Check out our latest vintage finds now listed at the Midwest Vintage Shop on Etsy.com!

Fashion for Cardinal Nation 2014

Cardinal Red is a heavy-hitter in our starting lineup of must-have designer accessories available now at local retailers.

-Shannon Flecke, 2014

What’s the biggest color trend in St. Louis for Spring 2014?  Without a doubt, it’s Cardinal Red! We’ve put together several ways to sport major-league style by combining a pop of Cardinal Red with the latest accessories available at local retailers including Chloé handbags, Ashley Pittman bangles, and Diane Von Furstenberg wedges. Score big at Opening Day in brown leather flats, dark denim, and a pinstriped red baseball tee. Try celebrating a Friday night win with a feminine red blouse, gold accessories, and black leather slingbacks - an ensemble fit for a post-game soiree at the 360 rooftop lounge. Or, mix a polished but playful accessory piece - we picked red suede wedge heels - with classic black and white office attire and make the Happy Hour transition from work to “Play Ball!”  With each of our three looks, Cardinals fashion is Fredbird approved!

Opening Day Diva

Score a big win with a playful Cardinals logo tee mixed with designer brown flats and accessories.

Rag & Bone jeans available at Esther, Ladue, 314.997.0124.

PINK baseball tee available at Saint Louis Galleria, 314.884.4901.

Tory Burch sandals available at Nordstrom, Saint Louis Galleria, 314.884.4900.

Chloé handbag available at Neiman Marcus, Plaza Frontenac, 314.567.9811.

Gucci sunglasses available at Gucci.com

Friday Night Game: Flirty & Fun

A sheer red shirt with a waist tie bow is the perfect feminine touch to the sporty evening.  Platform wedge sandals add height and style.

Rag & Bone jeans available at Saks Fifth Avenue, Plaza Frontenac, 314.567.9200.

Forever 21 top, Coach wristlet and Michael Kors watch available at Saint Louis Galleria, 314.884.4900.

Diane von Furstenberg slingback heels available at Nordstrom, Saint Louis Galleria, 314.884.4900.

Afternoon Game: After Work Chic

Transition into Happy Hour with business casual elements combined with red pointed wedge heels and a sleek black bag.

Tory Burch bag and Ashley Pittman bracelets available at Neiman Marcus, Plaza Frontenac, 314.567.9811.

Pencil skirt and oxford shirt from Shopstyle.com

Stuart Weitzman wedge heels available at Nordstrom, Saint Louis Galleria, 314.884.4900.

Best of Etsy.com: Rabbit House Vintage

Up by Their Bootstraps at Rabbit House Vintage

A pair of vintage retailers celebrates 3 years in the online vintage fashion business and over 3,000 sales.
Written by Shannon Flecke – FEB 2014

According to Amelia and Imad, the story of Rabbit House Vintage begins “in a living room with a box of old boots, an outdated Olympus camera, and two people looking make a few extra bucks.”  Self-described on their Etsy profile as “Hunters & Gatherers” and “Borderline Hoarders,” Amelia and Imad are the unstoppable duo behind the wildly successful Rabbit House Vintage.

Amelia and Imad unashamedly confess to being “obsessed with the craftsmanship of years gone by.”  Considering the potential profit margin that exists in the second-hand and vintage retail markets, who could blame them?  One of many vintage retail shops on Etsy.com, Rabbit House Vintage specializes in men’s vintage footwear and accessories.  Based in Nashville, Rabbit House Vintage has been feeding a hungry local and international market since February 2011.  And after three years in the Etsy vintage business, Amelia and Imad will have much to celebrate: over 3,000 online sales through the Rabbit House Etsy store; their recent and successful move to a workshop and showroom space outside of downtown Nashville; the continuing growth of their new vintage women’s shop on Etsy - Wild Rabbit Vintage.

Rabbit House Vintage offers one of the widest and best selections of vintage boots available. Cowboy boots to army boots and slip-on knee-highs to ankle-grazing zip-ups, the variety of their inventory is unmatched in most other geographical markets beyond their Nashville base.  Imad explained that in Nashville they are able to source a much larger volume of near-perfect vintage inventory from a largely boot-wearing community.  And because of Nashville’s historic role as the hub of American country music, the cowboy boots they find are oftentimes custom made and expensive works of art.  Some boots are detailed with supple leathers dyed all shades of purples, blues, reds, and greens. Other boots feature exotic reptile skins.  Beyond the distinctive cowboy boots, the majority of men’s footwear available in the Rabbit House Vintage collection has been made to last by companies like Justin, Laredo, Acme, El Dorado, and Dan Post to name a few.

Amelia and Imad recognize other factors that have helped their business thrive.  With a physical location of the online company listed in Nashville, Rabbit House Vintage often gains from the desire customers have to buy cowboy boots that are authentically from the country music capital of the world.  This association of Nashville and quality seems especially useful for international customers seeking ‘real’ American cowboy boots.

But the most important factor to Rabbit House Vintage’s success is that Amelia and Imad work really hard.  If they are not scouring the local Goodwill Outlet for boots and other vintage accessories, they are probably scrubbing and polishing inventory in the backroom of their new office, storage facility, and retail showroom outside of downtown Nashville.  The retail portion of the Rabbit House workshop is filled with boots of every color and has become a local getting-spot for Nashville hipsters and vintage enthusiasts.  Amelia and Imad consider it more of a vintage thrift shop offering great deals on the boots and accessories that are not quite up to the standard of the vintage stock listed in their online inventory.  Luckily, most of their local customer base prefers a less-expensive and uniquely imperfect version of vintage items anyway so everybody wins.   

Amelia and Imad’s three-year success with Rabbit House Vintage shows that for some small businesses, the -store-front-required style of niche retail is no longer as necessary for success as it was in the pre-Etsy era.  Because of online marketplaces like Etsy, small fashion businesses can grow dynamically and simultaneously supply a local and a worldwide demand.

Rabbit House Vintage is open online 24/365 at www.etsy.com/shop/RabbitHouseVintage.  For more information about the company and for directions to the showroom, visit www.rabbithousevintage.com.