Rob's Vintage

Have you ever passed a store and thought, “I wonder what it is like in there?” There are hundreds of people who pass by Rob’s Vintage, located in Riverside, and never go inside to find out what it is like. It is in a somewhat busy part of town and, by its size, it is easily missed. When a passerby takes a closer look and goes inside this seemingly unknown store, they realize how unique and interesting everything is.
As the intrigued customer reaches for the door handle to Rob’s Vintage, they notice that the door itself is vintage. It is an old fashion wooden door with, what seems to be, hand blown glass windows and a rusty looking handle. As they pull the door open, it sticks a little as to keep the store’s secret a secret for half a second longer. Upon walking into the store the customer gets an overwhelming feeling of clutter and hears alternative music playing at a low volume, so they can have something to listen to as they search the store for an interesting find. Looking around they see miscellaneous objects and clothing of all shapes, sizes and color, each with its own story of how it ended up at Rob’s Vintage.
The first wall the shopper spots, they see that there are shelves filled with knick-knacks ranging from an old Polaroid camera to lighthouse shaped salt and pepper shakers. The shelves are stacked almost to the ceiling and the shopper wonders “How will I be able to really look at all the items?” Then they realize that there is really no other way of looking closer without the assistance of an employee. Taking a step back they realize that it is almost artistic how the shelves are set up and hesitate to disturb the “art”.
Walking further into the store the patron passes a rack of dresses ranging in styles from the 1920’s to the 1990’s. As they shuffle through the rack a whiff of clean, but old, clothing, passes their nose. They come across an old wedding gown and wonder “Who wore this dress?”, and “Why has it been abandoned to be sold? Shouldn’t a wedding dress be kept as a sentimental artifact?” A wedding is a special time in one’s life and should be treated as such, so they carefully put the dress back in its resting place.
The buyer can now see the back of the store lined with jeans and pants of every color and size. On top of the racks of pants, there are plastic heads for the most elegant hats, each one more unique than the next, to be displayed on. The back of the store seems to be cut off from the front as you have to squeeze past a rack of clothes and some mannequins, dressed with clothing found in the racks throughout the store. What is really neat about vintage stores, such as Rob’s Vintage, is that if you like the clothes on the mannequin, you are encouraged to take them. While looking at the mannequins the shopper might overhear a conversation about the clothing; “Wow, look at this!” comments a girl and another reply’s, “Wow, that’s so awesome, you have to get that or I will.” As the conversation continues the shopper realizes they are surrounded by racks of clothing all separated by type. Behind them are racks of coats and jackets, ranging from fur to jean, in front; racks of t-shirts, and to the side; racks of pants: inexperienced vintage shoppers do not know where to start.
After looking for awhile the patron comes across some pieces of clothing that they would like to try on, so they look around for the dressing room. Upon finding it they note that it is a wooden room near the cash register with western style swinging doors. As they approach the room, comparing their height to the height of the doors, a feeling of worry passes over them as they wonder if the doors are long enough to cover them while trying on clothing. Not every vintage store has an up-to-par dressing room, and most do not even have one. So the down side to shopping in such a unique store is that a shopper has to estimate whether the clothes will fit or not. On top of guessing whether clothing will fit or not they have to weigh the price of the clothing and how much they are willing to risk it, mostly because the store does not accept returns. The risk, however, is usually worth it, due to the price. The pricing at Rob’s Vintage is relatively low, so taking the article of clothing to the tailor’s is still less than what you would have paid for the clothing anywhere else. This risk is all apart of shopping at a vintage store.
Now that the customer has what they want to purchase they make their way to the cash register. This is located in the middle of the store with glass counters and sides, so people can look at the more expensive items. Waiting in line they might look at the walls and see that there are so many things for such a tiny store that the employees had to tack different things, like purses or t-shirts, on the wall above the racks to display them. They arrive at the counter to pay for their items and an interesting array of large wooden pins catches their eye. The engrossed customer decides to ask the associate at the counter what they are and where they came from. The associate answers “Oh those? I made those. I’m an artist and I put some of my work up for sale throughout the store.” This is another unique part of Rob’s Vintage and other vintage stores. For whatever reason it seems that artists are usually the ones working in vintage stores and their art is typically displayed and for sale in the store. Nowhere else would a buyer be able to find this person’s art for sale, which just adds to the uniqueness of the store.
I have always warned people interested in vintage shopping that they have to be willing to spend at least one hour in each store because everything is hidden. If a person is looking for a jacket, they will have to look at every single jacket before they give up; it could be that the jacket they are looking for is the very last one they see. Another warning I give is, if a shopper is struggling between buying an item that they really like and leaving without it, for whatever reason, buy it. I have had many instances where I found something I really liked but decided not to get it. After thinking about it later that day I would end up regretting not getting it and decide to go back and get it but find that someone else has already bought it, leaving me empty handed.
A vintage store is as unique as a person. Just as a person changes their clothes, Rob’s Vintage changes their collection. People will never find the same items twice or the same item in another store. Every time you enter Rob’s Vintage you will be entering a different place. And if shoppers look hard enough, they will always leave satisfied.
For more on Vintage Stores visit:
http://www.zuburbia.blogspot.com/
http://www.lulusvintage.com/
http://vintagegoddess.blogspot.com/

Sick!

So I have officially had my first sickness at college. I'm usually a very healthy person, but when there is absolutely no ventilation in these halls you are bound to get sick, and even more so if your roommate is sick as well. And as far as missing classes, it is completely out of the question. This is not high school where you will miss a class and everything will be dandy because your teacher will give you the time to make it up and sometimes give the whole lecture over again. No you miss and you could be completely out of the loop forever! Okay maybe not that severe, but I promised myself that I would not get behind and play the catch-up game, like I always do. I am such a procrastinator it's ridiculous. And so far I have been pretty good on staying on top of all my homework and getting sleep when I need it, even though the temptation of staying out as late as I want to is staring me in the face. Well I hope that I can get better this weekend at home. In a nice big bed and room all to myself and my mom waiting on my hand and foot. Now that is what I'm talking about. :)