ST. PETER — Carol Knutson’s first visit to Timeless was a pleasant surprise.
“I thought I was going to walk inside a thrift store,” she said.
Bryan and Cora Haugen’s new furniture revival business at 125 S. Minnesota Avenue opened about a month ago. Besides quality wood tables and cabinets, the couple sells original artwork, handcrafts, candles and vintage items.
“There’s all these beautiful things and I like the layout of the rooms,” said Knutson.
Displayed above bedroom and dining room sets are floral paintings coordinated with decor in muted tones.
“If you have an empty spot at home, you could find something here to decorate it,” said Knutson.
Most of the decor items were made by family members of the Haugens. Cora created most of the paintings at Timeless. Bryan made the artworks’ frames.
“I come from a family of artistic people and Bryan came from a family of artisans,” said Cora.
She’s a native of Correll; he grew up in Milan, Minnesota.
“My mom was always redecorating and she liked to refinish furniture.
She probably wouldn’t like that we paint furniture, but she would love that we have this store.”
Some of the wooden tables and chairs on display are white, just like a blank artist’s canvas.
That furniture color works well with a multitude of decorating ideas, Cora said.
Bringing out the beauty of natural wood hues is Bryan’s forte. He said, right now, 80-90% of his part in running the business is restoring furniture.
“We want to offer quality furniture that become family keepsakes; items that people hand down to their children,” Cora said.
The couple relies on auctions to find furniture treasures that need a bit of loving care.
“We’re both really good at hunting down quality items,” Cora said.
The Haugens have previously operated businesses out of state and in White Bear Lake and Waseca under the name That Old Blue Door.
A bricks-and-mortar approach has proved to have an advantage over running an online-only business.
“It’s the knick-knacks; people like to come in to a store when they shop for knick-knacks,” Bryan said.
He’s also found people who buy furniture take their time before making a decision about large objects that will be centerpieces in their homes.
“They usually come back to the store once or twice,” Bryan said.
Timeless’ historic downtown building has been the address of several types of businesses over the decades.
The Haugens haven torn out drywall to reveal their store’s original brick walls and installed chandeliers on its tin ceiling.
A lifelong resident of St. Peter, Knudson said she remembers when a laundromat operated in the structure.
“Before that, I think a plumber had it. I like the store the way it is now,” she said.
Store hours for Timeless are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Appointments may be made to stop in on Sunday by calling 507-380-5484.