I love my hometown, I love antiques, I love a good story, and I love documenting history! My love of all of these coupled with my passion for photography is what makes my brand and I unique.
Here in Maryland we are blessed with rich history and several unique and old buildings. One of which is my studio now, the Old Pharmacy. I have been there a year and it has served my business so well. But I have decided to pursue this full time and have outgrown that shared studio space.
So when I drove by and saw Keller's Bakery in Linthicum being renovated, I had a vision, I knew there was an opportunity there to preserve some memories while serving my business needs.
The building on South Camp Meade Road in Linthicum is near and dear for so many. Not just the reminder of the delicious pastries and marshmallow filled donuts they made for 40+ years, but of summer jobs of friends and clients of mine, of walking in on a Saturday morning hoping to catch a donut before they sold out, of taking selfies with the light up neon sign in the front window. This was a business that was a family tradition in Linthicum built with hard labor and love, a landmark in this town that everyone is sad to see go. I know, as everyday someone stops me and wants to share their memories with me. I have my own memories too, like when they supported my Studio opening, or the first day I went part time I stopped in for a donut. Little did I know just a year later I would be leasing that space!
This space may no longer be a bakery with ovens serving baked goods, but it will always be in the hearts and minds of locals. I asked the landlord if he would be so kind as to leave some of the items with the store, and he willingly agreed! When you come in to see me this summer, you will see a space transformed but still recognize some unique and meaningful artifacts of time past. Preserving the tables that handmade pastry have been crafted on for years was a huge job. Thanks to those who helped me save and restore them. Soon we will sit at them and look through your precious photo galleries while sipping a cup of Starbucks.
Keller's Bakery tables - photo found online from Linthicum Vignettes by Oscar Skip Booth.
We have our work cut out for us in painting and flooring and moving all in a relatively short time frame. It's a lot of micro managing and hard labor. I am so grateful to friends, my husband, and my family for putting in the hard work with me!
From here on out I will simply refer to this space as Siddalee Portrait Studios. For Keller's stood on their own for years, and I will too. I know it will be hard for folks to stop referring to it as the bakery, and that is ok. I needed to tell the story of the space, but from here on out it is my story, our story. Thank you so much for your support of a local business. And stay tuned for my Open House this summer!
Julie
