Home Care In Winsted, CT

WINSTED — This year's Possum Queen Festival returns to Crystal Peak on New Year's Day, bringing families together for a day of music, food and fun.

The festival, which is being held for the 35th year on Jan. 1, raises money for families experiencing financial hardships. John Bongiorno, a member of the Possum Queen Foundation, said the group's fundraising activities and distribution go on all year. In January 2023, the Possum Queen event alone raised more than $140,000.

"We've been so busy with the foundation, and helping people out," he said. "As of (Dec. 22), we've given out more than $100,000 to people in 2023. When people say 'Wow,' that's what I say. And this is all done by volunteers.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

"We work with social service agencies around northwest Connecticut to help local families," Bongiorno said. "People who lost their home in a fire, a bad illness, things like that. What drives us to make this so successful is because we're helping people just about every day. It's such a good feeling, and we're only able to do this because of the kindness and generosity of the people in this area."

The Jan. 1 festival at Crystal Peak, located on Winsted Road, will feature live comedy with Kareem Blue and Fig, the "mind reading magician" Greg Dwyer, and Shanna in a Dress, a popular performer and a friend to the Possum Queen Festival for the last three years. "She called us and asked if she could come," Bongiorno said. "She's uber-talented, very well-known and the nicest person ever."

For the live auction, Eric Hummell is again serving as auctioneer. The silent auction will have at least 125 items available for bidding, with Boston Bruins and Boston Celtics tickets, meals, wine dinners, tastings, trips and other experiences.

In addition to the donated prizes, Crystal Peak owner John Roller provides the venue and staff for free, as well as food and drink. "He's been very busy with Christmas parties, but he's been so generous to the foundation for this event," Bongiorno said. "People are so kind, so very kind. So we're cranking along, and we're excited."

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

The Young Possums, a youth group with the foundation, will sell Possum Queen winter hats. "There's a nice white one with a pom-pom on top," Bongiorno said.

While the group is thrilled by the success of the annual event, members also worry about the growing need, evidenced by the requests for help they receive all year.

"We gave out about $51,000 in 2022, and in a year, that's more than doubled," Bongiorno said. "In a business, that's growth, but for us, it shows a huge need. From a social perspective, our state's social services are difficult to navigate, and sometimes people don't have enough to eat, but they can't meet the state's guidelines. We're meeting with legislators and local leaders about it in 2024, because it's hard to keep up the pace. If it grows, that's not good. We're competing with other charities, and it's very daunting."

The Possum Queen Fesival and Auction at Crystal Peak begins around noon, with festivities from 1-4 p.m.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

To make a donation, volunteer or for more information, visit possumqueenfoundation.org or send checks to P.O. Box 1507, Litchfield CT 06759.

Dec 26, 2023

Emily M. Olson is the community editor for the Torrington Register Citizen, the New Haven Register and the Middletown Press.

She is a 1997 graduate of Western Connecticut State University with a degree in English and a minor in journalism.

She started her career at the Patent Trader newspaper in Westchester County in 1998. After a brief period as a reporter with the Register Citizen in 1999, she joined the former Housatonic Publications group as a reporter. She was managing editor of the former Litchfield Enquirer and helped run the weekly newspapers at Housatonic and the Litchfield County Times. She returned to the Register Citizen in 2009.

WINSTED — Beata Vrancic, a Romanian native who grew up in Hungary and has lived in Winsted for more than a decade, said she's noticed a new energy in town that's drawing all kinds of business and development.

Vrancic recently opened Home & Cake, a decor and gift store at 450 Main St., welcoming a growing group of shoppers drawn to the fresh, bright interior and window displays. Living in Winsted for 17 years with her husband, Csaba Tirol, and daughter Evelyn, Vrancic chose Main Street, she said, because "Winsted has a lot of potential, with the beautiful old buildings and stores."

"I'm so excited to see new places opening; new restaurants, more variety," she said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

The building at 450 Main St. is also home to a row of antique shops, Winsted News and Noujaim's Mediterranean Bistro. Farther north, there are more restaurants, offices and stores, as well as the Northwest CT YMCA and the American Museum of Tort Law. It's a busy corner.

