Post by tidequeen on Jan 5, 2014 21:25:38 GMT -5
Dog days of fashion
You don't have a dog, do you?" Luc Moulton pegs me at his new Dragon Alley spa, Hair of the Dog, set to open this week. He'll offer double hydro therapy massage baths, holistic fashion grooming, hand drying, massage therapy and acupuncture, among other services.
I like dogs. I loved to go for rides on my aunt's doberman as a kid, wrestle my mutt, Tulip, and take my friend's husky along for walks in bear riddled forests before she had to be put down after a tick infection.
"The dog lover's world is major," Moulton says, a signed cheap snapback hats photo of Betty White from the Golden Girls and her pups on the mantle behind him. "Yes, there's a certain fascination with anthropomorphising dogs [giving them human qualities]. Some people treat their pets better than their children. But dogs are simple to love."
Moulton says his Jack Russell terrier Quinn stops traffic with his stunning half black, half white face. Moulton couldn't resist taking in a wire fox terrier a few months ago when he heard her name.
"Lana Turner," he says. "See the way one of her ears folds down? Lana Turner used to cock her head to one side."
The burgeoning world of cheap ray bans dog style might be foreign to the non dog owner like me but it's hard to ignore. Major designers like Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton now have canine lines. New York's Pet Fashion Week has grown in its third year to include nearly 200 designers, a canine runway show and design awards. Even London Drugs has a cheap ray bans line of dog Halloween costumes this year.
Here on the Island, dog fashion has grown from a few stores carrying functional clothes along with pet supplies to full on boutiques.
Danielle Molyneaux is the assistant manager at Pets West in Broadmead Village. She says when cheap michael kors outlet she started at the store eight years ago, all they carried were wholesale new era hats a few reflective vests.
"Now we have a big section at the front. The wholesale new era caps clothes change with the seasons," cheap ray bans says Molyneaux. She shows me the mini argyle sweaters and polo shirts popular with boy dogs. There are fur lined jean jackets and princess dresses, even rhinestone barrettes and black pearl necklaces for the girls.
"I did think it was a little weird when we first got cheap snapback hats the tuxedos and wedding dresses. Then I found out dog weddings nike nfl jersyes china are very popular," says Molyneaux. She has one customer who comes in to buy matching outfits for her two poodles.
"They never have the same outfit on twice," she says. "I've met some dogs who apparently will not leave the house naked. They'll sit in front of their wardrobe until something is put on them."
Fifteen year old Hillary Suttill pulls a paw patterned sweater over her four and a half month old Pomeranian, Toby. "He doesn't like to be cold," she says.
At High End Dog, across from Moulton's salon in Dragon Alley, Chanelle Kelly has the same idea for her two five month old Jack Russell terriers. "They shiver and I can't handle it," she says. "But I'm not obsessed about getting them clothes."
Flower, her girl dog, trots around the store in a Japanese kimono but goes home with a pink mesh harness. Kelly's biggest dog splurge was from Sidney's upscale pet boutique, Reigning Cats and Dogs. "Two argyle cashmere sweaters. They cost me like $150."
Clayton Ealey, who opened High End Dog with his wife nearly a year ago, says the demand for canine couture is growing.
"The key is to have a variety of things," he says, unravelling a stylish brown houndstooth vest. "We have leather bags that sell for $300 but affordable, fun stuff, too."
A $1,200 Swarovski crystal leash, similar to one in the film Legally Blonde, hangs on the wall. Wooden post plush dog beds and tiny Harley Davidson leather jackets make the human versions look pass.
Ealey even carries a line called Discolulu that rivals Gwen Stefani's LAMB with rockabilly striped dresses and a skull emblazoned sexy schoolgirl outfit that reads "Love is Blind."
"You can't predict who will go crazy over this stuff," says Ealey. "Older pet owners will go for the wilder stuff and the young kids like the more conservative looks. It's funny because all the statistics say we should be targeting single women over 40, but that hasn't proved true."
"That's me!" pipes in Kathy Phillips. She says she's the store's biggest fan and brings her Lhasa apso, Rinpoche, for a treat every week. "The thing about dog clothes is that they're most often more than just fashion. Vests will protect from rain and I don't like leashes so I'll use a cool harness."
Phillips says her dog has become a bit of a shopaholic, too, favouring the liver jerky and baked goods on display in martini glasses.
"When I let him loose at the alley, he just runs right in," she says.
The biggest display of dog fashion fever in town happens later this month at Ferris's Oyster Bar and Grill. The seventh annual Pug'oween party will have a David Bowie theme, complete with a Bowie only karaoke lounge and British pub food. Owner Tom Ferris, says he expects 150 pugs to attend.
