Wandawega Blog Archive
)WELCOME. We opened our door this morning.WandawegaCampStore.com Please note (as we have been having folks show up at the camp gates) the shop is...
)WELCOME. We opened our door this morning.WandawegaCampStore.com Please note (as we have been having folks show up at the camp gates) the shop is only open virtually (but Annies old rathskeller – turned – stockroom is not open to the public).Love,Camp It takes a village. (Even for a little camp souvenir shop) Thanks @ahutchgram for your tireless commitment, @allisonschaffer for all your help and @bhwoodworks & Co. for the build out. Yall are godsends, and we are indebted
Tomorrow morning at the crack of dawn, well be opening these doors, virtually.This is the room that we built our new online camp store around; the old rathskeller is now being used as the pull pack & ship room for our online store. And our inventory storage room. And our private bar. Were carrying on a tradition that started back during prohibition, but we now pour ourselves lattes instead of bath tub gin.Theres still a trap door in the back room of the old saloon floor upstairs with a rickety staircase that leads down to this room. Patrons could sneak down here to play the nickel slots, poker and get a drink from Annie – the madame who also managed the working girls she set up in what is now the bunkhouse. In 1942, Annie was sent to prison for what she did in this room. .This space is pretty much the same as it was back then.We still dont dont have a store front.Or business hours.We dont have a bartender or a shopkeep.Walk-ins are still not welcome..But if you happen to be staying here in one of our cabins as a guest, knock twice. Most days were down here making old things new again. Well be happy to tell you the stories behind all of our products Visit WandawegaCampStore.com at 8am tomorrow morning.
2 DAYS & COUNTINGto the launch of our new (old school) camp store.Were told that opening a shop during a global pandemic is the worst possible timing. They may be right, and we are about to find out. (Anxious looming question in our heads: Does anyone really care about historically accurate stamped metal hand painted souvenir hiking stick medallions as much as we do?)They say follow your heart and do what you love. Our hearts are filled with vintage water decals, silkscreened felt flocked camp patches & retro rubber fridge magnets.So weve literally poured our hearts into this and filled it with throw back coin purses, vintage promo combs, and summer camp correspondence kits. Heres a sneak peek of some of the customs weve been working so hard on:Were opening with a small offering of 35 created-for-Camp products, and then every week through August & September, well be rolling out the other new goods that weve been obsessing over for the last year.Then we have some really nice things as well – Wandawega gear & goods that have been created in partnership with brands that have spent years honing their craft and refining their products like @ConwayElectric, @StockMfgCo, @faribaultmill, @fiestadinnerware @penguinrandomhouse , @MukLuks & more. We also have a vintage section filled with collections of our favorite camp antiques. And well have a way to share licensed products from the brands that make Wandawega products – so you can buy direct from the source. Some custom made to order like @UralMotorcycles and our talented friends at @sanborncanoe. And others off their shelves like @crateandkids.So, were hanging our virtual shingle Friday at 8am at wandawegacampstore.comWish us luck, well take all we can get.
The master Sign painter @ChesPerry of @rightwaysigns paid us a visit to christen the latest project with his brush. We found a box of new old stock brochures in the attic that featured our past names: Wandawega Lake Resort. So it got us thinking: every self respecting lakefront vaca spot back in the 20s-40s had a fleet of matching resort boats. (Even the little blue collar joints like us had at least one).Weve never been able to manage more than our hodgepodge collection until now. Meet our little Scoutmaster. Shes still very much a work in progress. We Found her in a Craigslist ad years ago. She was being sold by an old man who told us that he was sad to part with it but could no longer get it into the water on his own. It was his childhood family boat, hand built by his father who was a shipbuilder at one of the old, now defunct shipyards in Chicago. (Which explains why it has some features uncommon in a small metal rowboat, including hand cut wooden ribs and gunwales).Stripping layers of paint to reprime, repaint four coats, restripe. All of her woodwork trim is getting repaired or replaced, stained, custom painted oars, dead stock cup holders to bow lights, flag + fishing rod holders and Hand made rope fenders. And (our fav bit) both benches are getting new custom upholstered cushions using a bolt of original 1960s Mopar green plaid naugahyde that was an unused remnant roll from a shuttered factory. Scoutmaster is her new name. She will be wrapped up in the coming weeks, thanks to our newest staff member – @penticoff51 is our design asst coming from @SCADdotedu. Merritt is an industrial designer by background, and jack-of-all-trades everyday. From deck building, tent erecting, landscape designing, 3D rendering, hes been a great addition to the team this season (& is pictured here sanding for the 100th hour) Looking forward to putting her back in the water again for guests as our first official resort boat. .When you do a lap on the lake, think about the dad who hammered it together for his kids 80 yrs ago- he must have been good at his job, because she hasnt sunk yet. (Also, a bilge pump )
#ChallegeAccepted Thanks for tagging me in @skoogdunagan & @tanjababich (and for always being a constant source of wisdom, inspiration & wit)Loving seeing so many of our friends faces in our feed, and for such a good reason. #womensupportingwomen today and always
THE CAMP ADVENTURING IN NATURE BOOK & ART SET. (Aka: a rainy day distraction for campers of all ages)INCLUDES:> 12 colored pencils> Pencil Sharpener> Slider storage box> Wood RulerWell be giving these away to groups who get rained out ( and gifted with purchase of the camp art set.)This Rainy Day Activity book Is the result of a dozen years of collecting vintage outdoors-themed activity & coloring books.Its inspired by rainy days at summer camps – when you have nothing to do but puzzles, cards & board games.The games have been complied to be shared as celebration of US National Park Service, traditional Wisconsin local attractions & the history of America. Well be sharing these books for free, to educate and inspire. Each of the activities have been sourced from 1920s-50s childrens activity & coloring books (that weve had around camp & have been collecting for years).HERES WHATS INSIDE :(Zoom into the pics for a sneak peek of some of the pages)…Board gamesPaper doll dogsWisconsin mapColoring pages Flower Identification gamesMazesTongue twisterPuzzlesCrosswordMake A birdhouse kitLeaf projectTree climber quizBoat race gameDesign a cabinDecorate a cottageIdentify the bird species DIY puzzlesShield & arrow match gameName the hookColoring mystery gameConnect the dots gamesIdentify the shop signsLearn sign languageDot block gameDecorate the tipiTrapper box gameFinish the drawing gamesCattle marking ID gameIdentify insect gameMaze gamesIdentify the leaf gameFlowers & nations matching Decorate the objectsPaint the vases Pencil puzzle3-D cut out gameLearn wildflowersFinger puppet tutorialLessons from Smokey BearLetter game
THE THINGS WE KEEP. (Our camp shop sneak peek) we are obsessed with the old here. With the things that are past their prime & boast the wear that only a long life can earn. We honor people, places and things that show their age. Cause In this youth/new /trend obsessed culture, its a privilege to survive even a single season. None of our store offerings are particularly fancy. But all of them are precious in some way. > Antique books with notes scrawled in the margins 100 years ago. > A quiver of hand painted arrows that in the era of Roosevelt where used to shoot more than targets. > Wear-worn brass belt buckles of trout, stag & pheasant from the Hank generation > A poker set gifted 90-years ago. (Waiting to play their first game that would never come.)> Pocketknives of bone & wood – from a time when everyone carried one, everyday. So because we are overly nostalgic about giving old objects new life, weve been on a mission to hunt down the things that have layers. so we can tell their stories and then blow them back out into the world like dandelion seeds. Instagram has given us a greater breath support than we could have ever imagined – so itll be fun to see how far we can spread these (U.S. shipping)Were obsessed with vintage because its a little reminder to embrace age in every form (unless its your truck brakes).And practically speaking, If a pocketknife can still serve its intended purpose 4 gens later, then it deserves to still be used. More than likely, the original owners of these objects have long since passed on. Weve given their precious book/quiver/patch/game a home, and now theyre looking for their next new home.Our store launches Friday.And so were taking in a greatbig hopefulbreath.* Our initial launch offering will be with our own line of old school, custom souvenirs. But it wouldnt be camp if we didnt also include a section with our fav vintage gear & goods. We like to think that theres a little bit of residual good karma that every object absorbs from their former owners & the time they spend here on our mantles & in cabins.
You wake up to birdsong here is what our old 1930s brochure promised. When you stay in the pair of new Birch & Hickory goldenrod canvas tents you feel like you are nestled in the treetops. They are perched on a ridge on cantilevered platform decks.Ease out of bed in the morning to your own private adjoining hillside deck to take in the view, watch the sunrise with friends and enjoy campfire coffee. .We are getting better at doing it simple: each platform tent is open on both ends for a cross breeze through the zippered bug screen and comes equipped with just the basics:Roll out cot mattresses cooler to keep the critters out of your breakfast.a supply of vintage field & stream magazinespair of binoculars we are finishing off the interiors now with the soon-to-launch new @faribaultmill x Camp Wandawega blankets also equipping them with 1970s Coleman electric hurricane lanterns & coolersperiod hand knotted rugs for those card games on the floor. sheet sets & pillows are provided in your RACOON-proof footlocker For august, this pair is available to book as an add-on for guest group overflow for those booking our other Airbnb listings (but it might have its own listing later this summer). If all continues to go as planned, this ridge will be lined with a cluster of 4 tent cabins arranged in a circle across the kettle from each other (which already includes the nature watching stand for rainy day gatherings). Guests will be able to shout to their friends across the kettle, then join them for a beer at the base, around the campfire (or take dip in the hot tub that weve got our eyes and hearts set on next )
