BROKEN BOW–A second ribbon cutting and business re-opening was held on Friday, July 24 by the Broken Bow Chamber of Commerce to celebrate Plein Ayre Meadows, an artisan boutique located at 308 S. 8th Avenue in Broken Bow.
Shop owner and artist Alissa Millsap proudly welcomed family members and friends to the ribbon cutting and showcase of countless handmade and vintage items. Millsap specializes in hand-bound journals, decorative paper, paintings, cards, and a host of other local, one-of-a-kind, handmade art. The shop also carries handmade bags and purses made by Cindi McCullough and rugs made by Jennie Harvey.
“My favorite thing to create right now is actually my hand-bound journals. I do everything from the painting to tearing the paper to binding them, putting everything together and I even make my own marble paper and paste papers to put inside,” Millsap said.
“Plein Ayre” is a French phrase meaning “outdoors” and often refers to “plein ayre painting” when painting outdoors. The store opened in December but Millsap closed the shop for two and a half months amid COVID-19 shutdowns.
Originally from Broken Bow, Millsap has been doing art since she was a kid, minored in art in college, and then decided to open up a storefront after her daughter went to college.
“Our only daughter graduated, went off to college. My husband farms and I’m just like ‘I can’t sit at the farm by myself six, seven days a week!’ So this place became available and I talked to my husband about it, and he said go for it!”
Plein Ayre Meadows is open Tuesday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. as well as the first and third Friday and Saturday of the month (subject to change depending on the season). Millsap can be reached at 308-212-0279.
