This is the third of several articles over the next few weeks profiling Middletown businesses, including how they are faring in the aftermath of the devastating Valley Fire last September.
MIDDLETOWN >> It’s name seems to imply it’s a flop house for cowboys but the Bunk House is a Lake County-strong boutique that offers a unique shopping experience for both locals and tourists.
The Middletown shop has long-been a staple of the community for at least 20 years, with several different owners, including current proprietor Peggy Clevenger, who has steered the shop for five years.
Clevenger had been a fan and customer of the Bunk House long before she bought it.
“I always loved the Bunk House because of Christmastime,” she said, when the store would go all-out with decorations and specialty holiday gifts. “I’ve kept their tradition of having ten to twelve Christmas trees in the shop.”
She decorates up a storm for the “big” holidays of Easter, Independence Day, Halloween and Christmas and carries themed items for each holiday, including a large selection of Christmas ornaments during the fall and winter.
But viewing the decorated and lighted shop at Christmastime as a customer is quite different than the view as its owner.
“There’s a lot of works involved that I didn’t know about at the time,” she said. “It takes a lot of effort to put the lights on and then decorate each tree differently.”
As with much of retail, Christmas and the surrounding holidays is the biggest time of the year for the boutique.
Like many other local retailers, Clevenger is keenly aware that its important for the store to carry items at a wide price range, with emphasis on affordable gifts, especially item under $25.
“We try to have something priced for everyone,” she added.
The Bunk House is a collection of small rooms that give the store lots of corners and small walls, all the better for displaying merchandise.
Fitting for Lake County, there is a wine area where vino-related items, such as coasters, cocktail napkins, corkscrews, tote bags and wine art. A favorite of customers is hand-painted wine glasses along with the, “Lake County Wine Guide.”
The store also has a “Country Corner” with western-themed gift items such as artwork of farm animals, and a Garden Room that includes such items as wind chimes, garden art, pottery planters and ceramic watering “cans.”
Customers will also find an assortment of rabbit-themed items throughout the store, from ceramic figurines and paintings to embroidery bunnies on small pillows and stuffed toys.
“I like rabbits,” Clevenger said. “I have rabbits in my garden. A lot of people like rabbits.”
And in nearly every corner and each wall are signs, for the kitchen, bathroom, garden and man cave. Sign sayings include, “We’ll always be friends because you know too much” and “All you need is love…and a cat.”
Other items in the shop include hand lotions, shower gel, tea, jewelry, greeting cards, pottery made in Calistoga, baby clothing and as Clevenger said, “Lots of odds and ends. I try to carry a lot of unusual items, even one-of-a-kind things.”
Unique items include Birthday Candles based on the birth month that, when burned, reveal a secret piece of birthstone jewelry; handmade bars of soap by several companies, including a Fisherman’s Bar made with Colombian coffee that removes the smell of fish; and socks that are made from the scraps of material left over from making t-shirts and the remnants of the sock material is used to make rugs.
Clevenger said she “works constantly” on looking for sellers whose products are mode locally, regionally and in the U.S.A.
“It’s important because it helps our county and country,” she said, “It helps keep people working and I think that’s a big deal.”
Customer Shannon K. of Pleasanton wrote in a 2014 review on the social media review site, Yelp, “I really appreciate that Peggy carries quality items and not junky things. It appears that she puts a lot of thought into her buying of various goodies. There is something for everyone’s taste! Local craftspeople and artisans have many products in her boutique, which I love!”
Another customer, Meg J. of Cobb, wrote in a May review on Yelp, “This is the perfect little shop if you want to get something that’s high in quality. So many local and very cute items throughout the store.”
The Bunk House, like many local area businesses, has been adversely impacted by last September’s Valley Fire.
“Since the fire, I’d say we’ve lost 40 percent of our clientele,” Clevenger said. “A lot of them had summer homes in the Middletown-Cobb areas that are now gone.”
She also cited the fire loss of the Harbin Hot Springs resort, which she said was an “unbelievably big draw” for tourists.
“Since the fires, we’re starting to get more local customers, some of them returning every month or so,” Clevenger said.
Clevenger lost her Cobb house to the fire and is currently living in Lower Lake. But more than that, Clevenger, an artist in her own right, lost all of her own arts and crafts supplies in the deadly inferno, supplies that have been too costly to replace.
Despite her loss, the store owner has moved forward, putting more effort into attracting locals to her boutique, especially from the main burn areas of Cobb, Middletown and Hidden Valley Lake.
Clevenger said she has been interested in small and unique local shops since she was a child.
“Ever since I can remember, I went to boutiques with my mom and I always thought that it was a special experience,” she said. “Opening my own shop is something I’ve always wanted to do.”
The Bunk House is at 21108 Calistoga St. (Hwy. 29) in Middletown, (707) 987-0715. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.
