Exploring Cashiers, North Carolina

To read my original post on our visit to Highlands, North Carolina first, please click here.

For my birthday, we drove from Highlands to Cashiers, North Carolina for the day. Cashiers is just Northeast on US-64 about 10 miles on a curvy little mountain road with beautiful views.

I had always loved seeing the Cashiers Showhouses each year in Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles magazine, but had never visited one. You would not believe the number of home decor, antiques, and design shops in this town. It’s crazy good if you’re a designer or just love shopping for that sort of thing!

We were hungry when we got there and had planned on trying the highly recommended Cornucopia Restaurant, a cute little cottage house that serves soups, salads, and sandwiches under an outdoor covered porch, but it was very busy and right at lunch time, so we went to Chile Loco instead. It was SO good with homemade tortilla chips and salsa. The ceviche was so fresh and delicious! We ordered our meals and ate then headed out to check out the shops.

I cannot remember the name of the first shop we went in, but it had alot of gifts and florals. It was pretty, but I wanted to see more of the furniture and antiques in Cashiers.

Fiddlehead Designs was the next place we went. Lots of pretty outdoor pots, plants, floral designs, linens, furniture, gifts, etc. A husband and wife, Ed and Sandy Linebaugh, own the business and recently hired interior designer, Mary Anderson, to expand their business and offer full design services. Ed and Sandy are from Michigan, but have been part of this community for over 10 years. Sandy is the shop’s floral designer and does beautiful work!

We walked across the road to Summer Place Antiques, but it’s closed on Mondays, so we peeked in the windows and walked around outside.

Susan Young, the owner, has been in the interior design business for over 25 years. “The shop is packed with the fruits of Susan’s prowls through the barns of Western Europe including rehabilitated chandeliers, intriguing old gas fixtures and sconces and garden artwork. She has also laced her shop with local pieces, Americana and vintage antiques from New England. The result is a collection of unique treasures!” – Summer Place website

I will definitely be making a trip back to check out Susan’s prowls! Sounds so intriguing!

Vivianne Metzger Antiques is just around the corner from Fiddlehead Designs and Summer Place. It’s a family owned retail shop featuring 18th and 19th Century English and French antique furniture and accessories. Vivianne, her daughter, and son-in-law go to Europe each Spring to shop for rare, unique, and original items to fill their shop. They welcome designers and trade!

There’s a warehouse next door filled with furniture. You are welcome to walk in and browse through, but you have to go to the main antique store if you would like to see an item for purchase.

Rustick’s is right next door to V. Metzger’s. It’s located at Canoe Point on Cashiers Lake with pretty views all throughout the porch and main level. They have indoor & outdoor hand-crafted furniture, linens and rugs, and much more! It was my favorite shop, so I took lots of pictures because it was so inspiring. They have relocated and renovated multiple times in Cashiers, but have been in business for 28 years! They also offer design services. As with many other restaurants and businesses in the area, they are a seasonal retail shop, so check their website for details before visiting. They are only open about 6 months out of the year!

The last shop we went in was Curated Home Design. Lots of vintage and antique pieces, rare finds, lighting, and accessories. They offer full design services, as well!

This one-of-a-kind sycamore table was such a statement piece! It had an adjustable iron base that could be lowered from bar height to dining table height. It seated 12-14, depending on the chair. These are the types of items that designers look for when curating unique homes. How amazing would that be in a mountain home?! Rustic elegance and charm galore.

A few people had told us to make sure and check out the Cashiers Farmers’ Market while in town, so that was our last stop before heading back to Highlands.

Mark was a trooper, driving me from shop to shop, striking conversation with a few other men along the way, checking the soccer game scores, calling home and seeing how the boys and dogs were, catching up on a few work emails on his day off- y’know, ladies! The things our good men do for us 🙂

All the fruits and vegetables looked so good! They also had jellies and sauces, frozen ready made food, ice cream, drinks, and other gift items. There’s also a BBQ restaurant on the side. Such a cute place! I am still kicking myself for not getting one of those tree branch Appalachian baskets…I thought it would look so pretty with a Maidenhair or other type fern inside.

As we were driving back to Highlands, we passed these antique hunting dog statues and I nearly lost my mind! I asked Mark to go back, I HAD to see them up close. I have wanted a pair of these for as long as I can remember. When we lost our Weimaraners, Sadie & Blue, I wanted to find some as a memorial for them in our garden, but have never been able to find concrete ones (except European ones online that didn’t ship) We passed a concrete statues and produce market on the drive home, and I found a very similar dog- while it’s not an exact replica, I ordered another one so I could have a pair. I’ll try and age them somehow and will share when I do! That was my birthday present to myself with my parents’ birthday gift.$$

I had hoped to see more houses while in Highlands and Cashiers, but only got a picture of this one. We drove to see Mark’s friend’s childhood family vacation home, but couldn’t really see it well from the road so I took a pic of the one across the street. That’s pretty close, right? I just love seeing all the different architecture and details of the homes indigenous of the area.

I have never thought of myself as a mountain person, I’ve always been more drawn to the beach and coastal areas, but I did fall in love with Highlands and Cashiers. They are such beautiful, charming, and peaceful little mountain towns in the Western Carolinas and if you’ve never visited, add it to your list of places to visit! You will LOVE them both.

‘Til next time,