When designer fashion shop Raggs first opened in 1984, “people would pull over to buy a $200 sweater like they were buying milk,” quips owner Tom Maloney. “Raggs” derives from a slang (more…)
Uncommon Threads
Kimberly Pedrick remembers traveling to New Haven from Monroe, CT, as a seven-year-old to try the pizza at Pepe’s on Wooster Street. Other than that experience, the Elm City was just something her family sometimes passed on I-95. (more…)
Clothing Time
Before meeting Vintanthromodern Vintage owner Melissa Gonzales, I envisioned her as imaginative and whimsical—the kind of woman who, as a child, twirled around the kitchen in her grandmother’s fanciest frocks, sunlight and the color of marsh marigolds gliding across the floor together. Such nostalgic notions of playing dress-up as children rings out in the hearts […]
Well-Suited
Ferrucci Fine Men’s Clothiers on Elm Street is a handsome place indeed, with immaculate displays and fine jackets hanging in perfect rows. Although its heritage is Italian, the shop has a British feel, with framed photos of polo and tennis players decorating wood-paneled walls. Talking to the father and son who run the place, it’s […]
Where It’s Hat
DelMonico sells hats. Now, if you’ve lived in downtown New Haven during the past 106 years, that statement is not going to turn your head. It’s not going to make you hold onto your hat or flip your lid. But try this on for size: how many other hat shops can you name? Not just […]
Third Time’s the Charm
New York City pulsates with noise and energy and entropy, a whirlwind of commotion that—as Carol Shen, owner of two Shen Boutiques in NYC’s Upper East Side, knows firsthand after nearly 30 years in business there—can be exhausting. That’s one reason why Shen decided to look north and east to New Haven, not south to […]
The Way It Clothes
Yurway boutique occupies a modest-sized rectangle on the corners of Chapel and York Streets, with narrow walkways between rows of clothes and accessories. While browsing, you might brush up against a silk top or lace party dress, hiding away, waiting for the right person to snatch them up. The shopping experience at the downtown women’s […]
Unconventional Wisdom
The racks at the front of the store are full of possibilities: for New Year’s there’s a little black dress, made of raw silk with an elegant bow that ties at the back of your neck; a vibrant yellow jacket could be a standout staple in your work wardrobe; a jaunty striped crepe number would […]
Frocks, from Funky to Fela!
Todd Lyon and Nancy Shea, the retro-trendsetting founders of Fashionista Vintage and Variety, want their customers to understand the difference between “used clothing” and “vintage.” Fashionista doesn’t carry clothes which you can easily find (more…)