Owner of Kathy's Kitchen in Virginia dipping into ice cream

Now and Then, an ice cream parlor and shop selling both antiques/collectibles and contemporary artisan products, will open Friday in Virginia.

VIRGINIA — Kathy Keylor and her daughter, Paula Morris, aren't the first people ever to go out of their way for some ice cream, but their route has been a bit more involved than a walk to the refrigerator or a drive to the grocery store.

The pair are set to open an ice cream parlor and shop Friday in the former Dr. Ugs building at 142 E. Beardstown St.

"I have wanted a shop for a long time, where I can sell my antiques and collectibles-type things," Keylor said.

With her husband, Daryl, Keylor also owns Kathy's Kitchen, through which she makes and sells condiments such as jams, jellies, salsas, relishes and pickles.

"Someone suggested Virginia needed an ice cream shop," she said, noting the community's main source of ice cream disappeared when The Depot restaurant closed in 2021. "I knew the (Dr. Ugs) building was for sale and went to look at it a couple of different times, to see if it would fit our needs. We decided it did."

Now, the building will house Now and Then, a combination "ice cream parlor and whatever we decide to make," Keylor said.

Definitely on the list alongside the ice cream are Keylor's collectibles — the "Then" of the name.

"It's vintage," Keylor said. "Maybe not quite antique but collectible, vintage things. We’re also inviting area artists who are doing some really great craft items to display."

That's the "Now" of the name, and where Morris comes in.

"She loves antiques," Morris said of her mom. "When we decided to purchase a building and have a shop, we wanted more than antiques in it. So we were thinking about other things. I’m all about homemade crafts. And Virginia lost its ice cream when The Depot restaurant closed, so we did that."

Morris makes hand-carved morel mushroom figurines and walking sticks with mushrooms carved into the top. Most are carved from wood, though she sometimes uses deer antlers, she said.

She also makes "spirit trees" out of twisted wire and small stones, along with stained glass stepping stones, she said.

Other artisan products — from several artists — to be available at Now and Then include custom tumblers/water bottles and homemade soy candles, homemade wreaths and hand-painted signs.

Kathy's Kitchen products also will be available — both for sale by the jar and as ice cream toppings on the parlor's sundaes.

The ice cream parlor will feature at least six flavors of Schoep's ice cream, Keylor said.

"It's hand-dipped ice cream," she said. "We’ve been happily sampling. We’re making our berry toppings for the ice cream sundaes."

Now and Then will open at 10 a.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Its closing time may vary but is expected to be around 7 p.m., Keylor said.

"We’ve wanted to do it for years," Morris said of the shop. "We just kind of decided this was the time."