February 5, 2014 at 1:33 p.m.
Novak to continue making original furniture
Novak to continue making original furniture
By Andy Hildebrand-andy@rivernewsonline.com
Chad Novak, the craftsman behind the furniture, said it was the smart business move to close the store, but creating the furniture is his passion.
"I've been doing construction and carpentry work forever," Novak said. "I've been building it here at Peggy's for about six years, but I've been doing the wood construction forever. When the woodworking started coming in a little more, I thought it was really cool. I had been making beds in town for a long time, so I made somebody a log bed and they loved it. I went out and filled a 40 by 100 foot room with just wood. It was all oddities and weird wood. I've been doing it ever since."
When people started hearing about the unique beds and furniture Novak was creating, business quickly picked up. Everyone wanted to get a look at his one-of-a-kind creations.
"People loved it," Novak said. "People would come in with just a wow face and talk about how unique it is. I was trying to do something totally off the wall so when people would come in, it wouldn't look like everyone's log bed that you see. Trippy is the word I hear a lot. They've got that off the wall look. The crazier I can get, the better."
What started as a passion project quickly grew into something more. Now, Novak's beds can be found around the world.
"I've built a lot of stuff, so you start to lose track," he said. "I've got beds everywhere. I have beds in Russia, in Germany, in Florida, in Hawaii and other places. I've got 19 or 20 different beds all over. I didn't even have one up yet and someone had already said they would take it which was a great sign. A lot of it is keeping up and changing it a little bit. It always has to be a little bit cooler and a little bit different from the last one."
While creating the furniture is truly something he loves, Novak said it can be frustrating to lock up his artistic vision in favor of a customer's.
"A lot of it is work, unfortunately," he said. "If you do it for people, it can be really hard because you have to build it for them. For me, I'm better off just grabbing a piece of wood and building something. I just started building some more artsy stuff now with some funky pieces and some different lighting which is pretty cool."
Interest in Novak's creations continued to grow, but now the time has come to separate that venture from Peggy's Emporium. He said he plans on doing some wholesaling with area companies so his work will still be circulating. He's also thinking about opening up a shop in the Brown Street Mall.
To stay in tune with public demand, Novak said he's had to tweak his style here and there.
"Unfortunately, just like everything else, it's a fad," he said. "It's a trend. It isn't what it used to be. So now, I'm getting more into that primitive look. The older look and the look that kind of seems like it's not built that well. I've been putting some of that together and displaying them in the front window. We're going forward with that."
Before Peggy's closes for good, plenty of Novak's work will be available for viewing and he said he's excited to continue to provide his quality furniture to the area for years to come.
Andy Hildebrand may be reached at andy@rivernewsonline.com.
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