Collecting antiques and other things is part of what Melissa DeSalle is all about.
“It’s a passion,” said DeSalle, owner and operator of Melissa’s Antiques & Fancy Goods in downtown Kent. “It’s something that’s once in your blood, it stays there.”
For DeSalle, it’s been her pursuit since she opened her first antique store after retiring as an elementary school secretary in Lompoc, Calif., in 1986. As the family moved, so did her shop – to Fort Collins, Colo., and Redding, Calif. She landed in Kent seven years ago to be closer to her daughter.
Spotting a vacancy along West Meeker Street, DeSalle jumped at the chance to open a business to sell, as she likes to describe, “antiques, fancy goods, vintage collectibles and funky junque.”
DeSalle’s inventory is vast and varied and specializes in early American pattern glass and cut glass, from the early 1800s to the 1950s. DeSalle is especially knowledgeable about those special-made glassworks of yesteryear.
“I’ve studied it over the years,” she said. “It’s something I have a passion for, and I can share it.”
DeSalle’s friendly and relaxed shop also offers antique furniture, pottery, dishes, vases, vintage lace and linen and many primitive items from the 1920s and ’30s.
Her inventory reflects her many years of selling and buying in the antique industry.
“I’ve always loved old things,” she said. “But when I first started doing this, I didn’t know much about (the business). I just continued along the journey.”
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We’re open
• Business: Melissa’s Antiques & Fancy Goods
• Location: 406 W. Meeker St., Kent
• Hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; noon-4 p.m. Sunday; closed Monday
• Collectibles: Early American pattern glass and cut glass, pottery, dishes, vases, lace, linen, furniture, original art, primitive 1920s and ’30s items
• Phone: 253-854-0136
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