Abel & Lovely Shop and Gallery to Open in June
by Nancy Wood,
May 20, 2010, page 16.....

Kristin Baker and Melissa O’Brien are creating a unique business that reflects their shared love of the creative and their desire to provide a community space. The former Bazou store at the intersection of Church Hill and Hinesburg Roads will soon be the home of Abel & Lovely, their vision of a “general store,” that, Baker says, will be “theatrical, fun, creative retail.” O’Brien describes it as a shop and “gallery, first and foremost” that will provide an outlet for local artists and craftspeople. Featured will be an ever-changing mix of art, photography, vintage collections, home goods, furniture, textiles, letter press paper, “lovely soap,” chocolate sauce (!), and their own branded products such as T-shirts and mugs.

Abel & Lovely will also be a comfortable “place to bring people together,” said O’Brien. They will encourage people to stop and chat, share a cup of coffee, and occasionally enjoy the “world’s most amazing croissants” from a soon-to-be-opened bakery in Vergennes.

Brothers Abel and Noble Lovely were postmasters in the Charlotte Post Office located in the same building in the early 1800s. Then the bustling center of town, the post office was strategically located on the main north-south road to Burlington. The attached building was a general store. The post office was closed in 1875, according to one source, when new offices were opened in East and West Charlotte. In the mid-1900s the building was Harte’s General Store, with the family living next door. Mrs. Harte was a 6th-grade teacher at Charlotte Central School for many years. More recently it was Bazou, operated by Michael Krasnow who closed it this winter.

O’Brien and Baker are neighbors on Whalley Road. Melissa has lived here for ten years, and Kristin for almost four. When searching for a home in the area, unimpressed by “puddles and mud and cluster flies,” Kristin spotted Melissa and her family out for a walk and was drawn to the scene. They soon discovered that their husbands had gone to the same school, and that their families were similar, each with two boys and a girl. The sun came out, the Bakers learned that the nearby saltbox home was for sale, and they bought it immediately.

The idea for Abel & Lovely was born when they saw that Bazou was being closed, and they realized what a great spot it would be to create something special. Melissa said, “Lots of women in their early 40s are looking for a channel for their creativity.”

Neither woman has specific retail experience, but both love scouting for unusual things and have creative inclinations. “We have artists right in our backyard,” Kristin said, that they will provide an outlet for. For example, they will feature furniture made by Dustin Glasscoe of Vermont Farm Table, who also lives on Whalley Road.

The Grand Opening of Able & Lovely is scheduled for Saturday, June 5, and the plan is to be open Wednesdays through Sundays. A website is being developed, and a variety of creative workshops, such as in flower design and photography, are being planned for adults and children.