Women's Clothing Stores - Astoria
Fashionable Clothing Stores - In Astoria Queens
Astoria / October 18, 2009. The fall is nearly here, and it’s time to go shopping for fall fashions. We stopped by Ella Boutique to talk to the two up-and-coming designers who run the NYC village style boutique in Astoria called Ella ['She' or 'Hers' in spanish], and then visited LoveDay 31 which is a vintage clothing store just off Steinway Street along 31st Avenue.
We interviewed Ella about about the women's clothing design business and talked to LoveDay31 about the approach to buying women's vintage clothing.
Women's Dresses - Queens
Ella Boutique is located on Steinway Street about a block south of Broadway St. Steinway is Astoria’s delightfully retro shopping district. Shopping on Steinway reminds me of decades gone by, when stores had quite a bit more personality than they seem to today, as well as unique offerings hard to find elsewhere. On Steinway there's a critical mass of unique shopping opportunities and many boutiques, but it helps to know your way around, so stick with us and we'll help you find them.
I’m happy to report that many of these shops are managed by the owners, most of whom are highly talented specialists in their areas of endeavor.
Designer Dresses At Ella Boutique - Astoria
Ella Boutique is one such shop. Juan Carlos and Doria [classic designer names] are the two talented partners who run the shop and both are designers. Ella Boutique carries a number of designer dresses, shoes, pants, skirts and blouses of many designers such as Love & Love summer wear, Bianco jeans and Jovani evening wear. But the real treat is the beautifully designed dresses made by the two owners.
Ella designs its own line of dresses that they sells privately to wealthy clients in Manhattan, as well as to store clients at Ella Boutique. Juan and Doria each create sketches of dresses / designs upon which the other collaborates, and out of which new fashions are created. Doria has family connections in Buenos Aires Argentina, one of the great fashion capitals of the 
world, which the duo use to help produce some of the dresses, while others are made here. By designing their own lines and tightly managing costs Ella is able to compete effectively on price and quality. Juan and Doria say that about half of what they sell in dresses comes from the ones they design. Having seen a few of these dresses [see photos], I can see why.
LoveDay 31 - Women's Vintage Clothing In Astoria
On the other side of the fashion catwalk is the retro look. Retro is eco-friendly as old is made new once again. We stopped to visit Ivona Bilicic of LoveDay 31 to see what was going on in the world of this fall’s yesteryear fashions.
Women's Accessories, Shoes & Dresses - Astoria Queens
Ivona has 17 years in the retro clothing business having cut her teeth as a buyer for the NYC vintage clothing shop called ‘Screaming Mimi’s’. She studied fashion and upon arrival in NYC she began working in the vintage fashion world. About four years ago, having seen the influx of young professionals into Astoria from Manhattan, she decided to open a shop to cater to young working women by providing affordable fashion at competitive prices. Her unit target prices range between $50 to $100, but things can be found on either side of that range.
She’s a fabric friendly fashionista who first looks at the clothing quality, and specifically the quality can be found in the fabric and sometimes in the trim. If it doesn’t pass muster, it doesn’t matter how hot the item is, it doesn't get picked up. Her specialty is women’s dresses as like many women her age, she loves them, and does most of her business in this area. She also has shoes and accessories, which include everything from cowgirl boots to catwalk heels. The retro fashion timelines runs anywhere from the 40’s which is hard to find, to the boom years of the nineties which is more available.
Last Spring things began to slow as some of her clients found themselves without a paycheck. But since then things have slowly begun to pick up again and she's looking to a good fall. Looking good is a part of succeeding under any circumstances. It helps to make you feel good, and when you feel good it's easier to meet people, establish relationships and land good jobs.
Women's Clothing Stores In Queens Astoria - Related Links
Click here to view the home page of Subdivision Boutique women's clothing store in LIC Queens. Click here to view Islam Fashions in Astoria.
Click this link to go to the section of this site entitled Queens Shopping. Click this link to go to the Astoria Shopping Center / Astoria Restaurants Guide & Map.
To find restaurants, shopping or other things to do in any of the neighborhoods, use the search function.
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