Tag Archives: vintage boots

Posh Life

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It could be said that this petite mom with the rose-gold tresses has tapped into the same magic that crowned Sam Fox a restaurant success story.

Except in this case, we’re talking luxury resale.

In fact, when it comes to designer brands, Haley Greene Ochoa could be one of Tucson’s best resources. “I just love shopping, I love clothes,” said the owner of Posh Boutique. “I feel very lucky that I can do this.”

First opened in 2003 as the ultimate cool-girl retail spot with eye-catching ads featuring UA greats like Channing Frye, Posh is now Tucson’s luxury resale destination, offering authentic apparel and accessories from Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Tory Burch, Gucci, Hermes, Escada and many other haute labels.  Since Buffalo Exchange closed one of its locations, Ochoa’s boutique is quickly becoming the place to consign on the east side.

After a few months of working for her (writer’s disclaimer), it’s easy to see that Haley really knows her business. A fifth generation retailer—her grandparents were milliners and her mother owned a gift store in Illinois—she truly has an eye for what works and what sells.

She can also spot a fake a mile away and boasts an edgy-luxe style that her social media followers both expect and demand from her popular outfits of the day on her Instagram feed, shopposhboutique.

Besides her chic store with a cocktail bar and a girl’s dream closet-feel, Haley also operates a website, www.poshboutique.com and is constantly vetting new consignments daily. Posh offers those who want to sell items at her store 50 percent of the selling price, after thoroughly researching each piece. Designer handbags are perhaps some of the store’s most treasured finds.

Haley and her staff are now busily preparing for Black Friday, when shoppers can get their hands on the newest “It girl” pieces, along with a glass of champagne.

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From Boots to Bags

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Shari Jenkins was buying fabric to create a western Christmas for her family many years ago when she saw a woman holding a boot purse. It was an A-ha! moment to be sure. “I decided that I could make those also!” says the creative force behind Custom Boot Purses in Tucson. “I loved the idea, being rather unique. Then, I made them for friends and so it went.”

Her beautifully crafted purses are now a fixture not only at Tanque Verde Guest Ranch, Arizona Inn, J Gilbert Footwear and Hacienda Del Sol Guest Ranch, but also weekend farmers’ markets and even the storied Portobello Road in London at “Jessie Western”—the shop buyers were rumored to have gone “gaga” over Jenkins’ cool, cowgirl bags.

The distinctive purses, which range from $95 to $250, are made from quality, vintage boots and fastened with a silver-tipped bolo strap and silver or gold concho details. “I find boots everywhere I travel, in thrift shops, online, antique malls and individuals sometimes give them to me,” says Jenkins. “Leather is a wonderful medium to work with, and very forgiving. I listen to my music and work away.”

A former swim instructor in Arizona and California, Jenkins has always enjoyed sewing and crafting. As a young girl, her mother had a shop making custom clothing, including mother-daughter outfits and communion dresses, and Jenkins loved working with the shop’s industrial power machine after school. After she was married and living in Malibu, she used to make custom fit bikinis and mini-dresses for a shop on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood.

“I love what I do because people are so taken with the idea and it has given me another way of having a hobby that has put me out into the community…,” she says. You can find out more about Jenkins’ purses at www.artofarizona.com.

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