$9??? DAMN YOU OPI!!! (All photos by Cat Agonis for Bushwick Daily)

Alright ladies. Here we are with our second edition of Urban Outfitters or Jimmy Jazz? I know y’all hit up Rainbow immediately after the last installment and are rocking those loud prints in this new ever-evading warm weather.

In this sequence, I’m gonna bring up the nail fad. Gals have been getting cray cray with their at home manicures and accent nails or what have you and you know I’m telling the truth. I’m also telling the truth about how flippin’ expensive some of these damn polishes can. Yes, I’m talking about Essie and OPI over here. And as much as I love their colors I’m not pretending to be something I’m not when I bring that ish to the register at the local pharmacy and am told I owe a whopping 9-something dollars, and then have to say nevermind Imma bring it back to where I found it cause I’d rather spend the money on some chilaquiles at Carrera’s or something. Nope. I have since learned to spare everyone some time. Instead we’re gonna do this the right way a.k.a. the cash tight way.

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June Cleaver ain’t got nothin’ on this trashy-classy dress. AMIRITE??

So in this FIRST EVER edition of Urban Outfitters or Jimmy Jazz?, we’re gonna tackle this spring’s current fashion, and just how cheap we can get it from my absolute favorite Knickerbocker and Broadway chain store, Rainbow. And while we explore it, I know y’all are going to forgive my cheesy smile and otherwise ridiculous faces in these photos cause you know modeling in any capacity is hard, especially when you’re already an awkward human being who feels weird about life in general, and then on top of it my boyfriend took these photos of me at 9AM after an altercation with some dudes in a Frito-Lay shipment truck who thought hootin’ and hollerin’ was a good idea. So yeah, shit was real strange that morning, before yours truly even had her coffee. But enough with the disclaimers, yo. Let’s do this!

The Troutman Shirtjacket (all photos by courtesy of Michael Wright)

Bushwick resident Michael Wright is a fashion designer who LOVES Bushwick and is not ashamed of it. Quite to the contrary, actually. He created a collection inspirited solely by Buswhick’s gritty nitty streets, graffiti  and worn-out look. We dig how he used yarn and the natural materials. The Troutman Collection is men fashion fun only, but every Bushwick lady appreciates an eye candy, am I right?

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All the cute and hand-made stuff calls Better Than Jam its home. This lovely boutique located at The Loom in Bushwick has been around for a couple of years now bringing together a community of local designers, crafters and artists. If your eyes are hungry for cuteness, Better Than Jam is you destination! I stopped by on a whim to say hello to Karin Persan who runs the store and see what’s new.  (more…)

Funk+Grace, a fashion line of beautiful handcrafted turbans, headbands and accessories is run by two young and creative ladies. Danielle Hernandez and Ileana Betancourt work together but also like to collaborate with other artists. Danielle and Ileana came up with a crazy idea to do a photo shoot with a shopping cart…

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Chelsey Pickthorn, a high class hair painter is opening her studio in Bushwick.

You never know who is your neighbor in Bushwick. The girl down the hall could easily be Chelsey Pickthorn. You maybe said hi to her once when she was going to work. Maybe she was doing hair for Neon Hitch or that blond model Abbey Lee Kershaw that day. Because that’s what Chelsey Pickthorn does. She is a visionary colorist and a hair stylist. Oh, and she is starting her own studio on Wyckoff Ave in October.

Pickthorn is located at the storefront corner on Wyckoff Ave just one block down from Norte Maar. “We are having a grand opening on October 13. That’s a big to do item,” Chelsey says while sitting on a Victorian couch in her studio. The interior of the salon isn’t complete yet, but it’s clearly shaping up. A beautiful chandelier is Chelsey’s pride; distressed hardwood floors, subway-tilled walls, reclaimed wood features discreetly show Chelsey’s excellent taste.

