Dedicated to Their Craft

As the owners of Colley Cottage Trading Co., Leah and Bubba Colley provide unique home décor items, florals, gifts, and more

Story and Photos By Katie Stone

A home is an expression of those who live there. It’s a safe place, a comfort zone, and the place where a person’s style shines. The carefully selected furniture pieces and even the toys scattered across the living room floor are all part of the way someone fills up their home. The owners of Colley Cottage Trading Co. aim to offer unique, personalized pieces of home décor that are sure to fit any style. Bubba and Leah Colley work hard to create custom pieces of furniture, home décor, and floral arrangements that honor the past while looking to the future.

Leah and Bubba enjoy their time together working at Colley Cottage Trading Co.

Leah and Bubba first met through mutual friends in 2015 and married in 2016. They combined homes and families at what is now their business and self-proclaimed “tiny dream.”

Leah, a long-time cosmetologist and avid crafter, has fostered a creative flair all her life. Bubba, however, didn’t discover his love for creation until he decided to remodel his bathroom. He enjoyed the planning and working with his hands, so he acquired a small workshop and started woodworking as often as he could, making smaller furniture pieces such as coffee tables and end tables. When these two makers came together, Colley Cottage Trading Co. was born. “I was just driving down the road, and God put it on my heart,” Leah said. “I had no idea what that meant or how it would happen, but we did it.”

Bubba Colley working on a large project for the ammunition plant in Hooks, Texas.

On their land in Texarkana, Ark., the Colleys established a workshop for Bubba and opened a gift shop that features home décor, florals, and gifts—quirky kitchen towels, bowls, handmade trinkets, and more. They dream of one day expanding and opening an adjoining coffee shop. “I just dream of jazz music playing and smelling coffee,” Leah said.

Bubba created this tabletop décor using salvaged wood from Leah’s grandfather’s house, while the candleholders are made from the banister of her grandmother’s staircase.

While many customers enjoy perusing the products on-shelf, Bubba and Leah also serve a clientele who seek custom items. The Colleys speciality? Using old family treasures to create new heirlooms, made to last for generations. “I love marrying vintage with new things and repurposing old things into something new,” Leah explained.

Colley Cottage Trading Co. offers a unique selection of home décor and accents.

This devotion to up-cycling extends to their florist services as well. “We made a casket spray for a customer, and instead of leaving it at the cemetery, we created multiple floral arrangements for different members of the family,” Leah said. “The family brought me several of their grandfather’s ammo boxes to use as the ‘vases.’ We added deer antlers, feathers, and more to really make the arrangements more special.”

Bubba still works full-time as a police officer while continuing to take woodworking and furniture orders. Last year, he purchased his own sawmill, which allows him to be at the very beginning of every project, working directly with the trees. “This was a big accomplishment for him and the business,” Leah said. “He has worked so hard to get to this point. I am so proud of him.” Bubba puts the same about of time and dedication into every piece of furniture, whether it is for a young couple just starting their lives together or for the ammunition plant in Hooks, Texas. “We take so much pride in what we make for our customers,” Leah said. “We pray together over every single piece that we make before it leaves our property.”

Handmade décor and homemade fruit preserves are Colley Cottage Trading Co.’s signature items.

The Colley Cottage Trading Co. has a peach incorporated into their logo, which represents Leah’s heritage as the latest in a long line of peach farmers from Nashville, Arkansas. “I am a third-generation peach farmer,” she explained. “Both my mother and grandmother would make peach preserves, and both of my grandfathers had their own orchards where they grew peaches and sold them.” Bubba and Leah dream of growing fruits and vegetables with chickens running around, and, just like the ancestors before them, they want to operate a fruit stand one day. “We want our grandchildren to run around the land and learn to work with their hands alongside us,” said Leah. “We don’t really know what will come of all this, but God will let us know.”