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Hello, and welcome to this brand new blog, which I believe brings the total number of blogs to over 250 gazillion. This one is dedicated to all things connected to making a home (and a garden, if the mood strikes me) in the Hudson Valley. It’s also a forum for readers — that’s you — to ask questions about any design or décor problem (or about gardening, if you like), and I’ll ferret out an answer from a local expert. Fire away!
I’ll also report news about local craftsmen, reliable repairmen, home-related services, or shops specializing in home décor that I discover as I roam around the Hudson Valley. I’ll get that part underway immediately with a mention of HiHo, a store in Gardiner, Ulster County, that I recently discovered, although it turns out to have been there for five years. (Which may put a dent in my credentials regarding “news,” now that I think about it. Make that “news to me.” And perhaps it’ll be news to you as well.)
HiHo (officially HiHo Home Market and Antiques Center) is in the 19th-century building on Gardiner’s Main Street that was an antiques shop for years. These days, it’s a wonderful mix of old and new home accessories, with a few surprises thrown in. A dozen or so rooms, whose theme names all begin with “H,” are packed with furniture, quilts, linens, lamps, tableware (including, on the day I visited, a set of pretty green and white, circa-1950s dishes), kitchenware, paintings, books, jewelry, trinkets, tchotchkes, doodads — and even things for dogs. There are lovely silk flower arrangements, a space devoted to stuff that smells nice (like scented candles and bath supplies), and another with cribs and toys and supplies for babies and tots. If you can’t get enough of Christmas, you’ll love the back room upstairs, a permanent shrine to Santa, where all things tinselly and sparkly include some lovely glass ornaments from the 1940s.
All is presided over by Heidi Haddard, whose Yorkie, Humphrey, may yip a hello. At least, I think that’s what he’s yipping, and anyway, he’s not much bigger than a hamster.
HiHo is a fun place to poke around in, and prices are really reasonable. To get a sense of the store, go to www.hihohome.com and click on the YouTube link; choose the bottom of the four options to see how Heidi and Co. switch the displays to suit the season.
