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Virginia Living - (pg.87) - February 2008

Carving a New Image

The funky Vintage Swank (now being renovated) is a two-story emporium stocking more than 15,000 items from the 1920s to the 1970s - clothing, furniture, housewares. Proprietors Mitch and Amy Hazam have preserved three way mirros and other interior fixtures from the store's founding in the 1950s as the Boston Store, a fine-clothing store for women.

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Country Home Magazine - December 2007/January 2008 "Let's Go Antiquing"

Hidden in the House: 1930s Chase Chrome Tableware

During the 1930s, homemakers who took their entertaining duties seriously all clamored for chrome tableware items made by the Chase Brass & Copper Company. The objects—everything from nut bowls, candy dishes and serving trays to toothpick holders—were sold in special Chase displays within large department stores, and no less a tastemaker than Emily Post herself promoted the Chase items in her 1935 book, How to Give Buffet Suppers. Today, Chase chrome tableware objects are highly sought after as icons of modernism.

“The Chase chrome items are very popular with beginning Art Deco collectors and with more serious collectors as well,” says Mitch Hazam, proprietor, with his wife, Amy, of Vintage Swank (vintageswank.com), a Virginia-based dealer of vintage clothing and furniture. Chase chrome tableware is particularly appealing to beginning collectors because the objects carry an easily recognizable mark—a centaur plus the word Chase—and because small Chase pieces are still easy to find and affordable.

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HomeSeeker Prime - (pg.20) - June 2007

Prime Elements - Vintage Swank

Remember the Vitamaster Massage Belt? Remember when the trend was to go into a gym, put this belt around your waist, and stand there while the pounds just vibrated off? How about shag carpets? Or the Haywood Wakefield china cabinets from 1957? And when was the last time you saw a 1972 white oval table with a yellow Mod flower inlay and a chrome base?

Vintage pieces are very popular these days and as decorators combine modern with traditional styles, you're more likely to see pieces from back in the day. “Furniture is one of our best selling,” said Mitch Hazam who, with his wife Amy, owns Vintage Swank in Front Royal. “People seem to like 1950s
modern and ‘60s classic American style furniture.”

The store has sold many pieces all over the world, including a Hans J. Wagner Pappa Bear Chair. The store also has beautiful furniture for sale like the 1960s Dyrlund Danish Modern Rosewood Bar, which is one of their more difficult pieces to ship because of its 200-plus pounds.

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Grapevine Magazine- (pg.60) - January/February 2007

Get The Look

If you find modern decor to still be missing that certain something, why not go mid-century modern "vintage style"?

Vintage has all the great simple lines but with a hint of history added. Start with a contemporary piece and layer in a little 1930's, with a bit fo teh 50's, and a hint of the 70's and you have a space that's modern yet warm and inviting - simply because the room feels as if it has evolved over time. At the very least, it will be a conversation starter!

Vintage Swank is featured as the place to buy all your vintage mid-century modern decor. Our living spaces and products are featured in the article.

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AntiqueWeek - Eastern Edition - December 4, 2006

Vintage Swank: A Different Kind of Shop

Swank is defined as being "full of life or energy; to show off or behave ostentatiously; to doll up; arrogance or ostentation of dress or manner; characterized by a showy display; imposingly fashionable and elegant."

Vintage Swank, a relatively new shop in Front Royal, Va., derived its name after owners Amy and Mitch Hazam kicked around various adjectives they felt would best describe their business.

"The name Vintage Swank seemed to fit with the image of us trying to be hip and aim towards a younger audience, but still cater to the quality expected of an older audience, too," said Mitch. "Swank is a term that was tossed around a lot during the 1950s to describe something as being fashionable. Vintage is a term that usually means items that are at least 25 years old.

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Quad-State Business Journal - December 2006

Front Royal Shop Turns Vintage into Swank

Vintage Swank received a front page feature story.

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Virginia Tech Collegiate Times - Wednesday, November 2, 2006

Vintage Swank offers assortment of antiques

Most of us don't want to believe that life goes on after graduation and degrees. We would be happy to stay here in Blacksburg forever, working and playing in our cushy comfort zone of college.

However, there is a time when all of us will have to graduate, get jobs and move into the fabled "real world." The best we can hope for is to be prepared, happy, and one day, successful. One example of such a success is the business Vintage Swank, owned and operated by two Tech graduates.