Vrancic wanted to be part of that, she said. She's also baker whose cakes and desserts are available for special occasions. "I made cakes for friends, and thought, why not open a business?" she said. "I started doing deliveries to small stores, and planned to open a bookstore and bakery in the former IGA market, with the Curious Cat."

The Curious Cat recently opened on Main Street in the former home of Nutmeg Potters; that group moved to New Hartford in July. The IGA space didn't work out. "After five or six months of waiting, waiting, waiting, I decided to go ahead and open Home & Cake here," she said. "So this is a start."

She hopes to expand the store to include the bakery, and is working on making that happen, she said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Inside the store, walls are papered with blur-and-white flowers, accompanied by a vivid blue wall at the checkout counter. One side of the store is lined with shelves and filled with home items: kitchen linens from France; embellished fabric totes; woven shopping baskets from Africa; and candles and aromatherapy room sprays from England.

Collections of glass and pottery, unique trays and wall hangings, pillows and throws, books on decorating a home and small pieces of furniture are also among the store's inventory. "We wanted to make the store fresh, young and colorful," Vrancic said.

"The gifts are from all over the world: Morrocco, England, France, Spain. ... I like green, so there's a lot of that color," she said, pointing out a set of emerald green cocktail glasses. "I also have Pentire, which is a mix to make (alcoholic or nonalcoholic) cocktails, from England."

Since her first opening day on July 29, Vrancic said, she's had nothing but positive reactions to her store. "People have been so nice, and so helpful," she said. "Everyone wants me to succeed; they want the downtown to succeed."

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

She also praised Town Manager Josh Kelly and Economic Development Director Ted Shafer for their work.

"Josh is just what the town needed to move forward," she said. "He has done so much to make things better, to encourage people to come here and open a business. He's got enthusiasm and he's so supportive. I appreciate the help from him and people like Ted (Shafer)."

Reach Home & Cake at 518-221-2722 or find them on Facebook and Instagram, where her cakes also are available.

Aug 7, 2023

Emily M. Olson is the community editor for the Torrington Register Citizen, the New Haven Register and the Middletown Press.

She is a 1997 graduate of Western Connecticut State University with a degree in English and a minor in journalism.

She started her career at the Patent Trader newspaper in Westchester County in 1998. After a brief period as a reporter with the Register Citizen in 1999, she joined the former Housatonic Publications group as a reporter. She was managing editor of the former Litchfield Enquirer and helped run the weekly newspapers at Housatonic and the Litchfield County Times. She returned to the Register Citizen in 2009.

WINSTED — Soft piano music drifts from unseen speakers in Danuza Fazio’s new facial-and-brow bar on Union Street, where pink balloons in a corner are reminders of an October ribbon cutting for this second location of Facials by Danuza.

Brazil-born Fazio came to America around 2005 as an exchange student and decided to stay. She became a U.S. citizen in 2008. Her mother still owns a spa in Brazil, and Fazio decided to pursue a similar career in the states.

After working in spas in Litchfield and Middlebury, she struck out on her own, opening Facials by Danuza in Watertown about six years ago, where she has built a loyal clientele, she said.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

“Crazy or not, it made sense to open another place in Winsted,” she said. In the Watertown location, she paid a laundry service to clean robes her clients wear, but in Winsted she has her own laundry hookup, saving her time and money.

She also noticed that there were few facial spas in the area, and hers will fill that need.

Fazio is a licensed massage therapist, esthetician and waxing specialist, but in Winsted she will focus on brows and facials.

“If you go to Watertown, you will have a robe, you’re going to change, you have a little more private room,” she said. “Here, the facials will be shorter.”

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

There may be room to expand in the future, she said, but the physical space in Winsted is not yet conducive to provide massage services.

What the Winsted location has that is not available in Watertown is a medical-grade HydraFacial machine, she said.

