The Quilted Bear Antique and Craft Mall had barely opened last week when I dropped by. In fact, it quietly opened its doors on Aug. 1 but doesn't start business officially until Friday, Aug. 14.
The antique and craft mall, reported to be largest in the West, is located inside the old Lionel Playworld in Midvale. According to the proprietors, there are only nine other craft malls of this size in the country.Inside this spacious building (35,000 square feet) are a general store, three specialty shops, 350 craft booths, an antique section and a restaurant. It has been built to attract clientele who enjoy quality home-made crafts, decorations and gifts.
Most of the merchandise on display has been handmade by local artisans who work at home or in small shops. The crafts people lease the booths and are free to decorate them any way they wish. They're not required to man the booths, since all sales are made at a central checkout at the front of the store.
Lovers of arts and crafts will be fascinated by the variety of items sold here. There are ceramics, florals, soft sculpture, quilts, dolls, clothing - and much more. You don't have to look very long to find something that appeals to you.
Margaret Laver, one of the artisans renting space, took me on a tour of the craft booths. She pointed out antique dried floral arrangements by Lynn Gerth and Becky Christensen, tole painting by Teri Pence, starched crochet items by Kathy Nakoishi, stenciled T-shirts and night shirts by Barbara Ann Parr and animal wreaths and Halloween plaques by Teresa Meads.
Also rubber stamps with decorative designs by Julie Woolley; handcrafted pine furniture by March Orlob and golden oak shelves, coat hangers, memo holders and other wood items by Alan and Wendy Spidell of Idaho.
She showed me her booth filled with ceramic animal dolls. She explained how she makes them: sculpting heads out of clay, firing them, painting them and dressing them in colorful fabrics and fancy lace.
Laver then introduced me to the Dunfords, proprietors of the store. They said they got the idea of opening a crafts mall in Utah after watching the Home Show when a craft mall in Mesquite, Texas, was spotlighted. It whetted their interest to the point that they even traveled to Texas to see it.
They were extremely impressed with the facility and felt strongly that a similar mall would be ideal in Utah.
"After all, Utah is known all over the country for its arty-crafty people who produce quality work," Judy said. "We feel certain that this new crafts mall will not only attract Utahns but tourists as well."
She said the mall would house three specialty stores - the Bear House, featuring items of every size and description; the Holiday House, where items for Christmas and other holidays will be available year-round; and the Doll House, filled with dolls of all types, sizes and personalities.
The mall also features an antique section filled with quality items from local antique shops. And a restaurant, the Chickery, will feature salads, sandwiches, breads, hot rolls, "bodacious cookies" and other selections.
Although the Dunfords were under extreme pressure to get everything ready for the grand opening, they appeared to be weathering it well. "We're getting everything fine-tuned," Carlos said. "Once everything is functioning, a lot of the pressure will be off us."
On Aug. 4, 75 percent of the crafts booths had been leased. But the Dunfords expect that the remainder of them will be leased before the store officially opens Friday.
A word of advice: When you pay a visit to this antique and craft mall, be sure to take along your purse, wallet and/or checkbook. Once you're inside and you gaze at the hundreds of delightful crafts, you'll want to make a purchase of two before you leave. At least, I did.
The Quilted Bear is located at 145 W. 7200 South, Midvale (566-5454). Hours for the mall as well as the restaurant are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday. Grand opening festivities begin at 10 a.m. on Friday.