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Take It or Leave It
Rosemary takes a moment to show off some furniture pieces
By Pat Schneiderman
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hop owner Rosemary Forcade said she has “two kinds of clients, those who bring and those who take.” Her consignment shop, Sequels, is committed to bringing together buyers and sellers of quality pre-owned furniture and home accessories. For almost 100 years, Forcade’s family has owned the building at 1024 17th Avenue on the square in Monroe, Wis. Her great-grandparents, grandparents and parents actually had a tavern at the site, which at the time was more of a social gathering place. Then in the ‘80s, her mother lived through a devastating experience with a fire next door that almost brought their building down. Fortunately, her mom wanted the building to stand and put substantial monies into restoring the family treasure. Today, after moving away to live in North Carolina for a number of years, Forcade has returned to her roots and now she houses the high-end
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consignment shop in the space, which is jam-packed full of wonderful pieces. The shop is committed to offering gently used, moderate to high-end furniture and decorative pieces that are in “next to new” condition. After living in the south where Forcade said these types of shops are “big,” she was familiar with the concept and thought maybe it would be popular in Wisconsin as well. She had a friend whose mother was moving into a retirement home and another friend’s mother who passed away, so between the two individuals, Forcade had enough to start her shop. The shop accepts furniture, such as couches, chairs, tables, buffet, dressers and armoires, framed artwork and mirrors, decorative dishes, pottery, table décor, candlesticks, baskets, silk plants, decorative pillows, lamps, bookcases, wall shelves, area rugs, outdoor furniture and seasonal decorations at specific times, and a limited amount of collectibles. If you
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PHOTO BY PAT SCHNEIDERMAN
PHOTO BY MIKE COWAN
are considering “cleaning house,” down-sizing or selling something, you will need to contact Rosemary before bringing it into her store. Contracts for consignments run for only 90 days so there is always something new coming into the store. Forcade has storage places for items that won’t currently fit into her store, and even accepts a waiting list to bring items in at a later date. She accepts outdoor furniture and Christmas seasonal decorations only at specified times of the year. One of Forcade’s disappointing thoughts is that many young people do not love antiques these days. “Young people want a sleek look – no muss, no fuss,” Forcade said. “However,
the upside of this portion of the buyers is that they are very receptive to high-end, contemporary furniture.” Therefore, Forcade gladly accepts “like new” modern pieces as well, and she says they sell very fast. As the shops expands to the outdoor porch and patio area in the next few weeks, perhaps you will want to make a trip to enjoy the wicker, iron and plants that will be in abundance. Forcade said, “Stuff will soon be sitting everywhere” outside. Not all of us are knowledgeable about what is valuable and what is not, but Forcade knows and will gladly talk to you about an item. She loves furniture and decorating, and it’s easily seen when you first step into her shop.