A visit with Cari from The Vintage Nursery

Hello! My name is Cari and my Etsy shop is The Vintage Nursery.

I live in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada with my husband and two daughters, Senna (almost 3) and Aven (almost 6 months). My husband has lived here all of his life.  I moved here when we got married, but I am originally from the U.S. (Alaska then Washington state). My husband likes to think that I "average out" to be Canadian, since Canada sits between Alaska and Washington.

Senna and Aven, vintage cuties:)

I have always been drawn to old things.  There is something very mysterious and romantic about antique and vintage items. I always wonder: Where did this come from? Who may have worn this? Every item has a story.

I started wearing vintage clothing in high school and used to frequent antique stores, garage sales and thrift shops looking for old metal lunchboxes, rhinestone jewelry, and prom dresses. Of the five proms I went to, I wore a vintage dress to three of them. I like the 1920's/30's Art Deco and the 1950's/60's Mid-Century Modern eras, and as far as vintage baby and kids clothing goes, I like anything smocked, embroidered, appliqued, nautical or plaid. 

My laundry room "shop"

When my first daughter was born I received several adorable vintage outfits from a friend, and in visits to thrift stores I kept finding more darling outfits. They were just too sweet to pass by.  I had already been an Etsy customer for a couple of years by then, and I thought: Why not try selling these? It was a good excuse to "rescue" more vintage treasures and pass them on to people who would love them.  

There is something especially sweet about vintage clothing for babies. They grow so fast and sometimes hardly get to wear an outfit more than once---which is why we can find clothing in such good condition.  Also, every mother has a hard time giving away her baby's clothes, so you know that every outfit was dearly loved by someone in its first life. I really love being able to sell my finds across the world where they will be loved again on another child. 

One of my favorite "sold" listings

I become very attached to all of the clothes I find, and I sometimes look back at the "sold items" from my shop and think, "Awwww, I loved that!" It can be hazardous to be so sentimental about vintage clothing, because it means that I keep way more than I should for my girls!  Apart from clothing, my most awesome find to date is a teak mid-century cabinet that I got on Craigslist for super cheap. Score! 

Very first listing for my shop,  modeled by Senna at age 7 months    

My daughters are usually my companions while I do my treasure hunting. Senna likes to look at toys while Aven usually snoozes in the carrier. We most often go to the larger thrift stores here in Vancouver.  During the months of May and June we all go to Vancouver Island while my husband works there and we get to check out the small town thrift stores.  Those are the best! They are small and run by volunteers (usually sweet old ladies) and the proceeds go to charity. 
 

Vancouver has a lot of great places for young kids, which I really appreciate.  There is also a lot of yummy food to try.  It can get pretty dreary in the winter with seemingly never-ending rain. I should be used to it, having grown up in the Pacific Northwest, but ever since living in sunny places overseas (Mexico and Thailand) I just can't get used to all of this grey. However, when the sun comes out in Vancouver, the whole city changes.  Everything becomes so much brighter, and it is the most gorgeous place to be.

Some of the many vintage children's clothing treasures for sale at The Vintage Nursery: