Sara Stadem | Editor
Amber McMillen and her mom, Brenda Amundson, have spent the past several years getting ready to open a shop filled with refurbished pieces of furniture. This dream finally came true for Amber and Brenda last Saturday, November 28.
McMillen, wife and mother of four, is originally from Colton and most of her family still lives in area so it only seemed right to open the shop in Colton, McMillen explained.
The shop, Dust to Dawn, is located at 308 S Main Street in Colton, which also happens to be her grandpa’s old gas station that was called Howie’s.
McMillen explained the gas station was in their family from 1950 until her grandma had to sell it in 2010. “She had to sell it (Howie’s) because it was just too much for my grandma after my grandpa passed away. Nobody in the family got it.”
However, over a year ago, the station caught on fire which gave McMillen’s family the opportunity to buy it back. Cole Amundson, McMillen’s brother, rebuilt the building after the fire and McMillen and her mom wanted to make sure the building got used.
McMillen explained the building was always a part of her grandpa but she also wanted to incorporate her grandma so the name Dust to Dawn was created for several reasons. “We came up with the name Dust to Dawn because we turn old pieces into new, beautiful pieces again and wanted to incorporate my grandma because she’s such a beautiful person,” McMillen said. “She passed away a few years ago and we wanted to bring her name into it which is Dawn.”
McMillen explained that her and her mom have a passion for redoing pieces and looking for the next treasure to redo. “Pieces are received in many ways. We go antique hunting all over, we go to auctions, I’ve been to thrift shops, antique stores and sometimes people will donate as they just don’t want it in their house anymore,” McMillen explained. “They don’t have the time and they were just going to throw it in the dump so I always say check with us first, we might want it.”
As of right now, McMillen is positive as to what the hours will be for Dawn to Dust. “We are doing more of a pop-up shoppe right now,” she said. “Ideally we want to be open two times a month but it will depend on inventory. So, we are trying to figure out if it all out still.”
McMillen clarified not to let their hours of operation deter you away. “If they are looking for a certain piece and I’m able to run down there (to the shop), I’m not opposed to that.” She continued, “If someone sees something and they weren’t able to make it when we were open, I would run down there and let them look around. I’m two blocks away. We want to help others look for things that they want.”
They also have future plans to be open more often, according to McMillen. They are looking to have an art class in the shop. Amundson is an artist, McMillen explained, so eventually they want to have people come in and have her mom teach customers to paint. There will also be times that Dust to Dawn will bring in other vendors in the shop to sell their stuff.
In the meantime, if someone has a piece of furniture that they want redone, McMillen said not to hesitate to contact her. She explained many people want to keep their furniture but don’t want to redo it themselves or don’t know how to do it which is where McMillen and Amundson can help. “If someone has something they want refurbished, they can send me a picture. I can tell you by a picture about how long it will take us and how much it would cost for us to redo something for you.”
Dust to Dawn can be reached through their Facebook page (Dust to Dawn) which also indicates McMillen’s phone number. McMillen will be posting their hours on their Facebook page for the time being.
When asked what she thought of the turn out on Saturday, McMillen said, “It was mind blowing! I wish we would have had a book for everyone to sign. We had people from all over and people have messaged me saying that they can’t wait for the doors to open again.” She continued, “It’s such a passion of mine so seeing others this excited, especially during the pandemic, is really cool. I was already out hunting on Sunday for more pieces after the shop closed.”
Dust to Dawn will be open again on December 12 from 10 am-4 pm.