“It works 10 times deeper into the skin than a regular facial,” Fazio said. “It literally draws out toxins, blackheads, debris of the skin, and also at the same time you have a cleanser, you exfoliate, and you deep-hydrate the skin all the way close to your dermal layer, which is a deep, deep layer of the skin.”

The machine also helps the lymphatic system, she said. “It’s great for immune systems, great for sinuses, people that have sinus headaches, allergies and all that stuff.”

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

She said she is trained and licensed to use the machine for non-medical purposes on clients whose conditions are not contraindicated, such as pregnancy. An optional attachment is an LED light that addresses wrinkles or acne, she said. It is used while a client is lying down and wearing goggles to protect their eyes.

Brow shaping is another service Fazio offers. “When you see an animated cartoon, and they’re frowning or they’re smiling; it does change the expression on our face,” she said.

Shaping the brows by trimming them is an alternative to Botox, she said. “I take a look at the kind of face that my client has. Is it more rounded? More heart shaped? And you kind of customize for their shape.”

In some cases, she will wax above or below the brow, she said. She can also tint the brow, and she advises using a stronger color than the client’s hair color.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

“I just love making people feel good,” Fazio said. “They tell me I have a gift. They say something about my touch, that it’s very healing.”

She said she never seriously considered any other career. “I believe we are chosen to do a particular thing,” she said.

“What’s important to me is pretty much making sure my clients are leaving here happy,” she said. “They’re going to say, ‘Oh my gosh, I had a fantastic experience.’ Really, they remember that.”

Facials by Danuza is located at 9 Union St., Winsted, and is open Saturdays only, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, or to make an appointment, call 203-520-3497 or email [email protected]. The website, www.facialsbydanuza.com, also includes the Watertown location.

WINSTED — Edge Works Axe House, new venue in the Edge Works building on Meadow and Lake streets, opened Dec. 22, and patrons are already lining up to play this popular game.

Winsted residents Al and Lisa Miller decided to open the business after trying it out at another venue in Thomaston. "We did it. We liked it, and I said, I want to do this," Al Miller said. "This was my brainchild."

He quickly approached Nils Johnson, co-owner of the Little Red Barn Brewery, which also makes its home in the Edge Works building. Johnson and his partners, Matthew and Nathan Day, agreed that the axe-throwing business was a perfect fit.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Miller, a U.S. Coast Guard veteran, and his wife have three grown children; he is the head mechanic at the town garage in Watertown, where he's worked for 17 years. He's at the axe house every day by 3:30 p.m., and ready to greet customers at 4 p.m.

In the fall of 2023, after securing permits, Miller began renovating the interior of the factory building space, using pine for the woodwork, trim and , that lends a fresh, woodsy aroma to the interior. Along with the rear entrance behind Little Red Barn Brewers, the Millers added a main entrance on Meadow Street with a new sign, sporting a logo created by Anne Holland and reproduced by Write Way Signs. The logo is also on T-shirts and other swag at the Axe House.

Patrons are welcomed by Miller, who sets up groups of players in their own wooden stall. Each stall, enclosed with refurbished mechanical wire, is equipped with a computer keyboard and mouse; a modem projects a computer screen with a dozen playing options, scoring and other components. An axe with a custom Axe House handle is used by players, who aim and throw it at their target inside the stall.

After a lesson on throwing the axe from Miller — there's a way to hold the handle and throw it — teams can play for 60 or 70 minutes. He also tutors the team on how to use the computer component of the game, which is simple and easy to follow.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

Tables handmade with restored bourbon barrels offer checkers and tic tac toe in one of the lounge areas, where players can sit and relax after a game. They are welcome to buy beer next door, as well as food from the brewery's new commercial kitchen, which it installed just a few months earlier, using services from the Royal Coachman Tavern in New Hartford. A banquet and party room has also been added.

"We're not selling food, but you're welcome to bring it in if you want," Miller said. "If you want beer, you can bring it over from next door."

"With the brewery doing the kitchen, we're becoming a destination," Miller said. "It's not just a place in Winsted. People are traveling to come here. It's a comfortable place to spend some time."

