Vida Antigua Archives - LAFashionsnob.com

Refinery 29 and Simon Present: The Shopping Block

Oct 23 2014

The Houston Preminum Outlets were once again the setting for another great and uber-fashionable event, The Shopping Block- hosted by fashion and retail powerhouses Refinery 29 and Simon. The event was put on as an effort between R29 and Simon to collaborate and commend the small culture and take back the mall, as well as the outlets. Refinery 29’s Athena Chen mentioned that, “[Simon] provided a lot of liberties to celebrate the ‘millennial culture’ of shopping and bringing them back in this environment by bringing in curated local vendors and designers to be apart of this experience.”

Houston was stop five of the seven city mall tour. The tour started in NYC, then went to Philadelphia, followed by Boston, Miami, HOUSTON, then Los Angeles and finally back in NYC. The event design was inspired by modernist artists Donald Judd and Dan Flavin, as well as Marfa, TX and its art and architecture- especially cubism. “This experience is supposed to be interactive and allowing us to celebrate something that’s very in the moment in a very spiritual and tangible way… It’s a way to bring in a crowd to engage with consumers in a new way for Simon and to interact with new consumers that they may not have reached in the past…” Athena explained.

Houston’s event was held under a large tent, where each of the vendors and interactive stations were set up like an intimate mini shopping mall within the mall. Lovely ladies in a matching gray tee, white pleated lacy skirt paired with cute tennis shoes and socks acted as the ‘Style Concierge,’ helping with questions and handing out curated style guides. Each event has guest hosts and for the Houston edition- siblings Hanna, Sophia and Joshua Anderson were chosen to host the event. The interactive stations included beauty bars by Designer Fragrances and Cosmetic Company and Elizabeth Arden and a DIY station where guests could personalize a tote bag, taking inspiration from two Fall 2014 runway trends- sporty and embellished. The booth featured a moodboard of each trend, an example of that tote and crafting materials. The local indie boutiques included: Height of Vintage (vintage clothing), Hatton Henry (handmade leather bags and accessories), Sun Child (online boutique based in Texas), Vida Antigua (“Vintage Life” offers vintage clothing), fLuxe Jewelry (handmade jewelry from copper sheet metal and patina chemicals, inspired by Art Deco, Aztec pottery and modern geographic design), Sal Miel (handmade unisex jewelry of created from mixed metals and textures) , Busy-Being + Solid Gold (a brick-n-mortar based in Austin that carries art and product from local artists and friends) and Settlement Goods (boutique in Houston that carries emerging and independent designers who manufacture in the USA).

It was a fun afternoon to get crafty, take photos in the selfie booth, catch up with friends, shop and try for a chance to win a shopping spree valued at $1,500 at a Simon mall.

Huge thanks to the vendors, Simon, DPWPR & Refinery 29 gals (especially Athena) for a lovely day!

Mix 96.5 Project Glam 2013- Houston

Oct 22 2013

It was a rainy Thursday evening, but that didn’t stop Houston’s fashionista crowd from trekking out to the Bayou City Events Center for Project Glam- a one night fashion and beauty event that is open to the public. The event was hosted by CBS Radio’s Mix 96.5 and featured local vendors, VIP beauty treatments, accessories, product samples and style consultations, giveaways, exclusive offers and sweepstakes prizes. Vendors this year included: Amerejuve, Avon, Bedroom Kandi/Naughty Girl, Bootights, Color by Amber, Dao Chloe Dao, Deeter Mazda, Dice, Dulce Vida, Edward Sanchez, Evamor, Glam Boutique, Haute Chic Boutique, Houston Texans, Jamberry Nails, King of Luxe Paris, La Vie, Lavo Collections, Lola G, Mary Kay, Niagara Water, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Page Parkes, Personal Safety, Pomp & Circumstance, Rebel Rise, Rodan-Felds, Silver Eagle, South Hill Designs, Stiletto Stampede, Supple Skin, The Rose, Tie and Fashion Guy, Vida Antigua/Yoko Vintage, Woody’s Furs, Wrapped in Wellness and Your Nail Palace.

My favorite vendors of the evening were: Lola G Boutique, Pomp & Circumstance, Rebel Rise, Dao Chloe Dao and Vida Antigua/Yoko Vintage. I immediately hit it off with Lola G‘s owner- Gisela, as she’s a fellow Los Angeles native. I also learned about portable pop-up dressing rooms when I saw that she (and several other vendors) had one at the event. Her inventory included trendy pieces that she felt she would bring a taste of LA to Houston. Pomp & Circumstance– another local Houston boutique offered exceptional jewelry, like the “Sophie” layered necklaces and the “Saint Benedict”- which has a vintage rosary pendant with St. Benedict on it. There were also other cute accessories and clothing in their stash as well. Rebel Rise gave shoppers a taste of statement jewelry. Dao Chloe Dao is a local boutique owned by Project Runway alum- Chloe Dao. Unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to meet her, but I saw that she had some of her designs, as well as clothing and accessories from the boutique on hand for shoppers. Lastly, Vida Antigua and Yoko Vintage were on hand, sharing a booth and showcasing their best vintage sequins, prints and wildly awesome accessories.

