MOTO NGANTOK BLOG

What three words describe your shop?

Faded, French Grandeur. Even though: "French decor, faded grandeur & all that is time-worn is our world" is really how I like to sum it up, but that went over the word allotment! Oh Dear!

What sets you apart from other antique stores and malls?

What sets us apart from other stores is that, very early on, I figured out that there is a niche for what I love & collect-glamorous, French-inspired home decor & settings & so I made that our brand. From the moment you step inside the shop you begin an experience... Light, airy & oh so chic with soft French music playing and beautifully edited vignettes of muted, time worn elegance; this carefully orchestrated setting is not only the soul of our business, but this is what sets up apart. We don't just provide French-inspired vintage home & garden decor, but ultimately we provide a magical experience that people want to take home with them. This is our edge. I haven't strayed from that concept, just expanded on it & then, of huge importance, is the fact that, over the years I have managed to surround myself with the best of the best dealer/designers in the trade. The 20 dealer/designers under my roof are all at the top of their game; each one is extremely business savvy & experienced in the antique world, has some form of a designer background & all share my passion & love for this business. Together we focus on tracking down the most one-of-a-kind, show-stopping finds & then merchandising these grand pieces of the past, into irresistible, must-have displays. We never lost sight of the fact that our clients come to us for inspiration, to see what's in vogue & to buy pieces they won't find anywhere else, that will truly give their homes that au courant edge.

Then, there are several other factors:

• We are located in the San Diego's largest antique destination, the Ocean Beach Antique District where people can come & spend the whole day shopping, just one block from the ocean.


• I work on keeping our name & image out there with every tool possible; advertising, a website, blogging, networking, charitable donations & fundraisers, staging special events & parties, a line of brand name t-shirts, promotion, promotion, promotion & as much goodwill I can spread around as humanly possible.

• French decor, faded grandeur & all that is time worn is our world & what the shop is built around, accomplished by the most talented dealers in the business... It's a powerful combination!
  
  
  
  

  My friends magnificent booth, Tony and Lucy Torres of Paris Flea Market,
  that have had their fabulous home in San Clemente featured in Romantic Homes and Country Homes Magazines
  

  
  

After 14 years in the biz, what gets you out of bed and excited to move huge pieces of furniture around? OK, I'm being a little devil. Seriously, what inspires you?

The fact that my life-long love of all things time-worn, French-inspired & glamorous metamorphosed from a hobby into a thriving business is wildly fulfilling, extremely gratifying & perfectly feeds my vast creative needs. To this day my heart literally skips a beat when I behold a fabulous vintage find, discover a magnifique new paint color, stumble onto a worn, leather-bound French book or have one of my be-jeweled or be-shelled projects turn out better than I had hoped for. Since I always take projects as far as they can go & give 2000 percent to whatever I'm working on, having a shop was inevitable for me.

This business is a living, breathing, demanding & fascinating challenge that I thrive on & it has presented me the monumental opportunity & awesome responsibility of preserving grand & irreplaceable pieces of the past.

What do you hope customers experience or take away from visiting your shop?

Is there anything you would like to add?

Finally I couldn't end this without giving my full credit to my Mother- for me going down this road of all things French. If you've read the tribute to her on the Vignettes' website then you know how she launched me on my path. She was so far ahead of her time was convinced that sending me to study in Paris, France, long, long ago, would be the influence & inspiration to set my course for life. Merci beaucoup mon mere, for from that priceless experience... Vignettes was born!

This shop is seriously an inspiring and a mind blowing experience. This happens to be the shop that Lynn from Paris Hotel Boutique did a post on recently with gorgeous photos and pictures of the gang. Merci Madame to Lori, for being such a good sport and sharing with us the behind the scenes philosophy that created this magical, unique and incredibly beautiful store. While many other antique malls are closing, this gal has made a niche' for herself, stuck to her original strong business plan and markets her little tail off. Lori has a fab blog where she keeps us updated regarding upcoming events and showcases her dealers & their wares. So, even a busy gal like me can get some daily design inspiration by visiting her blog. And, boy can this lady throw a shoire'e!

Playing Dress Up

Edited by Jordana

Links à la Mode : August 27th

• 39th and Broadway: Are You a Fashion Sellout?


• Brick My Lane: Interview with Fee Doran, aka Mrs Jones – the woman behind Oxfam DIY and that famous white catsuit.