Some people might be concerned by the idea of drinking alcohol while throwing an axe at a target, but the Millers are focused on safety, and reserve the right to stop a game or ask a person to leave if they're too intoxicated.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

"Beer and wine, have a good time, but no hard liquor allowed," Miller said. "If you act up, you'll get thrown out. It's that simple."

The Millers say their customers range in age from 10 to 60 or more, all just looking to try something different for fun. "There are also more weomen following us than men," Lisa Miller said. "Our customers are coming from not only Winsted and Torrington, but New Hartford, Colebrook, Harwinton, Bristol, Watertown, and Massachusetts too.

For more information, hours and to book a session, visit www.edgeworksaxe.com or find them on Facebook. Gift certificates are also available.

Jan 1, 2024

By Emily M. Olson

Emily M. Olson is the community editor for the Torrington Register Citizen, the New Haven Register and the Middletown Press.

She is a 1997 graduate of Western Connecticut State University with a degree in English and a minor in journalism.

She started her career at the Patent Trader newspaper in Westchester County in 1998. After a brief period as a reporter with the Register Citizen in 1999, she joined the former Housatonic Publications group as a reporter. She was managing editor of the former Litchfield Enquirer and helped run the weekly newspapers at Housatonic and the Litchfield County Times. She returned to the Register Citizen in 2009.

WINSTED — Stacy Whitman has four cats: JuJu, JiJi, Pyewacket and Tabitha. It's no coincidence, then, that her bookstore is called the Curious Cat Bookshop, or that there are cat-themed bookbags, cards and little gifts scattered around the new store.

The Curious Cat, which until recently was running as a popup shop at Live at Home on Main Street, now has its own space in the former home of Nutmeg Potters at 386 Main St.

Whitman, a native of Illinois and an editor and publisher of children's books for Lee and Low Books, moved to Torrington from New York City two years ago.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

"The most important thing I want to do with the bookshop is offer the community a gathering place," she said. "I started a book club, and that will continue. I am planning author signings and illustrators, who can do a demonstration.

"I want to have story hours, board game nights, Dungeons and Dragons and poetry nights," Whitman said.

In the back of the store, a separate room will become a children's reading room, where they or their parents can have a quiet place to spend time together, she said. "Anything you can imagine a bookstore would have, I will have it here," she said.

Along with a variety of children's books, Whitman has nonfiction and fiction for adults, all displayed on new shelving, as well as free-standing displays featuring bookmarks, greeting cards, candles and other gifts.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

She developed her business plan in 2020, and started collecting used furniture for the store and looking for a space. The popup shop, she said, was a way for her to meet people in Winsted and find out what they wanted. The Curious Cat, she said, was warmly welcomed.

"People are really excited about the bookshop," Whitman said. "I haven't done a lot of social media; right now it's word of mouth, and telling people that I've moved here. The popup shop really helped."

Working for Lee and Low Books, a publisher for diverse books for children, she said, gave her the opportunity to find the best titles for her customers. The Curious Cat is not a used bookstore; all titles are new, and she continues to find new authors based on her own research and suggestions from other readers.

Whitman chose the Northwest Corner of Connecticut for her new home after living in a cramped apartment in New York. "I found an old Victorian house in Torrington that I'm restoring," she said. "It's just so pretty here. ... It reminds me of the suburbs of Boston. It's really walkable, and so easy to get around. I like New England, and especially Connecticut. I grew up on a farm, and there are areas here that are very similar to where I lived in Illinois on a farm."

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

She's excited to be part of Winsted's continuing efforts to grow and encourage business. "It gives me a lot of hope, that Winsted is focusing on redevelopment and the community," she said.

For now, the Curious Cat has had evening hours, and is open on weekends from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Weekday hours are coming.

"I am keeping my full-time job, so I will be hiring a part-time person to run things during the week," Whitman said. "I will be closed at the beginning of the month and reopen Aug. 10."

To learn more about the Curious Cat Bookshop, visit curiouscatbookshop.com. The store is also on Facebook and Instagram.