TAS Design & Craft A Handcrafted Haven
/By Janee Law
jlaw@longIslandergroup.com
Trisha Phelps, owner of TAS Design & Craft Gallery, said she opened her store to feature the work of American artists who make handcrafted home decor.
Painting since she was a kid, Trisha Phelps, owner of TAS Design & Craft Gallery, said she would always get in trouble because her canvas was typically furniture.
“I’ve always done it. It’s just a part of me,” she said. “First I find a chair and then the chair tells me what to do. I look at that blank space and just see something there.”
Whether it’s a chair, a table or jewelry boxes, Phelps features her work in her Huntington village store, along with many other handcrafting artists.
“It’s important to me that American artists have a voice and that there’s a place where you can find things that are all American made and something special and affordable,” Phelps, of Northport said.
Selling all handcrafted items for home dinnerware and home décor, the 372 New York Ave. store offers pottery, glass, jewelry, photography, toys and more.
Phelps originally open her shop in Northport in 2005, but moved it Huntington village five years ago to gain more traffic.
Like a gallery, the store is organized based off the artist she’s selling.
“I could put all the cups together and all the plates together but that wouldn’t make any sense to me,” she said, adding each artist has their own glaze for the pottery they create.
Some of the popular artists that customers shop for are Bill Campbell pottery, from Cambridge Springs, Pennsylvania; Kerry Brooks pottery, from Minneapolis, Minnesota; Luke Adams Glass, from Norwood, Massachusetts.
“I love that I’m surrounded by beautiful things and I get to meet very talented and interesting people,” Phelps said. “What’s not to love?”
The gallery also features work from local artists, including Mars Pottery, of Huntington Station; jewelry designer Herb Schay, of Huntington; and Irene Andreadis photography, of Huntington Station.
“When I can find the local artists, I love having their work in the shop,” Phelps said. “It’s important to have a place for local artists to show their work.”
With prices from $6.50-$250, Phelps said she’s had customers shop in the store for bridal registries or men shopping for office décor.
“It has to be a variety because if we all had the same taste, it wouldn’t be very interesting,” she said.
The nearly 1,000-square-foot store also offers items for kids, whether it’s jelly belly candy, organic crayons, toys or kid furniture.
TAS also helps raises funds for a charity organization, Bears for Humanity, by selling stuffed animals. With every purchase, the for-profit organization donates a bear to a child, while also employing at-risk women from Welfare-to-Work programs in the U.S.
Phelps added that while the store offers interesting and unique décor that can fit in any home, customers will also be benefiting the work of artists and charities.
TAS Design & Craft Gallery
372 New York Ave.,
Huntington
631-239-6041
tasdesignandcraft.com
