~ story and photos by Paige Langenderfer
Six years ago, Bobby Dunlap had never heard of Nashville, Indiana. Today, he and his wife Kim not only live here, but also own and operate a business in downtown Nashville called Homes on a Limb and Little Sister Candle Company.
“ One day I asked him to take me to lunch in Nashville and he said,‘ Where’ s that,’” Kim said.“ Two weeks later, we bought our house down here.”
Kim and Bobby, who were born and raised in Munster, Indiana, moved to Nashville and quickly began working on creating their business.
“ It was always a dream of mine to open a store to sell my woodworking projects,” Bobby said.“ So, when we moved here, I retired to start the business.”
Homes on a Limb sells meticulously handcrafted birdhouses, bird feeders, handmade candles, walking sticks, and other beautiful artisan home goods. Everything in the store is made by Kim and Bobby.
“ A lot of the community has embraced us,” Kim said.“ They say we take it back to how Brown County was founded; stores selling handcrafted items.”
Bobby said the birdhouses have become what some might consider a collectors’ item.
“ We have numerous repeat customers,” he said.“ They keep coming back and buying more. They love the birdhouses because each one is unique. We have customers who are collecting them and keeping them in their homes.”
The demand for the birdhouses has made it difficult for Bobby to keep the store stocked.
“ Every year we close a few days before Christmas through March so that I can make the birdhouses and restock the store,” he said.“ We are sold out again before April.”
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Sept./ Oct. 2020 • Our Brown County 41