Pacific Sun Weekly 04.22.2011 - Section 1

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guez dress with the price tags still on (retail $1,030) priced at $350. So if you are looking for the latest boutique fashions and want to ďŹ nd exceptional deals, this is the place you should be visiting regularly—new inventory gets put out every day, so don’t miss out! The other consignment store I visited was What Poppy Wants on Magnolia in Larkspur. As you walk into this store you might feel as though you’re stepping into the closet of someone who saved everything she wore through every decade of her life. From faux fur jackets to vintage beaded tops, boas and boots galore, this is the place to ďŹ nd something that will not only steal the show, it won’t have been seen on anyone else. Are you a lover of vintage? Come on down! Entering, you’ll be greeted by a serious collection of cowboy boots. Whether you prefer yours in chocolate brown, caramel, turquoise or pink, this shop has the boot for you. A nice pair of cowboy boots can cost anywhere from $300 and upward, but here you’ll ďŹ nd them priced around $80. Once I got past the boots I spotted a gorgeous vintage black-and-pink lace dress with beaded detail. This dress would make you think back to the days when you liked dressing up like a princess or perhaps imagined being a passenger on the Titanic (one of the survivors, no doubt). In another corner of the store was a group of alligators... shoes and purses, that is. With all the savings and the great ďŹ nds on barely worn clothing, it’s almost a crime not to shop at consignment stores. The only downside is that you might fall in love with a dress or a shoe that’s not your size. You need the self-control to

remember—when buying new or used—that just because you love it, if it doesn’t also ďŹ t properly, it’s best to leave it for someone else. After shopping in these stores you may be inspired to go home, cull the gently worn clothes that are in your own closet and march down to a consignment store and resell them. Most consignment stores work in the same way. You can bring your clothing to the store (call ahead, as some stores only take clothing on certain days or by appointment) and they’ll look through your items and decide which items they think they’ll be able to sell. Stores usually take current pieces—fashions from within the last two to three years that are in great condition—or vintage if that’s their specialty. They then display the clothing in the store for two to three months. Once your items have been sold they’ll pay you 50 percent of what it was sold for. If you do some consignment store investigating, you’ll soon discover the ones you like best. Then it’s up to you to become a regular. My signature handbag, the one I wear the most, came from a consignment store. I probably would have bought it at full price had I seen it in a regular store, but it was all the sweeter to ďŹ nd it at a fraction of the cost. Just remember though, all sales are ďŹ nal. So shop these stores when you have the luxury of time and can hunt until you ďŹ nd something you love. < Brenda Kinsel is a fashion and image consultant based in Marin. Check out her website at www. brendakinsel.com.

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APRIL 22 - APRIL 28, 2011 PACIFIC SUN 23

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