Loved and Restored: vintage, artisan, and fair trade pop-up store in Appomattox
Melissa Dixon remembers her grandfather being notorious for picking up reusable, unbroken items left on the side of the road when she was younger. He especially loved to find glass bottles. He had a great variety of collected items in his basement and Melissa used to love wandering through the findings, imagining what each item’s backstory was.
In her growing up years, Melissa would also rummage through the old houses and barns on her family’s farm, and she loved to bring the new-to-her treasures home - thinking up stories of yesteryear and how the items might have been once used.
“All the things” - Every item has a story
“I like to save all the things. I’m not a person that likes to trash things, because somebody worked so hard on them. Back in the day, they really poured their love, and sweat, and tears into these products like handmade furniture, for example. You really can’t find things like that anymore,” Melissa explained.
Melissa shops mostly estate sales to find vintage products for resale. She loves meeting families who share with her the backstories of the items she’s picking. It’s those stories, for Melissa, that make the items so valuable. She, in turn, can share the stories with her customers when they purchase the products.
Even though Melissa is extremely particular about the items she picks, (making sure there are no smells, signs of mold, or irreparable damages), each one of the vintage items she sells is thoroughly cleaned ensuring it is presentable and ready for it’s next owner.
Melissa loves the look of raw wood, and most of her wooden picked items are kept in the original condition. Some are sanded and given a new coat of lacquer, and on occasion, if she sees fit, she will paint a wooden piece to bring it back to life. Melissa attends vintage markets throughout Virginia and sells her wares to those who, like her, are passionate about decorating and giving new life to previously-loved items. Melissa’s pop-up store, located at 1971 Church Street in Appomattox offers vintage wooden furniture and home decor. The store is called a “pop-up” because, due to Melissa’s busy market schedule, the store does not have regular hours.
Loved and Restored
Over the last several years, Melissa went through some difficult life changes, including health complications that led to, eventually, the need to leave her full time job.
“I prayed constantly about the next steps, for guidance and wisdom through all of that,” she explained.
During that difficult season, as Melissa was reading her Bible, she came across Jeremiah 31:3-4. After contemplating that Bible passage, she knew that Loved and Restored would become the name of her business.
“The verse was talking about how we are loved and restored through Christ, and it just kept sticking with me. I kept going back to that over and over, and when I was trying to come up with a business name, I wanted to have something that’s meaningful to my life but also to others. In the store, we have vintage items that are loved and restored, and we also sell fair trade items - and that’s just near and dear to my heart. If I’m going to have a product in the store, I want it to have meaning,” Melissa explained.
(“Fair trade” means that the people who made the items are paid a fair living wage for their work. Often, this can help those living in the poorest countries around the world overcome the generational cycle of poverty their families have endured.)
A few examples of the fair trade items she sells are handbags and shoulder bags made from textile scraps from a mission group called New Hope Girls, and hand made beaded jewelry from Mercy Jewelry. Both of these groups support women and girls in the Dominican Republic. She also sells various hand made fair trade products from India from the group IndiArtisan Collective.
Along with vintage decor and fair trade items, Melissa also offers what she calls “gift-ables.” These are hand-made items made by artisans in Appomattox and throughout Virginia, such as soaps, candles, clothing, and jewelry. They are great items to give as gifts!
The best way to keep up with Melissa Dixon and Loved and Restored in Appomattox is through Facebook and Instagram. That’s where she shares her newly found treasures, and that’s also where she announces when the pop-up store will be open. She also shares where you can find her at upcoming markets on her social media pages as well.
To learn more you can also call Loved and Restored at 434-610-0824 or email Melissa at lovedandrestored@yahoo.com. She may just have that special vintage piece you’ve been looking for!
If you are interested in promoting your business on the Appomattox Happenings website, email, and social media, contact Teresa Davis through the contact form below or email appomattoxhappenings@gmail.com
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