Here’s Lo-Down contributor Jessica Delfino’s weekly roundup of Lower East Side shops, sales and new collections to keep your eye on.
Pilgrim (75 Orchard Street) is the classiest vintage store around, carrying over thirty brands of gently used handbags by Chanel, Dior and Valentino, to name a few. There’s plenty of fancy jewelry and elegant numbers you swear you’ve seen in your cool great aunt’s closet.
Sometimes I like to strut around and imagine I’m the type of woman who wears these fine things on my day to day — en route to Bloomingdale’s for a lady’s shopping trip, or on my way to a fundraiser for the non-profit that my friends and I started for kicks. They don’t often have sales, but stay tuned for a jewelry sale in the coming weeks.
Pilgrim is open Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday, 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., Monday 12 to 5 p.m. and Thursday through Saturday 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Mandate of Heaven (17 Essex Street) is located just a few steps above the Essex Street sidewalk in an unexpected storefront. The store mainly consists of reconstructed vintage—new fashions lovingly reimagined using the guts of older pieces–as well as some gently used items, and is awash owith pastels, short suits, lace tops, plaids and mint denim made for tiny little ladies who I imagine have tea parties and carry parasols. The unique designs hover in the $200-$300 range. If human beings were dolls, we’d all shop at Mandate of Heaven.
Mandate of Heaven is open Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday 12 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 12 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Moo Shoes Vegan Shop Up Event will rock your fair trade socks off this Sunday with a slew of vendors hocking vegan wares such as Yeah Dawg, Cake Thieves, Tamerlaine Farm, Meow Meow Tweet, Sweet Maresa and Mountain Morsels. You can conscientiously shop and they’ll do you one better — your purchases will help raise funds for Animal Sanctuary at Tamerlaine Farm’s barn renovations, so they can house the chicks and turkeys they plan to rescue in the Fall.
The sale takes place at Moo Shoes, 78 Orchard Street, from 12 noon to 7 p.m. on Sunday, August 10th and again on September 21st.
Soho Sample Sale at Open House Gallery (201 Mulberry, between Kenmare & Spring) will be wrapping up their week long run in Soho on Friday August 15th. If you’re looking for deals on mixed contemporary men’s & ladies’ European and American brands at a substantial discount, here’s an excellent spot to find them.
Open House Gallery is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, closed weekends.
Gone But Not Forgotten: I really miss Old Hollywood. I bought one of their cabinets and a picture frame when they cleared out. Their clothing, jewelry and strange bric-a-brac was a mixture of unexplainably cheap and weirdly expensive, which I appreciate in a store because I like options. Sure, they’re still in Brooklyn (Greenpoint, to be exact) but I want them back within walking distance. Who do I have to talk to to make this happen…DeBlasio?
Alternately, though I didn’t really shop at Earnest Sewn (formerly at 90 Orchard) as much, I liked their vibe. Now the entire corner where they once sat is shuttered, leaving the intersection of Orchard and Broome looking haunted. There are quite a few empty storefronts around the Lower East Side at the moment, but when new businesses come in, chances are, they’ll be a bar or a clothing store, so at least we have new places to look forward to.
What clothing stores that are no longer with us do you miss most?
Send your tips about upcoming sales and new collections to: tips@TheLoDownNY.com
Jessica Delfino is a comedic musician who has lived and performed in the LES for like, forever. She first fell in love with beautiful clothing as a kid when her mom let her dress up in her vintage stash. Jessica was called “One of NY’s 50 Most Fashionable People” by Time Out NY. Check her out at here or email her at: jessica@thelodownny.com. She’s also @JessicaDelfino on Twitter.
