7 Fun Places to Find Antiques
One of the gifts of planning your getaway to Saugatuck, Michigan, is that time here seems to stand still. Or, at least, it slows way down. A stay at the Wickwood Inn is a part of that mellow, sunsets-and-sandals mindset. It’s in this frame of mind that we enjoy setting out on a treasure hunt in some of Saugatuck’s celebrated antique shops.
Start your antiques tour by simply strolling a block to Swell Times, a colorful store awash in sixties, seventies, and eighties memorabilia—sort of like a retro movie museum. From there it’s a short walk to Country Store Antiques, the longest family-run business downtown. It’s an old-school store, the kind of place with forgotten records, an eclectic book collection, and a surprising number of Zippo lighters. A great place for kitschy Americana.
In Fennville, you’d be wise to check out Anderson’s School House Gallery, in a ramshackle old barn that’s impossible to miss off of M-89. An eclectic selection of books, furniture, and art, Anderson’s has the added bonus of being just down the road from Crane Orchards & Winery, Fenn Valley Winery, and Virtue Farms Cider.
Also in Fennville, don’t miss Willow Bend Antiques & Garden Art. With seven barns full of furniture, restaurant ware, garden art and gifts, this is a great place to explore. Next up, visit Bird Cage Antiques, a local favorite where you might find a deer head trophy mount or a diamond in the rough amongst the vintage jewelry.
"An antique is anything old with class."
Continue down the Blue Star to Sunset Junque, a “one-acre wonderland” of decorative ironware, statuary and sculpture, vintage musical instruments, record albums, books, vintage postcards, and architecture salvage like stained glass and tin ceiling tiles. It’s always mind-boggling to imagine how each item found its way to the funky spot.
And returning toward Saugatuck on the Blue Star, you don’t want to skip the Saugatuck Antique Pavilion. With over 24,000 square feet of indoor antiques, this is one of the best antique shopping experiences in the country. Wide aisles, well-organized stalls, and a friendly staff who is always ready to help. And no day spent browsing at the Saugatuck Antique Pavilion is complete without shuffling next door for a burger and a Backyard IPA at the Saugatuck Brewing Company.
