Family hits the road to repurpose antiques

“We are the female version,” said North Barrington resident Anne Leahy, one of the business’ owners, along with her sister, Julie Abernathey of Cary, and mother, Nancy Mokszycki of Lake Barrington.

“She’s Frank,” Leahy said, smiling and pointing at her sister as the trio stood in their 2,000-square-foot shop and warehouse space on Pepper Road in Lake Barrington. 

Mokszycki said that she and her older daughter, Abernathey, began refinishing and selling used furniture and crafts at area flea markets about 10 years ago. Leahy caught the bug about four years ago, and the three opened their Lake Barrington shop two years ago.

They sell items they have “repurposed,” such as old mirror frames made into decorative chalkboards and antique bottles wrapped in burlap and decorated with vintage keys and costume jewelry.

They also offer items that present canvases of sorts for others who enjoy being crafty – everything from an old barn door to a segment of well-worn picket fence and a pair of wooden, leather-strapped snow skis.

The shop is open 9 a.m. to noon Tuesdays and occasional Thursdays through Saturdays. On weekends when the shop is not open, the three are traveling the Midwest, and sometimes venturing further, to capture new finds – thus the comparison with "American Pickers," only these pickers typically travel with one or more husbands in tow.

“This is the monster room,” Mokszycki said, peeling back a curtain to reveal a large storage area brimming with what she referred to as future projects. Floor-to-ceiling shelves present everything from old metal watering cans to vintage picnic baskets, plaid Thermos jugs – even a small pile of arrows.

Here, a small Virgin Mary surveys the scene. There, several jars reveal contents of old keys and fancy buttons. Nearby, a precariously stacked tub spills over with vintage porcelain doorknobs.

“Bob and weave,” cautioned Abernathey as a visitor ventured inside.

Mokszycki, Abernathey and Leahy said they have become true bargain hunters to keep their prices reasonable. Customers can spend less than a dollar for items such as old game pieces, or up to about $400 for a refinished dresser.