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W*USA 9 2006 A-List - September 18, 2006 Best Vintage and Resale in Washington DC

Vintage Swank Named the Best Vintage and Resale in Washington DC by W*USA 9 2006 A-List

Washington’s CBS affiliate, W*USA 9, has completed its first annual "A-List" competition where more than 1,200 local businesses competed to be named one of the Washington metropolitan area’s best. Nearly 60,000 votes determined the A-List Top 100 winners.

Vintage Swank proudly won the title of the Best Vintage and Resale in Washington DC thanks to all our customers support.

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Country Home Magazine - June 2006 "Let's Go Antiquing"

What to Collect Now: Retro Items for Backyard Entertaining

We had a chat with Amy Hazam of Vintage Swank, a Front Royal, Virginia, shop, and found out that vintage items for backyard barbecues are hot topics (literally) in retro collecting right now.

The 1950s were the heyday for barbecuing, and there are all sorts of fun things—vintage plasticware items, salt and pepper sets, barbecue tongs, bars, carts, and more,” says Hazam. Items range in price from $30 for vintage plastic plates and cups to $500 or more for retro bars.

Look for such items as 1950s “Hi-Snack” plates, which feature a raised center ring for holding your drink; fish-shaped plate holders from the 1960s in vivid colors; and sets of 1950s woven-wicker-lined plastic cups and mugs.

Backyard beverages take on a retro flavor when served from a vintage bar: A 1950s wooden bar with a Formica top—like the one in the pool scene from the movie “Ray”—is one of Hazam’s favorite icons of the era. Vintage rattan beverage carts—often two-tiered with Formica shelves—can add a tropical element, and range in price from $300 to $500. For seating, look for vintage metal chairs with vinyl padded seats—in turquoise floral patterns or solid orange; prices range from $100 to $300. “With the plastic ware and the rattan, all you need is Hawaiian dresses for the women and Cabana jackets for the guys and it all adds up to a fun Tiki look,” says Hazam.

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Lucky Magazine (pg.253) - April 2006

Vintage Department Stores

Big and Well-Edited, These Spaces Offer Everything From Cocktail Tables To Collectable Jewelry

Vintage Swank is located in a sleepy, tiny town, but the goods here are urban and cool: Brightly colored Blenko vase, Eames chairs, and pretty textiles abound. Even better you can snap it all up on the encyclopedic, frequently updated website.

This article is not available to read online

Country Home Magazine - Fall 2005 "Let's Go Antiquing" email newsletter

Sentimental Collecting

Formica and Chrome Tables

From the late 1940s until the early 1960s, the quintessential American kitchen table was a laminate-topped beauty with chrome edging and matching vinyl-covered chairs. Called Formica-and-chrome tables (even though the laminate was not always true Formica), these icons today are among the hottest collectibles in the retro furniture category. "The tables are very popular," says dealer Amy Hazam, who runs the shop Vintage Swank (www.vintageswank.com) in Front Royal, Virginia, with her husband, Mitch. "People buy them for nostalgic reasons, and then use them."

For the Hazams, who are both 28 years old, the Formica-and-chrome table is more than just a piece of vintage furniture. "We've both been collectors since we were kids, and when we met in college and saw that we both had Formica-and-chrome tables in our college apartments, we knew we were meant for each other," says Amy, whose table was a going-away-to-college present from her grandmother. Formica-and-chrome tables range in size from 2-person to 8-person, with tops that are fixed, drop-leaf, or expandable with leaves. Hazam says the most desirable colors for the tabletops among collectors today are red and yellow; the most popular patterns are flowers and fruits. Prices for the Formica-and-chrome tables, typically sold with chairs, range from $250 to $850. Amy does add these words of caution: Tables with a glitter finish on the tabletop or vinyl chairs are not authentic 1940s to 1960s versions; those date from the 1980s.

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Northern Virginia Daily - Monday October 24, 2005

Ghoulish Gala

What do Mafia goons, gangsters and housewives all have in common? They are proving to be the hottest costumes of the Halloween season, according to Amy Hazam, owner of Vintage Swank clothing store in Front Royal, which often dresses party-goes for themed occasions.

Vintage Swank is featured and photographed as the place to shop for great themed Halloween costumes.

