Boutique Bargains

Polish your holiday wardrobe at these local upscale-resale gems

As we barrel into the heart of holiday shindig season, whose closet doesn’t need a little love? However, in these economic, blah, blah, blah … Couture fashion, off-the-rack prices, need we say more?

The first rule of upscale resale seems to be having a catchy name, which is probably why you never heard of Fournier’s Petite Armoire. Quickly renamed Poor Little Rich Girl, this small shop in North central Phoenix and now Arcadia has built a loyal following by bringing consignment shopping out of the Stone Age. Owner Catharine Fournier-Raslavsky is a social (media) butterfly, offering insider updates and secret password savings via Facebook, Twitter and email (3730 E. Indian School Rd., 602-955-0708; 1576 E. Bethany Home Rd., 602-354-5680).

A jump, skip and a large hop north over Black Mountain, Carefree Consignment Boutique is overflowing with designer duds, including a stellar selection of gowns, accessories, handbags and shoes, shoes, shoes. Home to more than 1,300 consignors, this is the place to turn north Scottsdale’s housing bust into your own personal fashion boom (6554 E. Cave Creek Rd., 480-595-8185).

Last but not least, My Sister’s Closet has grown from a single store in 1991 to a 9-store consignment empire by taking the dingy, the dusty and the musty out of boutique resale. Aside from the four MSC locations Valley-wide, the owners have also added My Sister’s Attic (furnishings) and Well-Suited (men’s fashion).