Dear Friends,

Admittedly my head has been in the clouds as of late. My thoughts caught somewhere between dreams and plans, past and present, hopes and reality. It's that season in Portland where the rain is unceasing and it both brings comfort and a longing that ebbs deeper to feel the sun on my skin again.

This week's new arrivals of pretty and feminine dresses and romantic tops brings about both feelings. The need and desire to cocoon indoors with my books and tea and the need and desire to run in a meadow or simply to just lay in the grass watching clouds go by. White billowy ones like on my favorite blouses.

Be Our Guest...

It recently was brought to my attention that January is National Hot Tea Month! How perfect as this time of year I find myself drinking even more tea than usual. I have been working on plans of how we will be using our studio now that our retail shop has moved (we're located inside Urbanite now, just two blocks up!) and my plans of reopening a retail store in our studio/showroom have been shuttered away. 

I hope to host personal shopping appointments in our studio/showroom as well as bespoke experiences involving all my favorite things and what I hope are also yours. Flowers, tea, and of course clothing.

We've been musing about hosting small gatherings perhaps a maximum of 4-6 of your friends for floral crafting parties accompanied with a tea service inspired by the Victorian era. We've also thought how lovely it would be to host tea parties for your littles and teach them how to craft sweet little mementos.

A bit old fashioned I know, but I can't help it! I like old fashioned things and old fashioned past times like partaking in Elevenses and Afternoon Tea (which we do weekly, if not daily here at AV HQ)

Longing to Travel, Longing for Market...

This is also the time of year when I'm usually preparing to attend several markets (it's more fun to say "going to market" than saying "going to a tradeshow" btw) and gathering inspiration for market, but seeing as how Covid is still running rampant about the country, I've decided to forego plans I had of traveling to any markets this season. So this will make it a whole year since I've been able to visit with brands and vendors in person to preview new styles for the upcoming seasons. Usually when I attend market I am choosing garments for the shop up to 8 months out. Le sigh.

I miss the thrill and rush of seeing rows and rows of samples, of that momentous goose prickles moment when I've found, perhaps, "the one". Because Adored Vintage began solely as a vintage women's clothing store and I its only keeper and procurer of one of a kind finds, the thrill of the hunt (even for modern garments) elicits a high for me I feel only other vintage shop proprietors can relate to.

Honestly, attending market is exhausting! I see no less than 10,000 pieces of clothing a day and usually by the end of the day I'm seeing floral prints and ginghams in my eyes and my feet are swollen and feel raw to the touch. As the buyer for Adored Vintage I am simultaneously using my left and right brain a minimum of 12 hours every day at market and exercising my skills of curation at at very rapid and very precise levels. Similarly to when I sourced vintage, I am lightning fast as a buyer for AV. I have to be! There's SO MUCH to see! Not to mention market involves SO MUCH talking, not just about business, but small talk (which I don't much care for) that by the end of one market my little introverted soul is crying out "please no moooore."

But, still I do LOVE IT. And I miss it terribly. Zoom calls and digital linesheets and Facetime chats and Whatsapp texts... sure, they suffice. But nothing beats seeing things in person, touching the fabrics, holding garments up against me in the mirror and visualizing the memories to be created while wearing said garment. It's absolutely thrilling, exhausting, and I miss it like crazy.  

I hope you are faring well friends and hope you too are giving yourself space to anchor awhile in dreamland and traveling down memory lane even though it is bittersweet (at least for me).

Faithfully yours,

Rodellee