Betsy’s Summerhouse Antiques

Rudest shop owner I have EVER encountered. I think there may be something certifiably wrong with her. And now that I see these other negative reviews, it supports my hunch.

A lot of things to look at but this is the 2^nd time we’ve visited (2 years between visits) and the owner is a crab about cell phone usage. It’s ridiculous!!! Definitely needs to get with the times or lose customers. We will not be back.

I want to like this store, but the manager/​owner is so rude and have now discovered that not everything is as authentic as it appears. I’ve seen her yell at people just walking by the store and another time at a car parked in front of her store because they didn’t turn off the engine right away… they actually drove away to get away from her! I was going to buy a sign for my husband for our house that we had our eye on, but didn’t want to go in the store with that attitude towards potential customers. So I researched online to find another sign like it and found the exact one… not an antique at all, just a «personalized» sign for Capitola that she has uncharged a ton. Disappointing.

I was shopping at Betsy’s today and was writing my review on Unilocal when she accosted me in her store and asked us to leave. I told her I was writing a review on Unilocal and wanted to buy a book. She kept yelling at me to leave adamant that no cell phones are allowed. We left and found the same book at another shop 1 bock away. I mentioned this encounter and learned we were not first customers to be chased away. Too bad but poor abusive customer relations is not good for business. She is paranoid and fearful and somewhat aggressive which is not appropriate

Love antiquing? This is definitely the place to go. This shop is all dolled up compared to some of the other antique stores you might see in Santa Cruz or Soquel. Definitely catered to women who love to browse around looking at pretty things.
The Jason J and I were in the neighborhood, we got there in the late afternoon one Saturday. I gave the shop a call and asked how later they were going to be open until. They said they’d be open until 5:30pm, but would wait until I got there. It was about 5pm when I called.
When I got there, there were already a few other customers inside. The owner and I got to talking, very friendly and actually felt that her waiting around benefited her because more customers seemed to stroll on through that day.
I usually shop for antique buttons and she had a bit of a selection here, one good size drawer. I was able to pick a few up along with a nifty antique pyrex container for my mother.
I’ll say that visiting Betsy’s really gave me a valuable experience with antiquing and still love it to this day.

I have been buying from Betsy for years. I can always count on her to have unique items at great prices. She is a pleasure to talk with and learn from. I stop by every time I am in Capitola as I know she will have new items. You can park for free across the street at the police station– nice location.

i just love to hunt for unique pieces to add to my ecclectic life, and betsy’s summerhouse is the perfect place to do that. There are two large rooms, and various hidden nooks and corners fantastically adorned with all kinds of antiques — books, jewelry, photographs, toys, glassware, decorative treats, and many more beautifully maintained vingtage treasures.
The owner is sweet and helpful, and makes that makes browsing her impressive little store a real pleasure!