Hawthorne’s Antique Haven
Along anyone’s travels, quirky little thrift stores can heighten the curiosity of every collector or junking browser who dares to drive down a small-town main street. Such is the case at 585 E Street in Hawthorne’s downtown strip.
The window dressing alone sways tourists to stop by Patricia’s Estate Sale Warehouse. With items of nostalgia brimming to the top of display cases, Patricia keeps a constant flow of changing merchandise, emerging from estate sales, trades or from local consigners.
“My repeat customers, traveling along highway 95 from the Reno to Las Vegas trek, will stop in for specific items. I even keep a list going for some of my customers that remain on the hunt. Locals may stop in for gifts or an item to repair, like buttons or old electronics to use as a parts piece. They may stop by to visit, but they always seem to buy something that’s new to my store. Every customer matters in my book, after 20 years in the retail estate business,” Patty expressed.
As a licensed appraiser, Patricia keeps her prices low — lower than the average marketplace, with the thought that “product moved is products sold.” Admittedly, her items seem to be quite a bargain hunt. Sublime items from the past never fail to recreate memories, and history comes alive, with a huge variety within her many aisles for exploration. Comments arise, such as “I had one of these as a kid.”
Coming to Hawthorne in 2005 from Las Vegas, Patricia enlarged her business three times, but always keeping it a treasure trove for the unusual or unique in thrift shop or antique shopping.
“My most unusual item sold here was an antique claw-footed tub, which ended up as a prop on the cover of True Cowboy magazine in issue number one, 2011. I get “prop-hunters” in here all the time. Lately, it is the mid-century modern items from the ’60s that seem to sell well.”
Area homes are still loaded with ’50s and ’60s era items, reflecting a high-time when there was local Army Ammunition Base expansion in Hawthorne. The estates Patricia handles still yield collectable kitchen pieces to furnishings that interest the younger generation of today.
Stop in to see cast iron skillets to sterling silver belt buckles or vintage buttons. Vintage restaurant ware to goblets or glassware are lined up in antique hutches. Collectable bottles dug from the mining hills surrounding Hawthorne can be seen in many colors and sizes. Furnishings come in all sizes and condition, as well as floor lamps to hanging lights that bring back the yesteryear.
One-of-a-kind postcards, created by local photographer Perry Rose, depict Nevada outhouses, as well as the Americana of historic Nevada. Don’t miss his holiday card collections, available at the Estate Warehouse in Hawthorne.
Hours are 8 to 4 p.m., closed Sundays. Call (775) 945-2333 to reach the store.
— Sheri Samson
