Fall Into Vintage

I'm not gunna front. I'm a total budget shopper, and even if I had lots of money to spend I wouldn't because most trends come and go, which is why thrift stores rule in my book. My latest obsession, however, are the vintage eBay stores popping up faster than foreclosed homes.

Best friends and L.A.-based Fallen into Vintage eBay store owners Nicole Tanner, who's of Mexican and Hawaiian descent, and Lisa Chin recently teamed up after both lost their fulltime gigs. Chin, who designed for her own Liya Cynamone label, decided to focus her eye on fashion finds. Tanner, who's been styling her whole familia for every big function imaginable, including proms, quinces, and L.A. hot spots, has been passionate about vintage ever since she rocked second-hand punk T-shirts in the 80s. Only a month after splitting the eBay store dues of $15/month, they succeeded at selling 10 dresses to Tyra Banks' stylist Yaniece Piper Thomas.

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Today, the fashionable mamas (they both have little girls) spend their days scouring every second-hand, thrift and vintage store, flea market, garage/yard sale in their 100-mile radius in search of current vintage threads for their female clothing store. I caught up with Tanner for the heads up on what's hot this fall.

How long have you had the store? I've been selling on Ebay since November of 2000, but I wasn't really serious until about 2004. I partnered up with my best friend Lisa Chin in September. We're both very creative people and have a ton of things in common. We inspire each other and have a really good working relationship.

How much do your items sell for? We start all of our auctions at $12.99. As far as what the ending price is, we can never tell. Sometimes things sell for as much as $300 and more.

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What's the most profit you made? We picked up this amazing Alfred Shaheen vintage cocktail dress for about $20 and sold it for $360. Alfred Shaheen is famous for for his wild, signature prints.

Who are your clients? We have a lot of regulars that buy multiple items every week. Recently, we were offered an amazing opportunity to work with Tyra Banks' stylist Yaniece. Tyra wanted to incorporate vintage with her contemporary styles for the 4th season of her show, so we've been working hard with her stylist to find really special and unique pieces that she thinks will look amazing on Tyra. Her website has a 'what she's wearing on the show' link that often links to our <a href="http://tyrashow.warnerbros.com"target="_blank">eBay store</a>.

Tell me about your fashion history. I think for both Lisa and I, it's been a life-long desire. We've always loved fashion and vintage. Lisa has a degree in fashion design and comes up with amazing ideas. We've been buying vintage since we were teeny boppers.

Where do you shop? My favorite place is the Salvation Army. I can't tell you how many amazingly beautiful things I've found there. We also shop with specific vintage wholesalers and lot's of different thrift stores.

What's your fashion motto? We don't really have a motto, but we firmly believe that feeling good about yourself inside radiates on the outside and people notice. When you feel good about yourself, everything looks good on you.

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What's cool this fall? What's not cool anymore? We're feeling feathers! We're trying to incorporate feathers into our looks for fall, so keep an eye out for some feathery jewelry and accessories. And of course, vintage. We love to mix vintage with contemporary. When we buy for the store we shop for things that mimic current fashion trends.

What are some trends this season that haven't been seen and done before? As cliché as it sounds, all styles come back full circle but just a little more updated. When you see new styles from big name designers, you can always bet that a vintage piece inspired them. That's why we love vintage. You can have a really cute vintage dress on with some killer Jimmy Choos and the outfit draws attention.

What are the must-haves for men? We've come across some really cool vintage leather jackets and shirts that we pick up for our men. It's funny because some men are kind of weird about wearing something that someone else has worn but the minute they get a compliment, they're all about it!

How do you envision your ebay store growing? We definitely hope to develop a following. We would love to reach out to as many people as possible and be able to share our excitement about vintage.

Place a bid on some killer digs at <a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Fallen-Into-Vintage"target="_blank">Fallen Into Vintage</a>.

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