Customer Stories: Ellene

by Consign Couture June 22, 2016

First off I loved this woman before I could remember her name. Ellene is the exact customer that makes the cycle of consignment so fun. She brings clothes in every month and stops in most weeks to see whats new. Over the years we slowly become friends. She's one of my favorite people on the planet. If She's had a stressful day she stops over at the shop and we have tea. Our favorite mutual story is she bought her wedding dress at CC ON THE DAY OF HER WEDDING day for $30 and invited me to the wedding.

I invited her over this morning to my office for coffee and a Q & A:

What do you do:

I am a Mental Health Consultant with Multnomah County and work with children and adolescents in the mental health system. I also ride my bike and tap dance, but unfortunately don't get paid to do those things.

How did you find out about cc:

I live in St. Johns and popped in shortly after you hung the original sign. It was love at first sight.

Why do you like shopping consignment:

This is such a tough answer to break down...I just do! Who doesn't love consignment?! I accumulate a lot of clothing because a) My job can be stressful and shopping is one way I decompress and b) I have two closets in my home and my husband literally owns five t-shirts and a couple pairs of pants, so I have lots of potential space to fill. Shopping consignment has allowed me to avoid becoming a total hoarder by making a "one in, one out" rule...if I'm going to buy something, I also need to consign something at your store.

Additionally, consignment shops like yours are great in that everything is carefully hand picked, clean stylish...your space is welcoming, you and your shop girls are so friendly and will tell me straight up whether something I've tried on is working for me. It feels more like popping over to a friend's house to grab something out of their closet, and I think that's one of the many, many benefits of shopping at a local business that's woman owned.

Best consignment score:

These amaaaazing red patent leather Taryn Rose peep toe wedges. Somehow they landed in the sale section and I snagged them for $35! I get so many compliments every time I wear them.

How did we meet:

I'd been shopping at CC for about a year when I purchased a darling couch off of Craigslist very randomly and unexpectedly from you! Though you were moving away, you'd visit every month or so and every time I'd run into you at the shop you'd introduce me to everyone as, "The girl who bought my couch!". I still have that couch, by the way.

What other cities have you lived:

I grew up in Portland, Texas and moved to Atlanta for college. I've been in Portland, Oregon for over 11 years and still love it.

Besides CC where do you love to shop:

Anthropologie, Tilde, Frock, Madewell