MARCH 20, 2013
Cave Creek cornering the market on Western furnishing
Cave Creek, a tourist destination that typically bulges at the seams with weekend shoppers, diners and sightseers, is becoming a magnet for those with an eye for Western home furnishings and accessories. Unique establishments including Out West Quality Upholstery & Interiors, Blue Coyote Gallery, Valerie’s Furniture & Accents, Big Bronco and Turn West Design are the just some of the reasons the town of Cave Creek is cornering the Valley’s Western furnishings market.
The furniture in the Out West Quality Upholstery & Interiors showroom ranges from Spanish to Western design with a special selection of Arizona styles. All furniture is handmade by local craftsmen. Their quality custom window treatments and upholstery work, all done in their workshop, display their flair for the Arizona Hacienda. Owner Beverly Sexton shares her 25 years of experience during your free interior design consultation – and you are encouraged to choose lighting, fabrics, mirrors, etc. to ensure your hacienda is uniquely you.
Although we think of the Blue Coyote Gallery as a premier art gallery, owner Gary Fillmore is pleased to offer hand crafted, built to order western and southwestern furniture featuring the "rustic elegance" style of Dalton Owens. Owens’ work has evolved into a distinctively recognizable and flavorful line of furniture – mixing Southwestern, Cowboy and Spanish influences. He also mixes different types of wood, stains and materials effectively with curves, cuts and accents to produce high quality furniture for every room in your home.
Faith Weinberg, owner of Big Bronco, feels “Cave Creek has a vintage Western flavor. There are a lot of tourists here and a lot of winter residents with beautiful homes. Our furnishings have found a place in many of those homes.” Faith’s Big Bronco also serves the tourist trade some of the area’s most unusual accessories and gifts.
Cave Creek’s preeminence as an Arizona Western Furnishing hot spot is underscored by the election of one of the town’s merchants, Valerie Waters, to president of the Western Home Furnishings Association (WFHA). Valerie, owner of Valerie’s Furniture & Accents and winner of numerous local and national best-of awards, relocated her store from Scottsdale to Cave Creek in 2002. Customers find classic Western, desert territorial, authentic lodge and reclaimed rustic furniture and accessories. Many items are one-of-a-kind and most are made in America.
Turn West Design is the exclusive showroom in the area for top quality furniture brands including Hancock & Moore, Taylor King, The Jason Scott Collection, and others. They offer an eclectic mix of furniture, sophisticated Southwestern furnishings, home decor and a wide range of Western and Southwestern art represented in an in-home setting. Their Interior Designers, led by owner Denise Turner, are available for in-home visits to help you design the right look for your home.
Cave Creek is also home to a unique furniture store that you might say really rocks. Rare Earth Gallery, owned by Wayne Helfand, turns rocks huge and small in to one-of-a-kind dining and coffee tables, among other things. Wayne’s designers utilize amethyst geodes and other types of quartz crystals to fashion furniture and decorative accessories into what he describes as “Art of the Earth.”
El Toro Loco offers those seeking something special to complement their Western choices a great selection of Mexican made home furnishings and decor. They do custom work and their neighboring store specializes in metal art. Be sure and ask to see what's in the warehouse if you don't find what you want in the main store. Delivery is a breeze and very reasonable.
Those looking to add a little spice to their Western decors will likely find it at Mexican Rose. The store is run by Ted and Carmen Duke and offers a wide selection of stylish made-in-Mexico furniture designed to complement Western and Spanish-colonial decors.
The Town Dump, owned by Madelyn Hines, is an indoor/outdoor mini-mall over-flowing with Mexican and Southwestern items that once you buy, you’ll probably never throw away.
The town of Cave Creek is now home to what is probably Arizona’s most concentrated collection of Western style furniture stores. Cave Creek is a place that will hold your interest through hours of treasure hunting, a place where you will find more things that you can’t live without than you ever imagined.