aux etoiles vintage

The Cool Kid Fashion Club: Esprit to Rachel Comey

October 20, 2021 by auxetoilesvintage

In the 1980s, wearing Esprit transported you into an imagined global, fashionable community, whether you were in Topeka, Kansas or New York City. Shopping for Esprit at the department store was special. Shopping at an actual Esprit store was next level. Fashion designer Maryam Nassir Zadeh captures the joy of Esprit: “My earliest fashion memory dates back to the Esprit de Corp days in the ’80s. I remember opening my closet at age seven and being mesmerized by the beauty […]

Categories: Uncategorized • Tags: branding, esprit, fashionhistory, rachel comey

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The Mall as Muse

June 20, 2021 by auxetoilesvintage

We spent our formative years at the mall. What we experienced there continues to inform our style. The modern mall experience was born in the Midwest nearly a century ago. The Country Club Plaza opened in Kansas City in 1923 as the first shopping center easily accessible by automobile. Inspired by the architecture of Seville, Spain, the outdoor development featured statues, mosaics, and fountains that transported visitors to a European destination. It was an immediate hit. Fast forward to 1956 […]

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The Etsy Aesthetic and Luxury Fashion

February 29, 2020 by auxetoilesvintage

If there’s one thing that captures vintage sellers on Instagram and Etsy, it’s wicker and especially the wicker peacock chairs. They really capture the boho vibe of the 1970s, or the rise of the Silver Lake Shaman aesthetic. We see them quite often now that we sell vintage clothing (and Tracy sells home goods here!) through both social platforms, Etsy and Instagram. The chairs go for quite a bit, but can be found around thrift stores for a few dollars. […]

Categories: 1970s, momcore, vintage history

How We Make Our Long Distance Vintage Business Work

October 30, 2019 by auxetoilesvintage

In April 2018, Aux Etoiles Vintage launched on Etsy and Instagram with a curated collection of vintage “momcore” blazers, high waist denim, tissue thin tees, and prairie dresses and blouses. As business partners and longtime bffs, we were thrilled to see a 20 year-old dream become a reality. The catch? We are separated by a distance of 1,200 miles. How do we run a vintage business from two separate locations? Here’s how we took our business from an idea to […]

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Put a Blazer on It

October 9, 2019 by auxetoilesvintage

The air is crisp, the days are shorter, and the grocery store has turned into pumpkin spice central! It’s fall! All we want to do is dive into a pile of blazers–plaid, velvet, corduroy, and more. Bring on the blazers! Have you ever noticed how a blazer can solve any fashion emergency. Want to dress up your tee and jeans? Blazer. Dress pattern too busy? Blazer. Need to punch up your wardrobe with only one piece? It’s a blazer! Put. […]

Categories: fall fashion

How We Style Prairie Looks: Part One

August 24, 2019 by auxetoilesvintage

The prairie trend has taken hold and it shows no signs of stopping. From Batsheva to Ulla Johnson on the runway to the popularity of vintage Gunne Sax and Laura Ashley on Etsy and Ebay, the prairie look is hot. Greta Gerwig’s upcoming adaptation of Little Women could even make the trend even more popular. But, sometimes a little prairie goes a long way. Here are some ways to incorporate the trend wihout looking like you’ve wandered off the set […]

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7 Things We Bought at Attire KC

July 25, 2019 by auxetoilesvintage

About a week ago, we were one of the vintage sellers at the Attire KC Summer Market, Kansas City’s premier vintage market organized by Peaches Vintage Collective. It was a great day– we got to meet customers, talk shop with other sellers, spend time together, and we sold a few things along the way. But, oh my goodness, we are not exaggerating when we say that it was the hottest we have ever been. KC brought the heat! But, KC […]

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31 day thoughts

February 1, 2019 by auxetoilesvintage

Part of the motivation for us to start Aux Etoiles was the blow up of ‘prairie’ styles in NYC. As children of both the 1980s and Kansas, we definitely get the floral puff sleeve. As we approach the one year mark, however, we’re a little surprised at the generativity of the second hand/vintage world. Whatever is trending in the elite corners of fashion can be found at your local thrift store: high waist, oversized blazer, billowy shorts. It’s all there. […]

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31 Day Vintage Challenge Week 3

January 31, 2019 by auxetoilesvintage

There comes a time in everything 31 day vintage challenge when you have to break out of the rut, try something new, and take the show on the road. That’s exactly what happened during week 3 when the #31dayvintagechallenge went south for the winter–well for one week–to Florida. My parents live in an over 55 community near Tampa in the winter months. One week a year, I make like a snowbird and leave the snow and cold for the land […]

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