• Cake not Coke: Vanity Fair Setpember ‘09 Toujours Couture - A Stitch in Time.


• Chicago Style: Interview with Monica Dimperio, of the Chicago street style blog The MidWasteland


• Clutch 22: Exclusive scoop on Seattle indie greentrepreneurs – Sara Seumae of SPUN Clothing collaborates with Tara Smith of Revival Ink (plus a contest)


• Denim Debutante: The reasons you should love Rich & Skinny denim, along with tips for the three best cuts and how to wear them


• Dramatis Personae: Unveiling the feminine fashion stylings of independent designer Claire la Faye…


• Dream Sequins: Shoptalk with Cherie of online vintage marketplace Shrimpton Couture, which collaborates with emerging designers


• Fashion Pulse: Check out the new trend in leggings, by way of geometric prints and loads of grey!


• Independent Fashion Bloggers : Dress UP for NYFW


• Prom Mafia: Raid your boyfriend’s closet: How to turn his t-shirts into cute girly tunics


• Retro Chick: What happens at a Burlesque Lesson?


• Saved for Best: Girls on Film – A celebration and run down of the best-dressed films


• Shop Fair: Top 5 obstacles fair trade and “green” fashion labels have to overcome to be more successful


• Style on the Street: Three photoshoots inspiring trends for the next season


• Style Symmetry: The Symmetry Seven with Rhiannon of Liebemarlene Vintage


• Sweet Fuzz: Rustic Elegance - independent fashion designer Dace’s beautiful Fall line


• The Coveted: Charlotte Russe Review – Mixing in Fast Fashion


• The Demoiselles: Shopping for your body type is hard enough without a recession; shopping on the cheap is even harder

Opening ceremony showroom currently represents over twenty designer collections and they are all pretty special! Her are some of my favorites :

Chloe Sevigny for Opening Ceremony
Pendelton Meets Opening Ceremony
Erin Wasson for RVCA
Sophomore

Golden Goose is an Italian label created by Francesca and Alessandro Gallo. The 'Golden Boots' are made from the finest Italian leather and each individual pair is hand made and distressed using old techniques. Available at Shopbop

Here they are!

As you know from my previous post, I was debating if I should keep the turquoise dress from Mendicino or not. Well, I did like the dress but I didn't feel that the dress was anything special. I went to Mendicino on Sunday to see if I could find something else.

I ended up purchasing this dress (sale).


What do you guys think? Good choice or bad choice?


I also have been talking about another Mendicino dress that I had purchased and I haven't posted a photo of it yet either. So here is it:



You will never believe how much it cost me. It was originally $310 then it went down to $150.. then it goes down to $79... PLUS 40% off! I was very excited. It's fun and you can wear this dress to any occasion. I did put the belt on because it just adds the final touch to the dress.

I mentioned I had purchased another dress from Denise in Helen and Terry's wedding post. This was the other dress I purchased along with the teal dress.



I purchased this dress on sale for $25 dollars! Sales, sales, sales. Oh I love them!

My bf's sister went to Disney World last week and she bought this Coach bag for me. She always buys us things from Florida when she goes with her kids because the sales in Florida are INSANE.



I will keep you guys updated.
OH and I will post photos of what I wore to the wedding I had gone to on Saturday.

I have got a crush on Tavi!
The 13(!) year old fashionista and blogger who lives in the outskirts of Chicago has around 4 million regular readers.
As well as being featured in this falls Love magazine, the pint size muse also recently agreed to work for Pop magazine where she is next month cover star.

Gucci's creative Director Frida Giannini has collaborated with DJ and producer Mark Ronson to design a limited edition collection of sneakers.
The Valerie producer is a previous sneaker collector and apparently has a good eye for design.
Each purchase will be rewarded with a 12-inch vinyl record containing exclusive tracks, produced by Mark Ronson.(hope the collection is better then this press shot Mark.....)

We love Norway-based design label, Fin Oslo
All the garments are ethical as well as environmental friendly produced
Designer Per Åge Sivertsen creates a beautiful silhouette which are stylish and wearable

Vogue UK Sept 09
Photography by Javier Vallhonrat


Danish born model Freia Beha is without doubt on of the most interesting models around at the minute,the 5ft10 Dane has no less then 12 tattoos decorating her body including one spelling out word "float" on the side of her neck.
Love her laid back attitude and androgyny looks