Local vendors set up shop in Downtown storefront

Apr. 5—St. Joseph vendors have a new place to call home when it comes to selling their products. And for the shop's owner, it's a fairy tale come true.

With its official opening on April 3, the Frog Prince artisan market and boutique, located at 112 S. Eighth St., has already seen a rush of St. Joseph residents browsing its various products including but not limited to jewelry, candles, food, accessories and more.

Chelsea Teater, owner of the Frog Prince, said opening the boutique has been a labor of love for four years.

"I always wanted to have something special that I could give to St. Joe," Teater said. "I wanted something that was fun, that was different, that was quirky, that would be a big draw and something that I felt like I could give back to the town."

Showcasing her own works as well as others, Teater wanted to incorporate her favorite fairy tale, "The Frog Prince," into not only the shop's name but the design of the store.

"When I was young, there was a store in Atchison, Kansas ... and it was a fairy tale," Teater said. "It was crowded and compact, but it was all fairy tale looking. And I absolutely loved that. And it stuck with me throughout my life... (I wanted to) be able to incorporate what I love and what I would enjoy if I was coming in shopping so the aesthetics in the store are very much compliments to some things that I loved in my childhood."

Teater hopes local vendors consider the market an affordable place to sell their work year-round. Leases of three months, six months or a year are available to vendors, but with 23 people already on the waitlist, that shelf space will be packed for some time.

The market will have an official open house from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. Along with being an official stop on the Sip n' Stroll walk, there will be refreshments and crowns for the first 40 kids to arrive.

The Frog Prince is open Thursdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.