This article is not available to read online

Delight.com - September 20, 2005

Get Swanky

Admit it your Ebay days are over. Somewhere in your home is a closet full of dirty little secrets: vintage bags that didn’t turn out to be vintage; dishes that are so not any color scheme you could pretend to embrace; and then there’s that side table you just KNEW had to be made by someone retro-fabulous. You may have a retro soul, but your shopping skills could use a history lesson or two. Thank God for Vintage Swank. By total accident I stumbled upon this simple, in-your-face vintage site which features everything from authentic Eames chairs to beaded handbags just like your grandmother used to carry.

The kids at Vintage Swank have an absolute knack for hunting down fabulous finds in every area from clothing to stationary to gumball machines. So do yourself a favor – get thee to a website where you don’t have to sift through knock-offs and Precious Moments to find that perfect art deco cocktail shaker that will make your bar set complete. Your Paypal account will thank you.

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Northern Virginia Daily - Saturday June 25, 2005

Swanky Style

Vintage shop brings retro clothes and revamped styles to Front Royal.

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Potomac News and the Manassas Journal Messenger - Sunday November 28, 2004

Retro Awakening

Amy and Mitch Hazam aren’t stuck in the past, they’re going there for the first time.

The Gainesville residents - 27 and 28, respectively- fell in love over matching 1950s-era kitchen tables trimmed in chrome.

They have a cat named after Marilyn Monroe, sofas that could be on the “I Love Lucy” set and a 1955 Chevy in the driveway. Her closet is filled with clothing from the last century; he relies on vintage ties, hats, cuff links and a 1940s tuxedo.

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Port Halcyon - October 3, 2004

Planning Your Vintage Wedding - Dressing the Groom

In Port Halcyon's Part 4 of planning a vintage wedding, the article on dressing the groom features Vintage Swank.

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OnTap Magazine - May 2004

Serving Up Swank

Meet collectors turned web-based vintage goods purveyors ... and their hot new website, VintageSwank.com.

In the era of nearly ubiquitous J. Crew's and Gap's, it's not easy to be a creative dresser in this city. Even if you yearn to be different and are determined to have your own unique style, it's hard to find a place to really let your creativity run wild without your checkbook bearing the brunt.

Enter the newest novelty in fashion couture: vintage apparel. A new online store is attracting the gamut of customers—from antique collectors to urban trendsetters. And if the concept of the store isn't novel enough, the story behind it may spark your interest.

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Publication

Description

Miller's Collectables Price Guide 2008

Miller's Collectables Price Guide 2008

Vintage Swank is listed in this updated 2008 price guide. See many of the items in our store and on our website featured in this collectables guide.

Washington Post - Home Section (pg. H03) - October 26th 2006

A Fashion Show In the Kitchen

The apron may have had its heyday in the 1950s, but the housewife coverup has resurfaced as more than a mark of Grandma's pride. From the sheer and ruffled to the yellow polka-dotted, this dish-drying, pot-holding, dust-chasing collectible has evolved into a sassy emblem of kitchen couture --

Vintage Swank is listed as one of the great places to find vintage aprons.

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Cottage Living Magazine (pg.103) - March 2006

Long Island Cottage Proves Bigger Isn't Always Better

This article on a Long Island cottage features The General Fireproofing Company which became Goodform in 1932. They are known for their stylized aluminum office chairs.

Vintage Swank is listed as one of two resources to locate original Goodform chairs.

This article is not available to read online

Washington Post - The Sunday Source - January 8th 2006

RoadTrip - Hit the Slopes with an Airboard

This RoadTrip features a drive out 55 from Washington DC to Canaan Valley, WVA. Along the way, if you love Art Deco barware, phones with dials and Lucite purses check out Vintage Swank.

Vintage Swank is listed as one of the must stops on the RoadTrip to Canaan Valley, WVA. Our shop is called out on the map as the place to visit in Front Royal, VA.

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Domino Magazine - October 2005

the lowdown: mid-century modern furniture

Find out where to buy it and how to incorporate it into your life.

Vintage Swank is listed as one of the trusted Sources for Mid-Century Furniture.

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About.com - Guide Picks

Prom Dresses - Teen Fashions

Cynthia Nellis, fashion editor for About.com, says, "Do what the celebs do when they want to be memorable: go vintage!"

See us listed on About.com

Thrifty Planet Resource Guide

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