Brackenridge resident Denise Sloan vividly remembers her childhood walks with her father through the booming business district of Tarentum.
“He was working at DiGirolomo and we were walking to Berkey, where he was chatting with everyone,” she said. “Last stop was always Harrison’s on Corbet Street.”
Sloan, a graduate of Highlands High School, finds her life coming full circle.
Her first business venture, Vesta Vintage and Handcrafted Goods, is set to open on June 9 at Harrison’s former men’s boutique that she loved so much as a child.
The original haberdashery cash register is in the shop window.
“I want to be part of the revitalization,” said Sloan, who is making a leap into the business world after working in the healthcare and management industry for several years. Currently, she drives for a school bus company.
His store at 408 Corbet St. will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.
“I always talked about opening a store, but I wasn’t sure what genre,” she said. “I think if there are a few specialty shops in town, that makes it a destination.”
After attending the Tarentum Night Markets last summer with her homemade sugar scrubs and crocheted potholders, Sloan was elated by the success and began scouting the vacant window displays.
Once she made the decision to open her antique decorating store, Sloan bought out inventory from a closed business and filled her room with her handcrafted Amish furniture, glass of milk, its handmade pillows and wicker baskets of all shapes and sizes.
In its glass cases are a hand-painted carpenter’s saw, weathered political knobs, license plates and wooden signs with clever sayings, such as “It’s not drinking alone if your cat is at home”.
The walls are lined with Tupperware, Pyrex and ceramic shelves. A wooden table and chairs – the first pieces of furniture Sloan purchased as a young adult – take center stage in the showroom.
Parts of the store will feature products from various vendors who rent space at Sloan. One of the vendors will be Cedar and Slate, a custom rustic home decor company from Harrison. Additional space will be filled with smart choices made by Sloan at garage sales, goodwill and salvage stores.
“I can usually spot something and know if people are going to like it,” she said.
Sloan sometimes turns items into something else that might catch a customer’s eye. She dazzled an old bowling ball with gemstones and repurposed it into a glittering garden decoration.
It’s a fitting talent for someone who named their store for Vesta, a Hearth and Home guru.
“I liked this version of a household goddess,” she said.
Tawnya Panizzi is editor of Tribune-Review. You can contact Tawnya at 724-226-7726, tpanizzi@triblive.com or via Twitter .