Chelsey, only 28, explains that she has been working in the coloring industry for 10 years now. She is from Portland, Oregon, and moved to New York City, and most importantly to Bushwick, 4 years ago. “I really believe in this neighborhood,” she says. Chelsey has apprenticed under legendary Laurie Foley and worked in her L’Atelier de Laurie. She has mastered the painting technique, which is unlike regular coloring – it’s gentle on the hair and allows for a much more detailed and precise approach. Chelsey explains that hand painting is something completely different. The session takes about 6 hours, and the price is, as you can expect, in the higher range. “I have clients flying in from Texas for example,” says Chelsey. She is expecting clients from Manhattan, but is also very open to the clients from this neighborhood. Chelsey explains that Pickthorn is not a factory; she will have only three chairs. She dedicates a lot of attention to each client, trying to bewitch their hairstyle to match their personality, make their dreams come true and simply create “a better version of you.”

Pickthorn is located at 61 Wyckoff Ave, and the grand opening is planned for October 13. Read about Chelsey also in New York Magazine.

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By Asha Chagoyen

Bushwick can easily be proclaimed the fashion capital of Brooklyn, and so it’s not a surprise that Bushwick has decided to have it very own fashion weekend. Bushwick Fashion Weekend will be held on September 22, (the following weekend of the Williamsburg Fashion Weekend) with hopes that it will be extended into a two day event. And now the great news! Designers, performers, models, and artists are needed for this event.

To participate as one of the aforementioned you have to submit five of your best pieces by August 15th. The $10 admission fee is a donation to maintaining the gallery.

Bushwick fashion weekend is the brainchild of local artist Nyssa Frank, owner of the Living Gallery. Nyssa doesn’t want this fashion weekend to compete with the one held in Williamsburg, but instead display unity of the local artists by having all galleries and local shops work together to make this weekend spectacular. Her vision is not to have a frou-frou Soho-esque fashion week, but have Bushwick’s nitty-gritty, beautiful take on fashion week displaying all things that can be converted in art or vice-versa.

As of now, the fashion shows will be held in Living Gallery studio where jewelry can become art installations and dancers will be serenading the crowd throughout the festivities. Designers should feel free to come dressed in costume, or as themselves.

If more amazing artists decide to sign up for Fashion Weekend, you will be given the opportunity to join a tentative parade commencing from the Morgan Ave train station (or the Jefferson St. Train Station!) concluding at the gallery where all the local designers are able to exhibit their creations for the whole neighborhood to see.

Please join this amazing opportunity local, creative minds. Display unity, and have fun.

By Jen Hitchings

I locked my bike on one of those somewhat desolate, spacious street corners under the JMZ, at Broadway and Willoughby, to visit Jazzabelss, a very new boutique run by the Yazmin Colon. Yazmin was wearing a pink top and blue cardigan, and her enthusiasm and positive nature were gleaming just as bright as the parrot pendent dangling from her necklace. This is her first boutique, and you could never tell by the looks of the room.

“The most expensive things I have in here are those chains, they’re $30 each. A friend of mine saw those, and said ‘I just bought those somewhere else for $50!’ I don’t want to make a huge profit. I just want to cover my costs and then a little bit. I feel like we’re at a point right now where we are in a recession and rent is really high, but we still need to look good!”

Jazzabelss is tastefully organized and speckled with adorable, affordable jewelry and clothing for women and men of any age. Yazmin is in the process of acquiring plus-size clothing too.

A few fashionable dresses and scarves, some sheer, with patterns in style

One wall of the boutique, with the consistent $5 table in front

Yazmin told me all about her 12 year old son Johnny, and how his classmates come into the boutique sometimes to hang out.

“I want the young kids around here to be doing something productive with their time, to keep them off the streets. I’ll tell some of them that if they finish school with A’s and B’s they’ll get a package of jewelry for free as a gift. And this collection here, these are little lady bells, for the younger girls. Sometimes I see them wearing jewelry or clothes that they’re just too young for, like huge hoop earrings, and I don’t like it. I want them to feel grown up and mature like their older sisters, but still look like the cute, young girls that they are.”