The highlight of the event was fashion show. It was hosted by three of Mix 96.5’s radio personalities and spotlighted several looks from a variety of the vendors there. It was styled by top Houston stylist- Todd Ramos.

Thank you for having me and I can’t wait for next year’s event!

Recap of Houston Vintage Preview Party and Market

Oct 18 2013

**Recap of Houston Vintage Preview Party**

Oddfellows in the Heights was THE place to be if you were local to Houston and a lover of all things vintage, like myself; as it was the setting for the annual Houston Vintage Preview Party and Fashion Show – a prelude to its popular vintage market. The event was spearheaded by the lovely Dawn Bell and the fashion show was co-produced by Lindsay Halpin of Violet Peacock– Houston’s “Punk Rock Mad Hatter”. Before the 20s-inspired looks graced the runway, guests were treated to some shopping at the Replay on 19th Street booth. Owners Michael and Laura had a wonderful amount of vintage goodies, one of which- a beautiful floral crochet handbag (that I now own) was on display, waiting for a good home. After shopping, we all gathered in the main and nicely dated hall, where we were exposed to demonstrations of the “Charleston” and other 20s-style dances demonstrated by the Houston Hebcats. I wanted to get up and join the “flappers”, decked out in fringe dresses, shimmying with their partners on the dance floor. We also saw the works of Luna Tango… dancer Susana Collins performed the tango scene from the Phantom of the Opera. This dance represented the “golden era” of the tango, which was between 1935 to 1952. It was lovely and sensual. The last performer was Siouxie Monroe– who gave us a taste of burlesque. She wore a custom-made costume that was reminiscent of the 20s, igniting the audience’s exotic senses. The fashion show was energetic and showcased one-of-a-kind Great Gatsby-inpsired looks from Violet Peacock, Replay on 19th Street, Vida Antigua and others. It was a rather festive and dazzling affair and I was glad to have been a witness to it.

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** Recap of Houston Vintage Market **

The Houston Vintage Market that was recently held was really something to behold. The event was housed in the 1940s Air Terminal Museum, which is shadowed by Hobby Airport. I didn’t have the chance to check out the museum, as I was too immersed in the vintage at hand. I loved the A Hippy Heart Vintage camper that was parked outside the venue. The owner- Danna Hudson was really sweet and I just ADORED how she decorated {the interior and exterior of} her camper, whom she named- Lucy. Inside the venue was like a vintage treasure trove. More than eleven vintage vendors were on hand, selling their best pieces. Vida Antigua offered an array of sequins, florals and plaids. I had (and still have) my eye on a few cute floral rompers, a peach 70s dress with asymmetrical skirt and floral print and a dark pastel plaid jumper. Anitantique Vintage‘s own Anita G. had a lovely variety of costume jewelry, handbags and cute dresses at her booth. Stephanie Jimenez of Splendor- A Retrofit Boutique traveled from Austin to showcase her wares. There were quite a few upscale pieces that I really (am still) coveting, like: a GORGEOUS black Lilli Ann coat, a Victorian cape, a crazy 80s fuschia jumspsuit and a black and peach tie-dye caftan. Judy from My Flaming Heart offered vintage-inspired clothing, reworked and vintage jewelry and Texican/Mexican art. Leah- owner of French Fries and Fur and self-proclaimed french fry lover also had a booth full of amazing goodies. My heart is still panging for a really cute yellow jumpsuit that alas…wasn’t made for a tall frame. But needless to say, she had other fantastic options as well. Arrica of Collected Vintage also had a fantastic collection of pretties (clothing, hats and accessories), especially an oversize sequin and very 20s-influenced dress. Other vendors included: Eleanor Rose, Violet Peacock, Coronation Vintage, Houston Vintage Radio Association and Stacks on Racks. Aside from shopping the amazing vendors, there was also a Miss Houston Vintage 2013 pageant, which Jessie Rox was crowned queen. I’m soooo trying out next year! Sadly, I missed the Elvis that arrived after I left. But there is always next year!

If you’d like to be kept in the loop for all things Houston Vintage, check out their open Facebook group.

Tag - Vida Antigua