{image1} Just off Brady Street's beaten path of high-end fashion boutiques is a place with just as much class and style, minus the intimidating price tag. Annie's Second Hand Chic, 1668 N. Warren Ave., is a mixed bag of vintage goodies that are as much fun to dig through as they are to wear.
Annie's cozy, artsy space conjures the sort of joy you experience while rummaging through grandma's attic. The shop is small, but there is enough inside to keep your eyes and hands busy for quite a while.
"Some people seem overwhelmed when they come in here because they don't know where to look first," says owner Anne Tilque. A good suggestion might be the ceiling, which is pink, and completely covered with toys, trinkets, signs, and other interesting eye candy that her friends have helped her plaster up there.
Tilque has stocked her shop with clothing, shoes, jewelry, bags and toys, some of which date back to the golden days of the '40s, '50s and '60s, and others that are contemporary, but possess a certain "chic."
And she doesn't stop at just the basics. She also has an impressive collection of random items -- oddly shaped ashtrays, old beer signs that light up, plastic owls that, well, sit there and look cute -- that is constantly growing.
{image2} "I have been collecting vintage clothes since the '80s and I sold them out of my home in Riverwest and at the local street festivals." Now that she has her own business, a huge part of her job is shopping.
"I find my stuff at rummage sales, estate sales, and some things I make myself. There are always new things in the store."
On the search for the perfect pair of classic cowgirl boots with a worn-in look? Chances are, if she doesn't have your size this week, she'll have them next week.
Though Annie's has now become a neighborhood hot spot for second-hand shopping, Tilque recalls a time when Brady Street wasn't exactly the hipster hub of activity it is today. "Back in the '80s it was really quiet. There was barely any retail happening."
But as things started picking in the area in the mid-'90s, she had her eye on a cute little store called Orchid Annie's Vintage Vogue, 1327 E. Brady St. "It never seemed to be open, so I took it over, and ran it for two and a half years." In 2000, she moved it to Warren Avenue and shortened the name to "Annie's," partly to retain the store's recognition and partly because, coincidentally, her name is Anne.
"I thought I was going to maybe do this for a year," says Tilque, whose success has allowed her to continue supplying the East Side with some of the greatest gems of yesteryear for eight years now.
"It's a challenge, but it's fun," she says. "Right now it's just me, but there's a possibility that I will hire someone else and be able to expand my hours." Currently, Annie's is open Wednesday, 12-5 p.m., Thursday, 2-7 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 12-6 p.m. and Sunday, 1-5 p.m.
Tilque buys vintage clothing by appointment. Call (414) 727-5586.
OnMilwaukee.com staff writer Julie Lawrence grew up in Wauwatosa and has lived her whole life in the Milwaukee area.
As any “word nerd” can attest, you never know when inspiration will strike, so from a very early age Julie has rarely been seen sans pen and little notebook. At the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee it seemed only natural that she major in journalism. When OnMilwaukee.com offered her an avenue to combine her writing and the city she knows and loves in late 2004, she knew it was meant to be. Around the office, she answers to a plethora of nicknames, including “Lar,” (short for “Larry,” which is short for “Lawrence”) as well as the mysteriously-sourced “Bill Murray.”
