‘Who doesn’t love a good makeover?’

Rachel Kroeger

Staff

April 20, 2026

TWO RIVERS – Only six months after the Violet Inn, Lounge & Spa began taking reservations, Co-owners and sisters Melissa Nyssen and Amanda Hanley are celebrating once again.

The six-room boutique inn in Two Rivers – which The Business News first featured in its June 30, 2025 issue – recently received the Wisconsin Economic Development’s Main Street Award for the Best Total Building Transformation of 2026.

That recognition, the sisters said, speaks not only to the renovation itself, but to the building’s deeper story.

Hanley – a part-time Wisconsinite between the business in Two Rivers and her home in northern Illinois – said when they first bought the Violet Inn building, they quickly uncovered its local history.

“We[’ve given] so many tours, and I think so many people are blown away by the space,” she said. “I gave a tour to a couple who came in last week to use the sauna, and they [said] they were married in that space when it was an Elks Lodge.”

Inspired by the building and its surrounding community, Hanley said great care, time and attention went into every detail at the Violet Inn.

“We bought the building and really started to network with people in the community [to] try [and] understand the history of the town, because that was really important to our building,” she said.

Utilizing the talents and historical support of local artisans and organizations, Hanley said she and Nyssen have been impressed “again and again” by those they’ve worked with.

“[They are] just very hard-working, generous, creative [and] thoughtful people,” she said. 

Below the inn, Hanley said, is the Fox Den Speakeasy, which has been open to the public since its first event in December of last year.

“The speakeasy has been really exciting because I think it’s a new alternative for the community,” she said. “I think a lot of people still don’t even know we’re there, so they’re kind of delighted to find a new opportunity.”

Having already established “a good group of regulars,” Hanley said she’s enjoyed getting to know community members through bar-side conversations and their “Den” Talk events, in which people are invited to speak on their knowledge regarding local topics – such as Lake Michigan shipwrecks and the Ice Age Trail.

“What I’m learning from being inside the bar and connecting with people one-on-one in the speakeasy is that everyone has a really interesting story,” she said. “We’re really excited about bringing people together in a space to connect [and share] a lot of these interesting local stories.”

‘Another great addition’

Despite being “very excited” to receive the WEDC Main Street recognition, Hanley said going full-tilt on projects, like the Violet Inn renovation, is simply how she and Nyssen “are wired.”

“We really like to go full out and just make a beautiful experience and comfortable setting,” she said. “We [also] love the design and the programming aspects…, [and] it just magically came together in a beautiful way.”

However, Hanley said the building’s renovation left the crowd at the 35th Wisconsin Main Street Awards ceremony in audible shock.

“We didn’t just go in and paint the walls,” she laughed. “They showed… four different views of the [building] before [renovations], then the next [slide] was four pictures of [the building] now, and everyone in the audience gasped. My sister and I were so excited, because I think we also won the ‘biggest gasp award.’”

At the time they purchased it, Hanley said the building and its infrastructure were severely outdated.

“Because we changed occupancy, we were subject to a whole new set of [regulations] – from fire code to the Americans with Disabilities Act, energy conservation, [etc.],” she said. “So, we couldn’t just paint the walls, but a lot of the [upgrades] that are in there, you’re not going to see.”

Hanley said she and Nyssen transformed what was a “vacant, blighted building” into a modern wellness retreat designed with Two Rivers in mind at every corner.

“Everything was completely updated, but we really wanted the place to have a sense of history,” she said. “We still have the pine ceilings and beams in the main nest area, the beautiful maple floors in the bedroom area downstairs [and] the terrazzo floors. Then we brought in touches of history – like our fireplace is wood from the former [J.E.] Hamilton [Holly Wood Type] facility that used to be right behind us.”

In addition to honoring the building’s history, Hanley said sustainability was top of mind throughout the renovation.

“That’s always been a very important ethos for us,” she said.

Upgrades such as refillable product bottles and the inn’s “highly efficient HVAC systems” – offering individual room temperature control – Hanley said, provide both cost savings and guest comfort.

“That’s not something you’re going to notice,” she said, “but we have beautiful plants, a lot of art by local artists and a lot of history [featured through] photos [and] objects. We just wanted it to be a cozy place you would want to hang out [at, because you] feel like you can exhale.”

Hanley said their efforts haven’t ceased either, as she and Nyssen prepare for their backyard “secret garden” project.

“We’re applying for a [beer garden] permit, but it’s going to be more of a cocktail garden,” she said. “Not only will it be fenced in, beautiful and private with sweet fairy lights, but we want to grow a lot of different things – some things that we can use in our cocktails, like mint, currants or serviceberries.”

With “plans in the works,” Hanley said they’re hoping to open the garden later this year.

“It will be open to the public [as] part of the Fox Den,” she said. “It’s a place to have a cocktail, or maybe you can have an event, [like] a small wedding, back there. It’s going to be another great addition to Two Rivers.”

For more on the Violet Inn, Lounge & Spa, visit its Facebook page or website (violetinn.com).