Here’s Lo-Down contributor Jessica Delfino’s weekly roundup of Lower East Side shops, sales and new collections to keep your eye on.
Impressions (Delancey at Forsyth Street)
The little Spanish woman who runs Impressions speaks English well enough to tell you the price of a vintage ’70s Pucci-style dress is $7 and that no, she doesn’t accept credit cards. Before Impressions, she ran Flowers. She has worked to dress the underserved in the Lower East Side for 20 years–not to mention bringing affordable fashion to artists and folks who just like a great deal. I love to stop by once a month to poke around. Recently, I scored an ’80s-style denim pantsuit for $3 and a vintage ’70s boho dress for $5.
Drop in while you can, before her little closet-sized storefront trunk of wonders is turned into condos. Impressions keeps odd hours, but it appears to be open daily from about 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Coast To Coast (Hester Street Fair, Essex Street at Hester Street)
This little camper turned super cool vintage store on wheels has made a habit of pulling up and plopping itself down in front of Hester Street Fair, so I’ve made a habit of popping my head in to see the cool things Jaimee, the captain of this mobile shop, has found on her travels. South western-y lamps, hats, clothing and more are priced at a mark-up, but she redeems herself by connecting shoppers with things they simply won’t find anywhere else.
Coast to Coast is open at Hester Street Fair on Saturdays and Sundays through the summer, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Ethik Clothing Co. (160 Orchard St.)
Ethik, a.k.a. EthikNY started as a small screenprinting operation out of a college dorm room before it took its surprisingly affordable hoodies, tanks, hats and streetwear style, described as “rebellious idealogy” to the Lower East Side and, just recently, Philadephia. Who doesn’t love a rebel?
A video on their website shows a handsome teen smoking as he walks to his BMW. I was hoping he was going to drive it off a cliff or something actually rebellious…Still, this is a good stop for the cool kids — the boys that is — this isn’t a shop for the ladies. They’ve just “dropped” their Summer I Collection. You can buy it in the store or online.
Ethik’s store on Orchard is open daily, noon to 8 pm.
Yumi Kim (105 Stanton St.)
Yumi Kim looks like what would happen if a truck full of flowers and models exploded. A 5’9” amazon woman such as myself knows better than to hang around in places that cater to petite chicks but I am still eyeballing the blue flowered jumper on their website like a tween stares down a Justin Bieber poster, fantasizing about stuffing my various limbs into it until it fits or splits.
Bargain hunters can drop into their pop-up shop through July 1st at 40 Prince Street.
The store on Stanton is open daily from noon to 7 p.m.
Moscot (108 Orchard St.)
This place is uber cool and it knows it and expels it without even hinting at it. That’s the secret to cool—everyone knows it without you having to broadcast it. Their glasses say it all. The spectacle store which used to be located across the street from itself, will get you into a fly pair of glasses or shades ($200-$300), outfit you in a hip T-shirt ($45) and even entertain your earholes with their live music events. The next one is on June 19.
Moscot is open Monday through Friday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
If you have info about an upcoming sale, a good deal or a new collection, email us at: 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 and on Twitter @JessicaDelfino.
