I have a small clothing budget and an even smaller closet, so I aggressively curate my wardrobe each season. Without mercy, I pull garments that are too small, too big, too trendy or too worn.
There are some pieces, though, that make the cut every year. Those are the ones I always feel great in and wear all the time. Included in that lot are two skirts I purchased more than three years ago from local designer Victoria Simons.
From 2000 to 2005, Simons ran a small boutique called Pearl at 65th and Latona, near Green Lake. Pearl was a postage stamp-sized shop stocked with Simons' own collection of clothes and handbags, as well as jewelry and a smattering of body care.
In 2005, Simons moved Pearl across the street, changed its name to Mini Doe and added quirky gifts and home accessories to its inventory, but in 2006, she closed the store. Fortunately, after a two-year hiatus, she's back at it, and I'm overjoyed.
These days, Simons sells her clothing and handbags at boutiques around town, including Tweed [0] in Greenwood and Burnt Sugar [0] in Fremont. She has tentative plans to open a showroom for special events in the former Pearl location, but a return to full-time retail is not on her agenda.
Simons has made a living as a designer for 16 years, but has been creating her own clothes since junior high. Influenced by her mother, who has great taste and a penchant for sewing, Simon is inspired by the fashion of the 1950s through the early 1970's. I once purchased a pink dress from her that made me feel like Sophia Lauren circa 1957: beautifully curvaceous.
Simons' designs are a balanced blend of cheekiness and sophistication. She makes wearable clothes that combine vintage touches with today's fit. Her biggest seller is her 1970s-inspired halter dress (from $140), which features a halter top that miraculously enhances what you want to enhance and a full skirt that minimizes what you want to minimize.
Made from her immense stock of vintage fabrics, Simon's fall line includes dresses ($140-$500) in breezy cotton, rich brocades, silks and other luxury fabrics; slim pants (from $130); jackets ($150-$350) inspired by late 1950s and early 1960s sewing patterns; and demure patterned tops ($58-$178).
Meet Simons and view her fall collection at a trunk show at Tweed on Aug. 8 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., and on Aug. 9 from 1 to 5 p.m.
If you have a shop, sale, event or great product tip you'd like to share, e-mail seattleshopping@nwsource.com.
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