doughnuts!! :)
Making it Lovely
August 13, 2013 at 10:53 amThey’re so good!
Tena
August 7, 2013 at 3:01 pmGreat dresser and even better price!
Liz
August 7, 2013 at 3:02 pmWhat a score! This is getting me so excited for our annual trip (Labor Day week!) to our family cabin outside of Mercer. My great great grandfather built the cabin and my 2 year old son is among the 6th generation of family to share the greatest place on earth! I love pecking around the small towns and making awesome finds! I think I missed it, but where is your famiy’s place?
Making it Lovely
August 7, 2013 at 5:37 pmOneida County, I think? Near Minocqua, Eagle River, and Rhinelander.
julia
August 7, 2013 at 3:19 pmThat is a great price for a vintage/antique dresser! Great find! And I don’t find that strange at all..I’m a sucker for all things brass :)
Making it Lovely
August 7, 2013 at 5:31 pmWell, and they looked just like the shoes I bought for August and tried to get him to wear all the time in vain. He hated those things!
Amanda Z.
August 7, 2013 at 3:36 pmThat is a great classic piece at a great price! It would look amazing with a piece of stone or marble cut for the top.
And Paul Bunyan’s Cook Shanty?!?! Why does everything in Wisconsin have to be so awesome? I’ve only visited once and was enamored by the restaurant with the goats on the roof (Al Johnson’s I think).
Making it Lovely
August 7, 2013 at 5:36 pmOh, fun! I hadn’t heard of that, but it looks like you’re right on the name. That’s even further north than we are now.
kristi
August 7, 2013 at 3:50 pmCute dresser. My daughter has my bronzed baby shoes in her room.
jbhat
August 7, 2013 at 3:53 pmAwesome find. I heart browsing in antique shops. It’s one of my very favorite things to do.
jbhat
Kristy Daum
August 7, 2013 at 4:01 pmThat’s a great find for a steal of a price considering the condition. I LOVE shopping for antique furniture and tend to buy more of it then I have a place for; but I just can’t pass it up.
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!
Laurie
August 7, 2013 at 4:19 pmDang. Am I the only one that loves that cake pan under the dresser? That is awesome!
The dresser is darling too. There are a million great things you can do with the top if it proves to be challenging. The lines of it are what counts and that is wonderful.
Well done!
Nichola
August 7, 2013 at 8:07 pmOh Minoqua brings back memories, we went on the road trip from hell as newlyweds, with my inlaws in 1991. Driving from Chicago to stay at a cabin in Fifield Wisconsin. Mother in Law had to stop at Popovs there and back and go to the Christmas store and buy ugly, shiny, duck pictures and other treasures from the Pendleton shop. My husband and I still talk about the town fondly though. Great deal on the chest of drawers, prices like that might tempt me back after all!
KarenAnita
August 8, 2013 at 3:11 amGreat find! & i love the keyholes. You just don’t find details like that on modern furniture! x
Lucy
August 8, 2013 at 5:32 amThis dresser is amazing! I’ve been looking for a dresser with key holes. Especially over-sized key holes like the one in Charlotte’s room from Revenge.
Erin
August 8, 2013 at 7:18 amI have a dresser JUST like that that I’ll be using as a changing table in our new baby’s room. I hope the top is an easy fix for you. Great find!
Holly
August 8, 2013 at 7:26 amI’ve been going up there since I was Eleanor’s age. My parents have a cottage about 20 minutes north of Minocqua. The antique store where you bought the dresser is Island Antiques and it’s always worth a walk through. My other favorite antique store is in Another Time in Eagle River, although they mainly have little stuff.
And for the commenter who mentioned Popov’s, it is still there (Christmas store, Pendleton, duck pictures and all) but is going out of business at the end of the year. The daughter who has been running it for years has decided to retire so she can travel. I hope you had breakfast at Paul Bunyan’s, it’s fun for kids. And the donuts are yummy too!
Making it Lovely
August 13, 2013 at 10:56 amYes, Island Antiques was the name of it! Thanks. I’ll have to stop in to the others. We’ve been taking trips into town on different days, just rambling around and popping in to different shops.
Laura @ Rather Square
August 8, 2013 at 10:08 amLove the lines of this piece. What are you planning to do to the top?
Making it Lovely
August 8, 2013 at 10:13 amI’m hoping to clean it up and maybe buff out some of the damage. There are a lot of scuffs and scratches up there. If I can’t get it looking better, I’ll consider a full sanding and refinishing job.
Lindsay
August 8, 2013 at 11:27 amDefinitely try Howard’s Restor-A-Finish before doing anything drastic. It’s saved several pieces for me.
Jessica Newell
August 8, 2013 at 11:15 amLove this dresser – are you planning on putting it in your daughter’s room?
Its fun finding pieces like this at random antique stores – and brass baby shoes are so adorable!
Making it Lovely
August 13, 2013 at 10:58 amI think we’re going to keep the pink dresser that I painted for Eleanor in her room, but I might repaint it in another color. The new (old) wooden one is a great size that I can see working in a few different spots around the house, so I’m not sure where it’s going to end up yet.
alison
August 8, 2013 at 12:11 pmPaul Bunyan’s! My grandpa used to be the chef there! Having a serious nostalgic moment over here:)
Kim R
August 8, 2013 at 1:46 pmThat dresser is gorgeous – I wouldn’t have passed on it, either. I’m glad you’re not planning to paint it because the wood grain is beautiful.
I look forward to seeing it in your new space!
Michelle
August 8, 2013 at 1:58 pmGreat find! A dresser like that is one that can go almost anywhere… Entry way, bedroom, living room, etc.
How do you plan on getting it back home? Our car is always packed so tightly when we go on vacation that I can only pick up smaller objects, not large pieces of furniture. We just bought our first minivan, so I’m hoping that will help!!
Making it Lovely
August 13, 2013 at 11:00 amWe have a minivan, and I think we can fit it in back, even with the dog and all of our stuff.
Tina
August 10, 2013 at 11:26 amIsland City is one of my fave antique stores anywhere. If you’ve got time to kill and feel like a drive, you should check out Perennial Antiques. The drive up to it is straight out of Deliverance, but they have some beautiful pieces. The wife has a good eye and the husband is a very talented furniture maker. I’m going back in the fall just to take photos.
http://perennialantiques-wi.com/favorites.htm
Making it Lovely
August 13, 2013 at 11:01 amThank you! I went on Saturday, and that place was amazing. I took tons of photos that I’ll be sharing here soon!
Perennial Antiques, in Wisconsin’s North Woods | Making it Lovely
August 14, 2013 at 11:33 am[…] went to Perennial Antiques last Saturday, per this suggestion. (Thank you, Tina!) It’s an antique shop about halfway between Rhinelander and Minocqua, in […]
Alana
August 19, 2013 at 11:35 pmDon’t forget about your friends over here at Nest Vintage Modern in La Grange! Lady, you k ow we’ll hook you up! :)
carissa
August 26, 2013 at 11:40 pmi need me one of those!
Starting on Our Bedroom | Making it Lovely
September 25, 2013 at 2:35 pm[…] loving our shared walk-in closet so far, but we’re going to need more drawer space than just the antique dresser that I picked up in Wisconsin. Ideally, another empire dresser would be nice, but a taller one — something like this. Even this […]