Upon leaving Mexico in the fall of 2019, I started a new project drawing on my lifelong passion for unearthing vintage clothing. At first, I wasn’t sure what that I could find beautiful old clothing in wearable condition here in Aiken, South Carolina. I had visited thrift shops sporadically over the years since my parents moved back here in 2002, but apart from a gorgeous camel color wool boucle coat with a blonde mink collar (shown below), I had never found many quality pieces.
I figured I could start by selling off items from my parents’ extra collections, de-cluttering, cleaning closets, getting a head start on the downsizing that is sure to come. I started with all the little bottles hanging out in the back of the liquor cabinets. I found a wooden chest with our barbies with all their clothing & accessories. My mom showed me a different chest with antique dolls that she thought belonged to her grandmother. My parents had carted a couple of boxes of pre-prohibition rye whiskey crates from our house in Maine. They were sure they would be valuable to the collector.
A couple of the local charity shops proved to be very interesting! Just full of treasures ready to be rescued! When the churches still had yearly bazaars, they were buying bonanzas for me. Over the years, Aiken has become more affluent. This little town had attracted rich folks shortly after being established as a stop on the railroad in the 19th century. Polo, golf, fox hunting & court tennis have always been the favorite sports, but in recent decades, Aiken was touted as a premier retirement town for baby boomers and in 2018 “best small town in the south” by Southern Living. So perhaps it’s not surprising to find cast-off designer gowns, cashmere overcoats, well-made vintage lingerie, and other quality pieces.
Mamasota Vintage Goods can be found on Etsy- where we have 2 boutiques: Mamasota Vintage for our clothing & accessories and Mamasota Vintage Casa for all the wonderful textiles, fiber arts & housewares that we come across.
