This past weekend has been a whirlwind with TONS of driving, but boy was it worth it! I took a half day from work on Friday to check out the 12th Anniversary Sale at Malena’s Vintage Boutique in West Chester, PA, and then on Sunday headed back to the area for WWII Weekend at the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum. It was a weekend full of great people, great fun, and of course pretty much vintage everything!
I heard about the sale at Malena’s via Celeste Giuliano, an
amazing pin-up photographer I’ve been following for years (check out her page,
it’ll make you want to put your red lipstick on stat!). Celeste is based in the Philly area, and this
year she was contributing hundreds of items from her studio’s pin-up wardrobe
to be a part of the Anniversary Sale.
Hearing that, and also the fact that there were going to be $10 clothes
racks and $10 accessory tables PLUS an additional 20% off if you paid cash, I
knew I wasn’t going to be missing this one.
The sale started at 5:00PM on Friday night, and then
continued the next day. West Chester is
a little over two hours from where I am in Jersey, not including rush hour
traffic, so I made sure to leave extra early to be there around 5:00. I actually ended up getting to West Chester
an hour early; having some time to kill
I stopped into the boutique just to quickly scope it out, and ask for any
recommendations on where to hang out for a bit . I was greeted by Malena
herself, and she pointed me in the direction of a place right down the street
to grab a yummy cucumber vodka cocktail while I waited.
I made my way back to the shop a little after the start time. The main attraction of the sale was their show-room around
the corner, which is normally not open to the public. Walking in the first thing I could think of
was HOLY VINTAGE:
The room was literally packed wall to wall with goodies from
every decade. As promised, there were
four different $10 racks, and three tables full of accessories and jewelry
priced the same. There was literally a taste of everything; wedding dresses, matching separates, formal wear,
jackets, nightgowns and slips, dresses, you name it. The items from Celeste Giuliano’s closet were
mixed in; some were in a $10 section, and others were on the price-as-marked
racks. I loaded up my arm with 10 or so
different items; some from the $10 rack, and others from the non-discounted
rack. One of the items I grabbed was a 1980s Bill Blass sailor dress that Malena had posted on social media earlier in the day - I was so excited to see it was my size!
After taking some time to try on, I FELL IN LOVE with two pieces; the Bill Blass fit like it was made for me, and so did an amazing fit and flare blue polka dot romper that was perfect for WWII Weekend! Both items were regular price, but that didn't matter - I knew I had to go home with them. I mean really, just look at the Bill Blass, especially the back detail!:
And how fitting was the romper for WWII weekend? A huge thanks to both Malena and Celeste, whose feedback definitely made me even more excited about my purchase!
I received 20% off for paying cash (the discount was 15% if you paid with a card), and with the discount my total came to $80, which I found so reasonable for how much I loved the two items. Now keep in mind, this all happened in just the showroom - I hadn't even shopped the actual boutique yet, which was also all 20% off! I was satisfied enough with my purchase to call it a day, but I of course needed to scope out the shop for my readers! I spent about 15 minutes or so just walking around the boutique looking at what else they had before heading back home to NJ. I also got to meet Celeste in the shop, who *fingers crossed* I'll finally get to book a shoot with this summer!
Overall, the whole experience was more than well worth the two hour drive. Malena clearly knows what she is doing in all aspects of her business; she and her staff are above and beyond friendly, every item for sale is of great quality and condition and there are so many unique pieces, and the store itself is clean, organized, inviting, and decorated perfectly:
After taking some time to try on, I FELL IN LOVE with two pieces; the Bill Blass fit like it was made for me, and so did an amazing fit and flare blue polka dot romper that was perfect for WWII Weekend! Both items were regular price, but that didn't matter - I knew I had to go home with them. I mean really, just look at the Bill Blass, especially the back detail!:
I received 20% off for paying cash (the discount was 15% if you paid with a card), and with the discount my total came to $80, which I found so reasonable for how much I loved the two items. Now keep in mind, this all happened in just the showroom - I hadn't even shopped the actual boutique yet, which was also all 20% off! I was satisfied enough with my purchase to call it a day, but I of course needed to scope out the shop for my readers! I spent about 15 minutes or so just walking around the boutique looking at what else they had before heading back home to NJ. I also got to meet Celeste in the shop, who *fingers crossed* I'll finally get to book a shoot with this summer!
Overall, the whole experience was more than well worth the two hour drive. Malena clearly knows what she is doing in all aspects of her business; she and her staff are above and beyond friendly, every item for sale is of great quality and condition and there are so many unique pieces, and the store itself is clean, organized, inviting, and decorated perfectly:
I seriously wish I lived closer to West Chester so I could be more of a regular here. Malena does sell online through eBay and posts items on social media, so if you aren't super accessible, definitely look into that as an option!
It looks like that's my report for now! Did anyone else get to attend the sale? If so, what did you find!? I'd love to hear what you came home with!
xoxo, Bettie
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