Western Wanderer’s new owner looks for locally made, comfortable feel

A small business could be seen as a dream made manifest by hard work and hope.

Carolee Edwards, the new owner of the Western Wanderer Boutique at 108 W Washington St., is no stranger to hard work. Edwards grew up in a hard-working family, raised four hard-working kids and is herself in her second year of law school, is a notary public (offering that service at the store), teaches at the YMCA — “my happy place” — and is a former Sequim police sergeant and New Mexico police officer.

Past experience in retail includes growing up helping her parents at a Sears Catalog store in New Mexico, and managing a Victoria’s Secret store.

In fact, one of her twin daughters, Patience, has painted a mural for the boutique which will feature the slogan, “Dreams don’t work unless you do.”

As for dreams, Edwards is a woman guided by her ethics, with a vision for the boutique that features apparel and other western themed items, that she bought in October from the former owner Kaila Martinez, who said, “I sold my business to focus on my family and growing our farm.”

“I want to stay true to what Kaila worked so hard to build,” said Edwards, “but add my own spin.”

Grand Reopening

Edwards will hold the “Grand Reopening” on Nov. 30 at noon, with a ribbon cutting and door prizes, which include hours from her boyfriend Derek Leto’s handyman business “I’ll Do That” and a grand prize of several nights’ stay at her parents’ AirBnb “Farmhouse Cottage” in Kingston.

Regular hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, and noon-4 p.m. Sunday. The boutique will be closed on Black Friday, Nov. 29, in preparation for Saturday’s event.

Edwards said she’ll have sales going on and all her new products rolled out that day, in addition to the prizes. She also plans to host live music by North Star, a folk, blues, rock, Americana duo with vocalists Ray Ward on guitar and Susan Boudreau on mandolin. They will also play at the boutique during the First Friday Art Walk in Dec. 6.

Edwards is carrying many of the same lines Western Wanderer is known for but she has also added such brands as Montana West, Gone Country Hats and Durango Boots.

“I am the only dealer for Durango Boots within 100 miles,” Edwards said.

“I’m adding a bigger size selection because I’ve had lots of people come in and ask for it,” she said.

She’s seeking to offer more men’s clothes and is about to launch a kids’ line, starting with girls, and later with boys.

Edwards is also offering some “gently loved items” some by consignment, some by resale, such as Steve Madden boots and prom dresses, which she has the ability to alter. Edwards intends to offer upcycled items such as jeans jackets customized by herself.

Support local

The handmade products don’t stop there. One of Edwards guiding principles in her stewardship of the shop is “to support local artists.” Some of the work she is offering, primarily by consignment, is: Kevin and Nicole Brewer with Coinry, Unwasted Art by Josie Mannor, AlleyKat’s Creations, Lizzie Betz jewelry by Carol Pearson, Tsunami Bats by Gary and Brenda White and “Crew” leather.

She says she is “definitely open to people bringing stuff in to show me what they have.”

Like the previous owner, Edwards is supported by a loving family. Leto, her boyfriend, “has done all the work on the renovations,” Edwards said. “I wouldn’t be here without his help.”

At the storefront, Edwards is the business manager for Leto’s handyman business, which specializes in jobs “the big contracting companies don’t want to do,” with 25 years of combined experience in commercial plumbing, HVAC, metal fabrication and general maintenancea, and “he sponsored the candy I gave away for Halloween.”

Daughter Penny offers handmade blankets and Patience helps in the store as well as offering hat burning, “which is like wood burning, but with a finer tip.” Patience is known for being a featured artist at The Blue Whole Gallery and for her henna art as a teenage vendor at the Sequim Farmers and Artisans market.

Hats are the focus of one of the many activities Edwards offers at the store – hat bars. A customer can buy a hat at Western Wanderer or bring their own and pay a “ticket price to use the all my embellishments.” People can come in the store for this anytime it’s open or have a planned hat bar gathering. Additionally, Edwards offers paint and sip and has a “Model of the Month” program which features community members from babyhood to senior.

“At my classes at the Y I tell people, you have a 100 percent success rate of getting through whatever life has thrown at you, and you’ve done it in that body that you’re in. So give yourself a little love and don’t be so hard on yourself, because you’re beautiful in the package that you’re in right now.”

She brings that philosophy to her boutique as well, desiring to provide comfortable, fashionable clothing for each unique figure.

Edwards summed up her inclusive, community-focused retail philosophy as, “I want people to feel comfortable when they come in.”

Western Wanderer, 108 W Washington St.

Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, and noon-4 p.m. Sunday

Contact: 360-461-1516

On Facebook under Western Wanderer Boutique, Instagram @WESTERN_WANDERER_BY_CAROLEE

The website is under development.

Sequim Gazette photo by Emily Matthiessen/ A hat bar, where customers can embellish their own or store bought hats, is one of the activities Western Wanderer Boutique offers.