A display of bracelets with the JMZ tracks in the background

Aside from selling all kinds of jewelry that are stylish and will  never go out of style, Yazmin told me about all of her huge plans to open up a storefront in Brooklyn, a shop in Florida for her sisters to run, the jewelry parties she already facilitates, events she wishes to hold like block parties, participation in flea markets, and donating jewelry and clothing to organizations benefiting women and under-privileged children.

“I want my boyfriend to get a permit, we want to shut the street down and have a block party. I’d love to do it one weekend from Broadway to Bushwick Ave., then the next weekend from Bushwick Ave. to Evergreen, then the next, Evergreen to Central. Just get everyone together so we can all meet each other and maybe help one another out.”

Community, not competition, seemed to be one of the most important things to Yazmin regarding her business. We spoke about how so many people in New York tend to compete with one another for profits and for reputability, but that’s not what Jazzabelss is about.

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Jazzabelss Boutique is located at 1009 Broadway (at Willoughby) #203, is open from 1-7pm Tuesday-Sunday. The website was just launched at Jazzabelssboutique.com. You can friend Jazzabelss Boutique on facebook here, follow her on twitter here, and on instagram at @jazzabelssboutique.

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By Katarina Hybenova

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what: Outfit Party!

when: Saturday, November 12, 2012, 3-6pm

where: Sue’s Vintage Boutique at the corner of Flushing Ave and Bogart St

allure: FREE mimosas, pure girl fun, and lovely Sue!

RSVP on Facebook: here

It was about this time of year last fall when I discovered Sue’s vintage boutique. Sue, an incredibly interesting and adorable lady from Thailand, sold amazingly stylish and cute dresses in a remodeled garage on Central Avenue in Bushwick. I was stunned to discover designer brands, such as Chanel, Prada and Valentino, for as little as $15.

Over the past year, Sue and I became friends and I never neglected to visit her in the store whenever I saw it open. Sue has been a resident of Bushwick for more than 30 years and she has a bunch of interesting stories about the neighborhood in the old days. She would treat me to a chocolate milk or tea and always asked if I was doing all right, if I wasn’t too broke, and if I was seeing someone nice. She would always be very honest about how I looked in a particular piece of clothing, and so the clothes I bought at Sue’s Vintage Boutique are some of my favorites.

Recently, I went to Sue’s with my roommate Zuska to find out that she had moved her boutique around the corner to Flushing Ave and her new space is even cuter that the previous one. She recently visited her family in Bangkok, and was very excited to bring back more cute clothes, mostly vintage designer brands, to sell in the store. She told me that she was just getting ready to unpack the Fall/Winter clothes, and I couldn’t be more excited. It was the first time my roommate Zuska had visited Sue’s store and, naturally, she loved it. We spent the afternoon playing like little girls digging through their grandma’s closet, trying on different outfits, and having tons of fun. Madonna look? Argentinean president’s widow? Frankie Goes to Hollywood, the female version? We tried it all…

I suggested to Sue that she have an outfit try-on party at her store on Saturday, and she loved the idea! We are now inviting all the Bushwick Daily girls to Sue’s Vintage Boutique at the corner of Flushing and Bogart St., right off Morgan L train stop, from 3pm to 6pm to play with us. Sue will be serving free mimosas and playing jazz on her old-fashioned stereo. So don’t miss out and come to say hi to Sue!

Continue for more photos!

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Fancy a cool vintage outfit purchased in a trailer conveniently parked in front of Roberta’s by any chance anyone? No problem, because in Bushwick, everything is possible…

The fashionable trailer is ran by Tiffany who used to have a vintage clothing store in SoHo, but the rent was just damn too high and she had to close down.  At first, she was really sad about loosing her creative outlet, but on the second thought, she decided to act and find a way!

She filled the trailer with amazing vintage clothes from her store and parked it on the corner of Moore and Bogart. For the moment, she has only female collection, but she plans to start selling men clothes soon. Everything is $20 or less and really awesome! So pay a visit to Tiffany in her fashionable trailer while she’s still in the hood!