S N A P S H O T
Stylish, Halcyon Days
for Connie Carroll
by Loren Pritchett
like a living room experience. I’ve met several friends while working at this store.”
Even Connie’s marketing strategies are old-fashioned. By word of mouth alone,
Halcyon has gained a reputation for quality service, good vintage clothing and
an intimate atmosphere.
Connie has dressed Natalie Portman for Broadway, the Washington Opera,
Drew Barrymore, and the Shakespeare Company in Oregon. “I have no idea
how these people find out about me,” she says. “But I guess that’s what passion
will do for you.” V
Although she does not have an eye for vintage like Connie Carroll, Loren
Pritchett enjoys thrift shopping and bargin hunting for second-hand clothes.
n 1983, Connie Carroll opened Halcyon Vintage Clothing on Robinson
I
Street. More than 25 years later, she continues to give her customers a taste
of the past. “Halcyon actually means ‘the good old days,’” she says. “So
the store name is quite fitting.”
Connie began collecting vintage clothes in 1973 while attending Virginia
Manchester
Commonwealth University. She shopped at a thrift store on Main Street where
she purchased items for 25 cents a piece. “It really trained my eyes for vintage,”
she says. “By 8 a.m. people were lined up at the store going crazy for the
Gardening, llc
clothes. I learned to spot the corner of a dress or shirt and grab it.”
As her collection grew, Connie started picking out clothes for friends. “I’d
see something and think, ‘Oh, that will look really good on her,’” she says.
“Then I figured I could make a buck or two and started doing rummage sales
of vintage clothes out of the spare room in the back of my apartment.”
M
anchester Gardening proudly offers you
personalized landscaping and grounds
By 1982, Connie was making $250 a weekend by selling clothes out of a
maintenance services. We are dedicated to developing
garage she rented and opened Halcyon a year later. At that time, the store’s
long-term relationships with our clients. We specialize
inventory came from yard sales and thrift stores. Gradually, customers found out
in refurbishing mature shrub beds, designing and
about Halcyon and began selling items to Connie.
installing perennial and bulb gardens, as well as
Connie tries to compensate the sellers for their clothing fairly by offering
overall care of established gardens and yards.
either a third or a half of what the item will sell for at Halcyon. “The history of Call, or e-mail to discuss how to enhance your
the piece and the individual who sold it to me is what should be appreciated,”
outdoor space.
she says. “These clothes carry a special story and a lot of love. The person
who wore them saved the clothes for 50 or 60 years.”
Connie also appreciates the work that went into making each of the vintage
804-249-4438
pieces in her collection. “I find a connection in the history of the craftsmanship
and engineering of these clothes,” she says. “The tailoring is incredible and the
mary@manchestergarden.com
cloth is beautiful. We don’t see that today.”
www.manchestergarden.com
Halcyon provides an array of fashions from the 1890s through the 1970s,
with pieces dating back to the Civil War. Connie acknowledges the current
Visit the website and sign
trends and says they’re comparable to trends of the past. “Everything goes in
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cycle,” she says. “We see the 80s coming in now, which is just a repeat of
the 30s and 50s.”
Evelyn Burks, a third-year employee at the store, agrees. “In the malls, I don’t
A woman-owned and operated boutique business dedicated
look for that kind of service,” she says. “But this store is small and intimate. It’s
to keeping your yard and garden as a place to enjoy!
www
•
myVmagazine.com
Vmagazine for women
• MARCH 2010

3204 Rosedale Avenue
Richmond, VA 23230
804-249-4438
804-204-1736 fax
mary@manchestergarden.com
www.manchestergarden.com
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