You don't have a dog, do you?" Luc Moulton pegs me at his new Dragon Alley spa, Hair of the Dog, set to open this week. He'll offer double hydro therapy massage baths, holistic fashion grooming, hand drying, massage therapy and acupuncture, among other services.
I like dogs. I loved to go for rides on my aunt's doberman as a kid, wrestle my mutt, Tulip, and take my friend's husky along for walks in bear riddled forests before she had to be put down after a tick infection.
"The dog lover's world is major," Moulton says, a signed cheap snapback hats photo of Betty White from the Golden Girls and her pups on the mantle behind him. "Yes, there's a certain fascination with anthropomorphising dogs [giving them human qualities]. Some people treat their pets better than their children. But dogs are simple to love."
Moulton says his Jack Russell terrier Quinn stops traffic with his stunning half black, half white face. Moulton couldn't resist taking in a wire fox terrier a few months ago when he heard her name.
"Lana Turner," he says. "See the way one of her ears folds down? Lana Turner used to cock her head to one side."
The burgeoning world of cheap ray bans dog style might be foreign to the non dog owner like me but it's hard to ignore. Major designers like Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton now have canine lines. New York's Pet Fashion Week has grown in its third year to include nearly 200 designers, a canine runway show and design awards. Even London Drugs has a cheap ray bans line of dog Halloween costumes this year.
Here on the Island, dog fashion has grown from a few stores carrying functional clothes along with pet supplies to full on boutiques.
Danielle Molyneaux is the assistant manager at Pets West in Broadmead Village. She says when cheap michael kors outlet she started at the store eight years ago, all they carried were wholesale new era hats a few reflective vests.
"Now we have a big section at the front. The wholesale new era caps clothes change with the seasons," cheap ray bans says Molyneaux. She shows me the mini argyle sweaters and polo shirts popular with boy dogs. There are fur lined jean jackets and princess dresses, even rhinestone barrettes and black pearl necklaces for the girls.
"I did think it was a little weird when we first got cheap snapback hats the tuxedos and wedding dresses. Then I found out dog weddings nike nfl jersyes china are very popular," says Molyneaux. She has one customer who comes in to buy matching outfits for her two poodles.
"They never have the same outfit on twice," she says. "I've met some dogs who apparently will not leave the house naked. They'll sit in front of their wardrobe until something is put on them."
Fifteen year old Hillary Suttill pulls a paw patterned sweater over her four and a half month old Pomeranian, Toby. "He doesn't like to be cold," she says.
At High End Dog, across from Moulton's salon in Dragon Alley, Chanelle Kelly has the same idea for her two five month old Jack Russell terriers. "They shiver and I can't handle it," she says. "But I'm not obsessed about getting them clothes."
Flower, her girl dog, trots around the store in a Japanese kimono but goes home with a pink mesh harness. Kelly's biggest dog splurge was from Sidney's upscale pet boutique, Reigning Cats and Dogs. "Two argyle cashmere sweaters. They cost me like $150."
Clayton Ealey, who opened High End Dog with his wife nearly a year ago, says the demand for canine couture is growing.
"The key is to have a variety of things," he says, unravelling a stylish brown houndstooth vest. "We have leather bags that sell for $300 but affordable, fun stuff, too."
A $1,200 Swarovski crystal leash, similar to one in the film Legally Blonde, hangs on the wall. Wooden post plush dog beds and tiny Harley Davidson leather jackets make the human versions look pass.
Ealey even carries a line called Discolulu that rivals Gwen Stefani's LAMB with rockabilly striped dresses and a skull emblazoned sexy schoolgirl outfit that reads "Love is Blind."
"You can't predict who will go crazy over this stuff," says Ealey. "Older pet owners will go for the wilder stuff and the young kids like the more conservative looks. It's funny because all the statistics say we should be targeting single women over 40, but that hasn't proved true."
"That's me!" pipes in Kathy Phillips. She says she's the store's biggest fan and brings her Lhasa apso, Rinpoche, for a treat every week. "The thing about dog clothes is that they're most often more than just fashion. Vests will protect from rain and I don't like leashes so I'll use a cool harness."
Phillips says her dog has become a bit of a shopaholic, too, favouring the liver jerky and baked goods on display in martini glasses.
"When I let him loose at the alley, he just runs right in," she says.
The biggest display of dog fashion fever in town happens later this month at Ferris's Oyster Bar and Grill. The seventh annual Pug'oween party will have a David Bowie theme, complete with a Bowie only karaoke lounge and British pub food. Owner Tom Ferris, says he expects 150 pugs to attend.