'tique of the week
Mill House Antiques: unique antiques in 1840s setting
BY TONY SENK
Correspondent

Gary Weller, interior designer at Mill House Antiques, with a 19th century French secretary, a focal point at the antiques shop on Willow Drive in Little Silver.

What better place could there be to house a wealth of antiques than in a building that is itself an antique?

Mill House Antiques is such a place, and with its elaborate fountains, koi fish pond, stone lions, bronze horses and flower pots of all shapes and sizes adorning the front and back, the shop looks more like the outside of a Rumson estate than an antique shop.

But, an antique shop it is and, for nearly 50 years, antique buffs in the area have been seeking out unique antiques at the little red house with the light green window trim that sits at the end of the driveway at 32 Willow Drive.

Before the building became an antique shop, it had an interesting history of its own. It served as home of the Little Silver Print Shop, better known as the Shampanore Press, a prominent family-run business in the 1840s.

Mill House Antiques owner John Gormley and interior designer Gary Weller maintain a wide variety of antiques and newer reproductions in the 2,000-square-foot shop.

One of the antiques that John and Gary feel is particularly unique is a French secretary dating to the late 19th century. It's a special piece for a number of reasons.

The secretary features walnut hand inlay and bronze detailing, which help make it a most striking piece. Standing 57 inches high and 30 inches wide, it is also somewhat imposing. And, when compared to other late 19th century secretaries that he has seen in his many years of antiquing. Gary says it's definitely one of a kind.

John and Gary bought the piece at an estate sale in Spring Lake about a year ago, and its selling price is about $3,000.

"It's a special piece," said Gary, of Freehold. "People ask about that secretary more than any other item in the shop. When John and I bought it, we figured that might be the reaction. It's all a matter of going with your instinct - often your initial instinct. If you like the look of something, you can reasonably assume that some, if not many, others will like it too. Considering the amount of attention that this piece gets in the shop, we're not the only ones who were impressed by how much time and labor, thought and creativity a talented individual put into this piece long ago."

According to Gary, about half the items at Mill House are antiques, and half are newer, handmade reproductions.

John has owned the shop for 15 years; before that, the shop had another owner for about 35 to 40 years.

Through the years, many folks have made Mill House a must-stop on their antiquing trips.

"Many of our regular customers have been buying things from John for 20 years," said Gary. "Our regular customers come in here once or twice a month just to see what's new, because we do have a frequent turnover of items. There are a lot of antiques addicts out there."

On any given day, those antiques addicts are likely to find at Mill House Antiques items such as furniture, china, accessories, old and new lighting fixtures - and lots and lots of clocks!

"It seems like, over time, unique clocks have become our niche," said Gary. "People come in here looking for unusual clocks, and we don't disappoint them. We have grandfather clocks in every size and shape and age."

Gary said that he and John get many of the items at the shop at estate sales and he offers this piece of advice for seekers of antiques.

"If you see something that you like, buy it right away," he said, "especially if it's a particularly unique or a one-of-a-kind item. That's what we do. If you put the purchase off for a few days and then come back to buy the piece, it might be gone by then. If it's a unique item, you're probably out of luck."

Mill House Antiques is open Tuesday to Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.