Featured Shop: Blaksands

Tell us a little bit about yourself. Where are you based? How do you spend your days?

My name is Michelle - and I’m based in Seattle, Washington. I own two small businesses full time, the first is my curated vintage shop blaksands and secondly I am a photographer ( which I have been doing full time since 2006! ). I spend most days sourcing, listing and marketing my vintage shop - as well as plenty of time spent hanging with friends, going out, knitting, practicing my craft cocktail making skills, writing and just generally saying yes to life!

How did you hear about Noihsaf Bazaar / when did you become a part of the community?

I believe a friend pointed me to the Instagram page back in 2019 ( maybe even earlier ) as a place to shop & sell slow fashion and vintage goods. While I did list items to sell early on, I was most interested in scoring old James Street and other various hard-to-find indie labels!

What is your favorite Noihsaf score?

I feel like I have many! A few stand out pieces are really unique items that I would have never gotten my hands on, like a fuzzy wool cream overcoat from a Polish brand, and a gorgeous hand dyed blouse that was made in Mexico. I have also gotten many pre-loved Babaa, James Street and other cult following brand items over the years. Oh and let’s not forget the vintage fur vest I got this past winter!

How would you describe your personal style? Do you have any style inspirations that you return to?

I like to be unique and wear pieces that not everyone else already wears. You can find me either my go-to “classic” look - Rudy Jude jeans and a vintage tee - otherwise I will be more playful / intentional and wear monochrome looks, or something more styled with a statement coat, or a bold point of interest ( like a neon yellow beanie ). My original style icon has always been my friend Jane - I’ll never forget the first day of college walking into class and seeing her wearing a long black dress with fisherman muck boots and immediately thinking she was the coolest person ever. At the moment I am very into people watching and have been finding inspiration in the way people are styling themselves in every day life. I love when people have the confidence to be uniquely themselves. We are really living in a creative and fun time with personal fashion!

Do you have any designers/brands that you’re especially into these days?

Absolutely love my RJ pants for life. I always get comments on them everywhere I go. Outside of the few pieces of slow fashion that I wear/own, I stick to vintage and secondhand.

What trend are you currently loving, or what trend would you like to see?

I love that the workwear / double patched knees have been holding strong for a few years, and wide leg jeans are back. I enjoy seeing all rules being broken and people thinking less about who is “supposed” to wear what, and just wearing whatever they want. I love making menswear more feminine and pairing vintage with modern ( like a thrashed tee with clean denim ). I would love to see more slip dresses this summer as they have always been a classic. There are so many fun ways to wear them and now is the time to embrace being a little sassier and more dressy with our wardrobes

What’s your favorite part about being a member of the Noihsaf community?

I love that we all have similar goals in mind when shopping / selling - and that is to support and continue the slow fashion movement. It’s a great resource for finding and re-selling incredible pieces that have smaller cult followings

Favorite song to play when getting dressed?

Right now I’ve been rocking out to my most recent playlist anytime I’m at home and getting ready for the day.

THANK YOU, Michelle! Please check out her Noihsaf Shop blaksands