AliShopsBlog.com - The Twin Cities Shopping Blog

Great idea, colleagues exclaimed when they saw that we mixed consignment and clearance clothing in with new arrivals for the St. Paul Pioneer Press fall fashion section. It did work out amazingly well and was the perfect way to balance our desire to update and wear designer pieces at a time when buying them full price still seems gratuitous. But here's a little secret: I didn't really set out to mix old with new. It happened when the new stylist I hired, Jane Belfry, indulged her penchant for vintage by pulling clothes from June and gh2 despite my sending her out with a shopping list of new fall trends. I'll be honest: at first I was freaked. I've got one day to get this mammoth shoot completed. The models, the hair and makeup team the photographer were all set to go, and I had a rack of not-so-new clothes. But forget about the red marks on the price tags - there were some amazing pieces - Lanvin; Jean Paul Gaultier - everything looked perfectly modern and now...even if it wasn't. So who cares what the tag says? I know we're lucky to have designer resale shops like June and gh2 in town, but seeing some of the amazing buys really told me I need to look beyond the new arrivals when shopping for fall - or any season. See for yourself.