Photography provided
Stepping through the doors into Homenclature, visitors get a strong sense that the establishment is not a typical furniture store. The pieces, all handpicked by owners Amanda and Shayne Snider, are unique. Some of them could even be called exotic. As patrons circle through the eclectic and attractively displayed items on the store floor, it’s easy to get the feeling of being on a treasure hunt. The magic of Homenclature was felt by a designer and producer of HGTV’s popular Good Bones, and they contracted with the Sniders to furnish several homes featured on the current season of the show.
“Shayne was in the store when they came in and asked if they could use our furniture. He wasn’t sure what the show was and told them he had to ask his wife! When he told me about it, I was so happy to help them out,” says Amanda.
Besides enjoying the exposure of being listed in the credits, appearing in the show’s resource guide and mentioned on social media, Homenclature hosted the stars of Good Bones at a June meet-and-greet and will hold a second one on Saturday, August 3 from noon to 2 p.m. Each episode of Good Bones features the mother-daughter team of Karen Laine and Mina Starsiak-Hawk as their Indianapolis based company, Two Chicks and a Hammer, renovates homes in neighborhoods such as Fountain Square and Bates Hendricks.
“During the meet-and-greet, Karen and Mina point out some of the furniture that was used in the show and why they selected it. They will answer questions, sign autographs and be available to have their picture taken with people attending,” says Amanda.
Just as the stars of Good Bones had other occupations before they started rehabbing houses, Snider and her husband had demanding careers. She was a medical sales representative with multiple bio-technology degrees and Shayne Snider held a Ph.D. in education and was climbing high up on the administration ladder of the public-school system he was employed by. After a period of 90-hour workweeks filled with travel and the challenges of raising three children, both knew something had to give.
“I left my job and took several months off,” Amanda says. “I was furnishing our own home and had to be very frugal. I found everything to be an awful brown and very expensive. Then I got the idea of starting a furniture store where the pieces were unique and had good quality besides a great price.”
Amanda says, “I began buying up inventory from places like garage sales, Craig’s List and hotel liquidation sales. We opened our first store in the Valparaiso area in May of 2008 and even though the mortgage crisis hit that July, we were successful.”
Today, everything in the store is new merchandise manufactured by quality companies. Snider and her husband are able to offer high-end pieces at discounted prices because of the relationships they have cultivated both throughout the United States and in places such as India and Thailand. In fact, they have designed their own line, Irene Patrick (IP) which is produced by an overseas firm they have become particularly close to.
“We have evolved a lot in the past eleven years,” says Snider. “We opened our Carmel store in 2017 because many people here were driving up to see us in Valparaiso. We are truly a family business that listens to our customers. An entire house can be furnished in one day at the best price, and no one would be able to tell it came from just one store.”
Visit Homenclature at 2150 E. 116th St. or at myhomenclature.com. View the fourth season of Good Bones at 9 p.m. every Tuesday on HGTV.
