Treasures for Every Season

Sophistication and selection come together in Mount Pleasant

As reported in Charleston Style & Design Magazine
BY HOLLY FISHER | PHOTOGRAPHS BY HOLGER OBENAUS

When new customers visit Patina Blu, a gift, antique and home décor shop in Mt. Pleasant’s Crickentree Village they often have the same reaction. “The first word out of their mouths is ‘wow,’” says owner Wally Carey.

Wally and his wife, Kelly, along with Cindy Paris, opened Patina Blu in April, bringing Mt. Pleasant shoppers several stores rolled into one. It takes at least two trips through the shop to see the jewelry, lamps, antique furniture, gourmet foods, coffee table books and baby gifts. The three pride themselves on offering a wide variety of items at price points to fit all budgets—a great combination when it comes time for this year’s holiday shopping.

Come October, Patina Blu will be ready for the holidays with fall linens, candles and table décor for Thanksgiving, followed closely by hundreds of Christmas ornaments and gift selections. Patina Blu offers complimentary gift wrapping year-round, but adds a mix of festive red ribbons and tulle for the holidays.

Expect a dose of warm Southern hospitality at Patina Blu, thanks to Cindy’s Southern upbringing. And even though the Careys moved to the area about three years ago from New York, it didn’t take them long to adopt the South’s hospitable ways. Just a few days before opening their new store, the three made a commitment to greet each person who walks in the door with friendship and hospitality, Cindy explains.

Wally, Kelly and Cindy take pride in making Patina Blu a fun, relaxing atmosphere that mirrors their own easy-going and social personalities. Whether customers come in for serious shopping or simply to browse and chat, they are welcomed with the same enthusiasm.

Need a little break from shopping? Enjoy a bottle of water and a soft drink or take a sample from the regular tastings of gourmet food sold in the store. So far, some of the customers’ favorites are the mouth-watering chocolate chip cookies and the slightly spicy, slightly sweet pepper marmalade. (When you come in, Kelly will share a special family recipe.)

When Wally, with a background in advertising and video production, and Kelly, a long-time interior designer, desired a lifestyle change, they looked no further than the Charleston area. They had vacationed on Sullivan’s Island for many years and loved the area, its people and its Southern charm. It was an easy decision for them to pack up their two children and head to Mt. Pleasant.

Once settled, they took a look around their new town and realized it didn’t have anything they now carry at Patina Blu. So, with Cindy and her 30 years of experience in retail, they set out to create a shop filled with hidden treasures, both new and old.

The three are careful to find pieces with value they can put in the shop and sell at reasonable prices. “In these difficult times, that’s something we’re very conscious of,” Kelly says.

The wide range of offerings makes Patina Blu a place where someone can buy a thoughtful gift for any occasion or even completely redesign a home. With prices ranging from just $2 up to $2,200 for an 1810 antique gentleman’s chest, Kelly says, there’s even room for someone to treat themselves to a “me” gift.

Customers in need of more extensive design services can visit the upstairs loft. Filled with even more treasures, it boasts a glass-top island designed to inspire creativity and stacked with a vast selection of swatches, wallpaper samples, catalogs and wood floor samples.

Patina Blu offers in-home consultations, with Kelly helping customers with complete redesigns or simply offering a few suggestions and ideas for a fresh look. She works with customers to create window treatments, re-upholster a sofa or order custom furniture. And thanks to Cindy’s years in the business, Patina Blu has access to some of the leading furniture manufacturers.

Customers will find Kelly quite experienced in the design world. She has worked for such clients as Chris Madden, of Chris Madden Designs; Tommy Mattola, former president of Sony Music Entertainment; and Christina Johnson, former president and CEO of Saks Fifth Avenue.

Keeping with its mix of items and unique selections, Patina Blu introduced to the Lowcountry Plank 1 Design engineered wood flooring. Plank 1 Design is based in Vail, Colo., with just a handful of showrooms around the country. Patina Blu is Plank 1 Design’s only showroom in the South. With flooring available up to 15 inches wide and 16 feet long in a variety of wood species, Plank 1 Design flooring is known as the “Rolls Royce of wood flooring,” Wally says. The plank’s carefully engineered design makes it sturdy and long lasting, resistant to warping or buckling—a common problem with traditional wide-plank wood floors.

But wood flooring, antiques and fabric swatches aside, Kelly, Wally and Cindy treasure most the friends and family who have offered support and assistance as the three worked together to launch the business. “It took a village to open this store,” Kelly says.

For all of them, the opening of Patina Blu has been exciting, and they look forward to building their business as they enter the holiday season. The store is sure to be busy with new and returning customers—all eager to be “wowed” by what Patina Blu has to offer.

As Cindy says, “Our friends are our customers and our customers are becoming our friends.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Patina Blu
1055 Johnnie Dodds Blvd. Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464 843-606-2142
www.patinablu.com

Here’s the original article link:  http://www.charlestonstyleanddesign.com/category/design/at-home/