Hoping to inspire the feeling of small town life with a bit of modern charm, Adorn Goods – Artful Home and Epicure opened their doors for business this week in Centerville. The owners describe their business as a “modern day general store,” which blends the old with the new and where customers can browse for food items, home essentials and gifts.
Bree Wellons (left) and Jennifer Steiner opened Adorn Goods on Monday
Bree Wellons and Jennifer Steiner both have a never-ending love of interior design and years of experience working with home decor – fabrics, wall coverings, accessories and furniture. In fact, Bree served clients for many years with her own successful interior design business, Dilwyne Designs, and they both really enjoy turning something old into something fresh, functional and with a bit of whimsy.
After completely remodeling their own homes in Wilmington and discussing the many home renovation items they shopped for outside of Delaware, the friends decided to work together to start a business in Centerville.
“We felt that there were several lines that are just not represented in Delaware, and we thought the market would like these products,” said Bree Wellons. And choosing the name was easy. “To Adorn means to decorate or embellish, but it also means more – and less,” said Wellons. Their store, which itself is in an old home, is stunning, with many pieces that are beautifully illuminated by the natural sunlight. And since this is grand opening week, fresh flower arrangements are can be found throughout the store nestled between handsome place settings, napkins and stemware.
Place settings at the dinner table
Their tabletop gifts and accessories would look as beautiful in a farm house as a contemporary home. Some lines include Farmhouse Pottery from Vermont, and decorative objects and hand crafted pieces from Tozai Home. The store also features frames, candles, vases, placemats, bar ware and several other decorative pieces.
Adorn Goods also has a pantry section at the rear of the store – with things like cheese straws, preserves, buttermilk biscuit mixes, salts and herbs, honey, and maple candy. They have four main food lines that are not carried at other Delaware retailers, such as Blackberry Farms and Finding Home Farms.
Shelves and tables replete with merchandise at Adorn Goods
And in the next couple of months Adorn Goods will expand their food offerings to include fresh grab-and-go salads, lunches, and frozen meals to take away for dinner.
For co-owner Jennifer Steiner, the store is a blend of shops of yesteryear with her tastes today. “I have fond memories of stopping by my local candy shop on the way home from school to fill my bag with old fashioned penny candy. We hope to offer that same memorable experience,” said Steiner.
Steiner and Wellons spent six months finding the right location for their business but always focused on Centerville. “We love the charm of Centerville. We wanted to be in a historic town that had more of a small town charm. Centerville is the perfect town to have that kind of shop in,” said Wellons.
Yummy food items in the pantry
The shop, which is located at 5712 Kennett Pike, is in an old 1930’s home that Wellons and Steiner renovated for retail. The exterior boasts a fresh coat of dark gray paint with white trim and pretty flower boxes that are filled with pine and berry arrangements. The front of the store features tabletop gifts and accessories, and the rear section is a completely new addition, with hardwood floors, tall windows and handsome wood beams against a peaked ceiling line. The entire room is painted bright white.
The friends and business partners are truly excited to be open for business. Adorn Goods is open 10 am to 5 pm Mon – Fri and 10 am to 4 pm Saturday. Their website isn’t up yet, but you can find them on Facebook or Instagram @adorn.goods. “We hope our new customers will stop by and stay a while – just like the old days,” said Wellons.