A few weeks ago we were in Tulsa, OK for one of my son's band contests. During a break we drove over to Broken Arrow, which is a suburb of Tulsa. We lived there for two years while serving on staff at First Baptist Church, and our oldest son was born during that time. Broken Arrow's downtown has experienced a beautiful rebirth. When we lived there it was nothing special, but now it's a thriving quaint and charming Main Street.
I know that many of you that read today will never be anywhere near Oklahoma, but I wanted to encourage those of you who might be within driving distance to consider a day trip to the area. This would be such a fun girls' trip if you're only a few hours away! However, even if you'll never visit, I know you'll get lots of inspiration and ideas from the photos today.
I visited Broken Arrow with my daughter earlier this summer, but this time wanted to bring Ray along so we could enjoy lunch and stroll through some of the shops. However, my main objective was to come see and shop at Restore House.
I just became aware of Restore House last month at our state's Minister's Wives retreat, where owners Nick and Jamie Parker shared their story. They are a darling couple raising five children, and their passion is to take houses in need of restoration and return them to their former glory.
photo via Born Again Restored
A number of years ago, they purchased this Victorian house on Main Street that was in danger of being condemned, and lovingly restored it to the beauty she is today. Then, their family of 7 lived there for a period of time.
When the house didn't meet their family's needs any longer, Jamie realized her dream of owning a shop for unique and "found" items and Restore House was born.
The house remains mostly as it did when the family occupied it, only now it's packed full of pretty vignettes and fun things to purchase. Many of the original furnishings and details remain inside the house.
Understandably, the kitchen was a huge renovation project, yet now it seems like this is how it should have always been! Isn't it adorable?
I have more to show and tell you, please click over to read the rest of this post!
Some of the cabinets are original, and some were made to match the originals. They did an amazing job of marrying the old and new seamlessly.
I'm always slightly at a loss of what to put in a really large lantern that I have... filing this idea away!
In addition to Restore House, the grounds now provide an outdoor space for weddings and events. I'll show you that in a second, but the upstairs of the house is closed to the public and used for the bridal parties. This is the bride's dressing room, I might have gushed about that chandelier to Jamie *just* a bit. :)
The upstairs bath was beautifully restored, with plenty of attention given to all of the details.
This shower is slightly sunken from the main floor of the bathroom, doesn't it look luxurious? Or maybe just functional... with 4 boys in the house those double shower heads would come in handy!
There's even a chicken coop! One young visitor checked the coop while I was there and sure enough, he found an egg!
Nick and Jamie salvaged reclaimed barn beams and built this open air structure on the lawn to serve as a stunning outdoor pavilion. There had just been a wedding there that morning, so Jamie was worried about it not looking perfect but it was still absolutely gorgeous.
These wood swing seats flank the ends of the barn, and there are white lights strung throughout the trees to provide the perfect atmosphere.
If you saw my Thanksgiving table earlier this week, this is where I purchased those darling little chalkboard place cards. And, good news! Even if you aren't close enough to shop in person, Restore House offers an online shopping selection of some of their popular products.
If you happen to be close enough to visit, and have kids or grandkids, I wanted to let you know about a cute event that Restore House will be holding in December... Santa's Workshop on the Lawn. This event will include donuts, cider, hot chocolate, crafts with Santa's elves, photos, and lots of family fun! Click here for all the details and to reserve your spot (hurry, spots will go fast!).
While in town, don't miss a trip down the street to the darling downtown area, named the Rose District. Main Street is lined with charming shops and restaurants, perfect for a stroll with friends or family.
We ate at Andolini's Pizza and highly recommend it, but a friend who is local and visits Main Street often said that all of the restaurants are good.
The shops and restaurants are just a few blocks north of Restore House, and a few blocks south was the vintage antique mall called Jade Treasures where I found these guys and several other goodies. In fact, there were a few things I left there that now I'm regretting!
I hope you all enjoyed the tour today, I'd love to know if you ever make a visit to Broken Arrow!
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This post is just so much fun! I love the house and the store finds look fabulous. The town looks so cute and a great place to visit. The store actually reminds me of a gift shop here that is in a former Victorian home too.
ReplyDeleteWhat a brilliant little store, it's so awesome!!
ReplyDeleteI've lived in Broken Arrow for 58 years! Imagine my surprise when it showed up on one of my favorite blogs.... Main Street has changed so much in the past 2 or 3 years. You should come back between Thanksgiving and Christmas when a trolley or carriage ride around town is offered on the weekends.... It's hard to believe this is the same street we used to drag when I was in high school. We'd turn around at the railroad tracks and head toward Tastee Freez, which was a few doors down from what is now Rib Crib. We'd turn around in that parking lot and head back down Main. Good times....
ReplyDelete