Bittersweet Boutique Vintage Clothing Store 1989-2001

During the years 1989 thru 2001, I owned and operated a fabulous Vintage Clothing, Textile and Accessory storefront. Bittersweet Boutique was a huge store with the best of the best Vintage attire. When I search for Vintage Clothing stores today, both in cyperspace and real life, I truly cannot find anything that comes close to my old store. My inventory was outstanding since I was a rare source for people wanting to sell and consign their vintage heirlooms. I eventually maintained a website Bittersweet Boutque .com while running the storefront as well. What a ball I had! My palms would sweat when someone would come into the store and offer up a fine beaded 1920's flapper dress or an elegant 1940's gown with padded shoulders, nipped in waist, detailed tailoring and side zips. People brought me Bakelite jewelry, 1950's Lucite purses, Vendome suites, chubby fur coats, stoles and jackets, thousands of hats and cloches and so much more! I made many friends and contacts and learned the historical fashion significance of many time periods. These were wonderful memorable years for me that I shall always be grateful for and never, ever forget.

Vintage Everything

Do I love vintage? Yes I do! Just to give you an idea of how long I've been collecting, I have been collecting for so many years that the things I wasn't even collecting, are now vintage! Maybe it's the thrill of the hunt, or the luck of the find. But really, I have a stong passion for anything with nostalgia, history and style from our past. There is something about a plastic bakelite bracelet from the 1930's that makes my heart start to beat faster, or a pair of 1920's silk shoes, or maybe a photograph from an old 1940's magazine advertisement. I can't explain the feeling I get when I stumble upon a platinum ring with an old miner's cut diamond from the early 1900's, or a lucite purse from the 1950's. There is nothing, I repeat, NOTHING quite as nice to wear and just look at, as a 1930's silk nightgown, cut on the bias and trimmed ever so lightly! My favorite time period is the 1940's. I love the clothing, the nipped in at the waist jackets with exquisite trim and detail in fabulous gaberdine wool. I love the hats and the purses and gloves and especially the shoes! Let's talk jewelry. The jewelry from the 1940's was so fabulous! The huge fake rhinestone cluster brooches and the whimsical bakelite jewelry took everyone's mind off the war, if not just for a moment. This time period was all about rationing and conserving, so consequently, zoot suits were banned because they used too much fabric and expensive diamonds and gemstone jewelry were considered disrespectful and flambouyant for a country at war - that's why the wonderfully colorful bakelite and rhinestones made a huge impact. I have done everything from owning a 2000 sqft storefront filled with nothing but vintage where I traded and sold and met wonderful passionate people like myself, to opening one of the first vintage clothing stores on line, in the early 90's, to my current state of just being happy with looking at my "stuff" strategically laid out in my own home and trying to remember where I got it. By the way, please visit http://www.AmericanMadeJewelry.Etsy.com for some of my vintage offerings. Until then, Happy Hunting!!!!