MILLBROOK — When entering Millbrook from Route 44 onto Franklin Avenue, one may notice a bright red call box, a telephone booth reminiscent of mid-20th Century Britain.
There are two new businesses there, located at 3424 Franklin Ave., on the corner of Franklin and Route 44.
Creel and Gow
Park your car, and enjoy a leisurely walk into the pair of new Millbrook shops, starting with Creel and Gow.
There is a similar establishment in NYC; here in the village of Millbrook Creel and Gow has brought the same type of unique merchandise to Harlem Valley shoppers. Advertising items mineral, oceanic and natural — in jewelry, art, decor and “Art De La Table,” many items at Creel and Gow are unique and one of a kind.
Starting with the jewelry, the store features some remarkable pieces of LouLou De La Falaise, who studied for many years under Yves St. Laurent, as well as its own line of jewelry, Creel and Gow.
As advertised, the shop offers objects that have been collected from around the world by Jamie Creel and his team. Among the minerals shoppers will find coral, turquoise and some very rare gems, as well as silver, gold and pieces that are art as well as jewelry. There are bracelets, earrings, necklaces, pendants and rings — very unusual pieces in many glorious colored minerals and stones.
If taxidermy is what one desires, there is a collection of just about everything at Creel and Gow: birds large and small, animals with hooves and horns, so exquisitely done that they appear to be alive. They are placed among things delightful for any home: statues, jardinières, rugs, paintings and illustrations and all kinds of wall hangings. Many of the objects are fashioned after animals in the form of candle holders, napkin rings, statues and more.
There are also items for the dining room: dishes, platters, bowls, serving pieces — in china, metal, wood and stone.
Store manager Linda Hefner is very accommodating and can give the history of many of the items.
The space is large, open and one can take time to wander throughout to see it all. Much of the inventory is vintage, but then there are the modern pieces dotted throughout.
Creel and Gow opened on May 15 of this year. To contact the shop, call 845-677-4505 for current store hours.
Orangerie Garden and Home
At the other end of the long building is Orangerie Garden and Home, which also opened earlier this year. Orangerie is all about the garden, and has a delightful mix of living things and inanimate objects, both old and new.
Owner Anthony Bellomo, a landscape architect, had a very picturesque idea behind his business model. It’s a four-part concept, all about greenery, growing, garden and grace.
Orangerie combines living items with objects that meld with and illuminate the greenery that abounds here in the Harlem Valley. It offers plants, annuals, perennials — flowering and non-flowering — for all seasons and in all places.
Mix classic and vintage for a unique arrangement of one’s own, or have professional help with one’s indoor and outdoor space. There are many lovely topiaries available, and many dried arrangements to grace tables and patios alike.
The design studio allows for the availability of in-house landscape and horticultural specialists to work with their clients to produce beautiful results. That can range from a simple container for a certain spot to an entire garden. A cutting garden? An herb garden? A place to attract bees and hummingbirds? It’s all possible with a little help from the experts at Orangerie.
Their greenhouse offers a wide assortment of flowers and shrubs, bringing beauty to each season. They also provide expert instruction on planting, arranging and maintenance
The shop contains an assortment of unusual pieces, garden related, for the garden, patio, terrace, office, business or home. Vases, urns, containers, pottery — it’s all there. The mix of new and old pieces works so well, and the variety from classical to modern is fun and works really well together. From delicate pieces to sturdy urns and planters, there’s something there for all tastes and needs.
In warm weather, there is outdoor seating to make it easy to sit with an expert to plan a garden; the scents are lovely and the lighting is great. All of the items, whether live or not, are arranged artfully. And while there is a huge assortment of things to look at, there is a feeling of airiness and open space that is not always true of retail spaces.
Orangerie Garden and Home is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days per week. To call, dial 845-677-4319.
Anthony Bellomo stood among some of the live plants at his Millbrook home and garden shop, Orangerie, which features lovely items for indoor or outdoor decorating as well as landscaping services. Photo by Judith O'Hara Balfe
Linda Hefner, manager at Creel and Gow in Millbrook, stood amid some of the unique treasures offered at the shop, many of which are one of a kind. Photo by Judith O'Hara Balfe
Dick Hermans in the Oblong Bookstore on Millerton’s Main Street in 1985.Provided
Fall storage crop harvests amid soil building cover crops at Adamah Farm in Falls Village. Janna Siller 
