New Hardware Store in Town

There’s been quite a bit of buzz in our town about the opening of a new hardware store, Hatchet Hardware. It’s been maybe a year or two since the hardware store on Union Street shut down, so we’re happy to have something new close-by. Cute W is pretty dang handy and DIYish, but there is little he dislikes more than realizing mid-project that he’s missing something he needs. Lowe’s isn’t too, too far, but when he has to stop in the middle of a project (or, worse, stop multiple times), to buy something, it feels like a schlep. This store’s located at the intersection of Balltown and Nott (but set back a bit — officially the address is 1448 Balltown Road), which is within easy walking distance of out house.

So, we were already on Team New Hardware Store, but then friends started posting interior shots on Facebook that looked downright boutique-y, and soon someone was “inviting” me to “like” their Facebook page. Clearly it was time for a reconnaissance mission. We invited J along, but she was unconvinced that a hardware store could hold much to interest her.

Sure enough, there was plenty of reliable hardware-y hardware stuff, which Cute W appreciates, but I quickly abandoned him in search of more fun.

It turns out there are little pops of fun everywhere, like cute sleds sitting among the snow blowers and snow shovels (there were a variety of other sleds, too). . .

and a bunch of BBQ seasonings to impulse-buy while picking up grilling tools:

But beyond those little pops-o-fun, there’s a huge section that feels much more like a gift store than a hardware store.

We’re talking candies, jewelry, tons of Beekman 1802 stuff, candles, home decor. . .

Knitted hats, journals, cute magnets. . . .

Seriously. If you needed to grab a quick gift for someone, you could jump into this store between stops at the grocery or post office and find something nice. And if someone gave you a gift card, you could easily spend it. So: yay. That’s convenient. Cute W was happy with the hardware selection, too. It doesn’t have big-box levels of stock, so if you needed lumber or a major appliance, you’d have to go farther afield. But in his opinion, they’ve got the supplies you’d need for most basic day-to-day DIY projects.

Oh! I took one more photo, because J has been enjoying the essential oil diffuser she received for Christmas, and look, there’s a whole section of oils/diffusers/serenity-ware:

So! I am super-excited to have yet another delightful business in the area. And now I’m realizing that I should have taken lots of pictures for my previous posts like this one and this one, but J and I were too busy actually shopping for me to put in the recon work). I am looking forward to some mythical time in the future when the weather will be warm and I will be able to walk or bike, mask-free, from one business to the next on a delightful Local Retail Tour. And if I run into friends, we will hug hello.