Sandy Gulch Furniture Co.

Just discovered this place after looking all over town for bedroom furniture. Found a quality solid wood dresser & bookshelf for very reasonable prices. The shop has a lot of interesting vintage furniture. Very mellow, peaceful place– no sales pressure.
The owner Steve was a really nice guy and handled delivery for me, which was a huge help. FYI, it’s cash or check only.
If you want to sell something on consignment, he only asks for 35%.

Oh, how I love this store.
I’m not an antique guy by nature. But good grief, everytime I go in here I end up walking out with something I absolutley adore. Fact.
Take, for example, the exact same model rocking chair that I was rocked in as a kid. The MIssissippi took that chair away in the great flood, but damned if I didnt find the exact same one at Steves’ shop. And $ 50? Icing on the cake, my man. He’s a good kid, that Steve, and a Cardinals baseball fan to boot.
Here’s another example. Just yesterday I picked up a table and chair set that had been used as a potting table. I repurposed it as a kitchen table, all said and done for $ 125. Soild oak, mind you. Its been repainted, but the patina is all worn away and looks really cool. I would have dropped at least twice as much in good ol SF.
If you havent been, go! He works mostly on consignment these days, but still has great stuff.

I don’t normally review furniture stores but this is an exception.
Stormy has been wanting a Schkaff for about a gazillion years. For the uninitiated, a Schkaff is the Russian word for a wardrobe/​armoire and I like to use it because I just think it sounds cooler. Stormy, who won’t admit this, is a clothes horse. She has consumed all available closet space in the house and needed/​wanted more. So we’ve been looking.
For the record, I got the bug for going to antiquey furniture stores when I was a child. My Nana, would drag the kids along on what she called «Junking». I grew to love this activity and its where I developed my penchant for antique furniture and collecting antique Carnival Glass dishware. So I love the little hole in the wall shop.
Sandy Gulch is just such a place. It is, however, a cut above your average «Junking» store. The quality and value here is excellent. We’ve gotten a number of pieces here that include our fly-​leaf oak dining table and now a full sized Schkaff.
That’s what I got Stormy for her birthday. A full sized, English quarter sawn Oak schkaff with a full mirror and a bottom drawer for under $ 400. It was, by no means, the biggest value in the shop.
The place is a little out of the way. You must seek it out. You will be rewarded for your efforts if for no other reason than to take a little time travel to a place where furniture didn’t include press board and photo printed wood grain laminate and cheesy hardware.
Check it out.

This is a hidden jewel in Chico! They have the best prices on good, well made unusual furniture I’ve ever seen. He doesn’t carry Victorian type antique furniture or plates or small junk (dust collectors). I’ve seen everything from Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Mission style to 40’s and 50’s type kitsch. Chairs, tables, desks, bureaus and armoires. Mostly solid wood, oak, mahogany, etc. Ton’s of furniture (can be kind of cramped!) And the selection changes all the time. Owner Steve is a great guy who is willing to negotiate on some things. (He certainly isn’t getting rich with these prices)
They are only open on Saturdays and Sundays and you’ll miss it if you’re not looking closely (Located in back and to the left of Big Al’s diner off the Esplanade). Looks very unassuming from the outside but when you walk in it’s like going back in time with old 30’s radio shows playing on the ancient radio inside and a fatherly photo of FDR smiling down on you. Worth a visit!