Some people have a fixation on the word “used” and won’t even come in her shop, said Nancy Van Vlerah, owner of Pandana’s in Geneva. They just stick their heads in the door and turn their noses up when they see she carries preowned furnishings and collectibles.
But they’re missing the boat by not taking a whirl through this elegant shop that displays finer quality furniture and accessories with a real artistic flair.
Nearly everything in the store is on consignment, received from people who are moving, changing their decor, or maybe even getting divorced.
“Unfortunately, some of my best stuff comes out of adversity,” said Van Vlerah, who used her childhood nickname for the name of the shop.
All the items are top quality, and she likes to get the unusual.
For instance, she lifts the inlaid top of a small Italian occasional table to reveal the sounds of a music box inside. Near that, gold-tasseled custom-made pillows top Eastlake chairs perched in front of a 1910 Oriental double-sided four-panel screen. A 1930s Venetian glass wall mirror reflects glittering carnival glass, hand-blown stemware and milk glass on a nearby shelf.
Van Vlerah carries all styles of furniture from contemporary to antique. “There are nice furnishings in all periods,” she said.
She consigns articles in one of four ways. For furniture, the commission is a 60-40 split (the customer gets the first percentage); for accessories and collectibles it is 50-50; for crafts and artwork 75-25; and for her referral book, which carries photographs of items too big or not suitable for the shop, the split is 90-10.
Prices in the store range from $1.50 for a small stuffed country accessory to $5,000 for original watercolors by local artist Ingrid Albrecht.
“I like to carry things that somebody else on your block won’t have,” she said.
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Pandana’s, 316 Campbell St., Geneva, is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday (Thursday until 7 p.m.) and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. Closed Monday. Consignments are taken by appointment on Tuesday and Thursday. 208-7612.
