Ashley Fahey
The Mill at Gibsonville specializes in unique pieces of art and furniture that reflect the small town’s culture. Photo by Merissa Blitz.
Starting up The Mill was a way to preserve the traditions of family and of Gibsonville’s local culture for owner Chris Smith.
The Mill at Gibsonville specializes in home furnishings, accessories, creatively designed pieces, antiques and consignment furniture. It is located in the former Liberty Hosiery Mills building on Eugene Street, which opened in 1890 as the Gem Cotton Mill. The historical nature of the building is a large part of the original conception for the store.
“It is a family-owned mill,” said Smith, the owner of the store. “I think people like the venue and coming back to their roots.”
The historic mill has been in the family of her husband, Jim Smith, for generations and was the perfect place to open the store. One of the biggest objectives for the store is to breathe life into the history and culture of Gibsonville, according to Smith.
“Gibsonville is a very vibrant community,” Smith said. “There is a lot of history and I have a lot of passion for the historical mill. I didn’t want it to get sold. I wanted to do something with it.”
Smith started The Mill to share her passion with the local community and to illustrate the charm of Gibsonville through the dynamic artwork showcased.
The upcycled pieces at The Mill are not likely to be found anywhere else. Photo by Merissa Blitz.
She brought together a team of talented individuals, both locally and from out of town, to create a lively showroom filled with one-of-a-kind pieces of art and furniture.
“We started the showroom first, which is a collection of recycled pieces and faux finish pieces that we recycle,” Smith said. “As we grew, we found several local people that had artistic backgrounds.”
One of the concepts behind the work showcased at The Mill is called upcycling, a process that produces original works from unexpected objects.
“You take something that’s not intended for that purpose and you make it into something else,” said Geoff Sutton, one of the artists featured in the store. “Parts you wouldn’t think have any other purpose are sold as art.”
Some of the upcycled pieces in The Mill include guitars made out of cigar cases and walking canes made from tobacco sticks. Additionally, Sutton said many of the pieces had a faux finishing.
“If you faux finish something, you have to sand it down and know the pattern,” Sutton said. “People like it because there’s no two pieces alike and everything’s going to be different.”
The Mill is made up of art and furniture that have been the artists’ creations from start to finish.
“We do everything: custom woodwork, painting, refinishing furniture and so on,” said Brad Brown, another artist featured at the store. “Our most popular items are benches, the canes and dolly carts.”
An artist featured at The Mill makes guitars from cigar cases, one of the store’s most popular items. Photo by Merissa Blitz.
Although The Mill opened in June 2010, it has already seen success in the small town. It is the only store of its kind in the area, according to Sutton.
“I think it’s the only place in the area that has the quality of artwork that works for what we make,” Sutton said. “We’re still getting out there. It’s not completely popular yet, but that takes time.”
The next step for The Mill is to refurbish the back portion of the store, Smith said, who has a distinctive vision.
“We want that to be an industrial process, where we want to make a shabby chic college venue,” Smith said. “We’re calling it ‘The Rose Collection.’ I picked that because Gibsonville is the town of roses.”
Smith is looking to get more visitors into the store in addition to smaller projects, such as updating their website. But the biggest goal for Smith is to bring the charm of Gibsonville culture alive through art.
“It’s just like recycling part of the South,” Smith said. “There is so much to be said for this little town.”
Ashley Fahey's Reporting Blog 