Green Country As Eclectic As Its Partners
You don’t typically think of a furnishing and gift shop as a place to hang out and have coffee, but then again any attempt to pigeonhole Green County Gifts into a particular category takes away from the sheer pleasure of discovery. The shop, which is actually two shops—and that’s part of the story—is really the collective figments of imaginations of Samantha Pigot and artist Lisa O’Harrow-Ray, owner of Sunflower Seed Exchange Co. (which shares the space).
It began as a simple way for two creative friends to help Berryville homeowners spruce up for Christmas year. The business has grown and sells everything from antiques, painted furniture and funky costume jewelry. In the shop you will find the upcycled and repurposed objects the two find at auctions, estate sales, and beyond. You will also find handcrafted items from local artisans, many of those also repurposed—like colorful painted horseshoes-turned-coat racks.
A year after opening the shop at 24 West Main Street in Berryville, the enclave known as the Green Country is filled to the brim with goodies, good cheer—and the smell of coffee. And the two collaborators sharing this space could not be happier with the response they’ve received from their Clarke County neighbors.
“When I first met Sam I knew I had met a kindred soul sister.” says Lisa O’Harrow-Ray “Sam encompasses the spirit, the excitement and creativity of a true artist not to mention a warmth which draws one immediately to her. Sharing this space with her has been the thrill of my life. It seems we also have the best customers in the world.”
The women are constantly adding new hand painted and decoupage pieces of furniture every week as well as “upcycled” treasures found on their hunt for the unusual. “I have a hard time leaving the dump,” Pigot says with a laugh.
“We’re trying to add our mark of creativity to Main Street in Berryville while keeping with my original goal of offering sturdy pieces of often discarded furniture and breathing new life and purpose into them with paint, a little elbow grease and loads of imagination,” says Pigot.
The two also host a Wine and Whimsy Friday one evening each month, featuring hand selected wines and wonderful appetizers plus a storewide sale. The events are free—and they are popular. Just stop in between 5–9pm and see for yourself.
Green Country is open Wednesday through Friday 10am–5pm and Saturdays 10am–3pm, and on off days when the sunflower flag is flying out front.
