Vintage markets are popping up in downtown Aurora. In September, three shops featuring multiple artisan vendors opened to join the already popular Wyckwood House and Branch Gardens.
The three shops are The Cotton Seed Creative Exchange, L & L Vintage, and Warehouse 55.
The Cotton Seed Creative Exchange, 8 N. Broadway, is a new creative marketplace. Veteran owner Yvonne Thompson opened the location in September. A majority of the items are handmade, re-purposed, painted, or created by each creative partner. They offer a small selection of retail items to accent their creative inventory.
Cousins Laura Monroy and Lily Munoz opened L & L Vintage, a vintage shop, in September at 30 N. Broadway. The space is filled with welcoming displays that highlight repurposed furniture and unique finds. There are a variety of vendors from antique to kitsch.
Mark Allen, of Mark Allen Inspired, recently opened Warehouse 55 at 55 S. Lake Street. The 5,000-square-foot, newly-renovated warehouse, features unique, independent vendor collections of vintage, and mid-century modern (MCM) finds and repurposed furnishings mixed with many one-of-a-kind accessories. The store is ideally curated for customers shopping for MCM, rustic farmhouse, cottage chic, and modern contemporary. More can be learned at warehousefiftyfive.com.
As mentioned, the trio is a nice addition to a couple of stores that opened in 2018:
• Wyckwood House, 14 W. Downer Place, Suite 16, offers a unique shopping experience and features goods from artisans. Owner Shannon Gutierrez collaborates with several small business owners to offer coffee, clothing, oils, handbags, and more items. More information is at wyckwoodhouse.com.
• Branch Gardens, 77 S. Lake Street, is a lush oasis in downtown with a storeroom full of house plants as well as an outdoor patio with seasonal landscape selections. Owners Kori and Bryan Kasper are frequently on hand to give helpful tips and recommendations. See more at branchgardens.com.
If you haven’t been shopping in downtown Aurora lately, now is the time to spend an afternoon stopping at these quaint and well-curated home decor stores.
Marissa Amoni is the manager of Aurora Downtown, a nonprofit group of business and property owners dedicated to making downtown Aurora a premier destination for arts, culture, entertainment, dining, living, and working. Learn about First Fridays and other upcoming Fall events at auroradowntown.org.