Dalaga, 150 Franklin St, Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Click for shopping hours and start planning your visit.

Dalaga means 'quintessential woman in her prime' in Tagalog.
A view of the store in the afternoon sunlight.


Some skinny belts displayed on the Victorian armoire.


Spring Trend: Print & Pattern
Michelle will focus on circle prints and Mod looks.
I love the alcove and hanging photos in the dressing rooms.


One of Michelle's trend picks for Spring: sexy platforms!
New deliveries are expected throughout the season.

Dalaga opened its doors just 10 months ago, but there is already talk of expanding the boutique, devoted to designer women's and men's clothing, shoes and accessories. "The store gets really crowded on the weekends now with lines for the dressing rooms. We had to start a sign-in sheet so people can keep shopping comfortably," says owner/designer Michelle Mangiliman. Michelle always has an eye on her customers' needs, and has a talent for creating a warm and inviting shopping environment. This coming Saturday for example, all are invited to join Michelle at the store for cupcakes, cocktails and discounts as part of a 5-day birthday sale she is running, beginning today! I'll be there.

I was happy to hear that Dalaga's following just keeps growing and growing. I consider Dalaga to be the trailblazer of the new Franklin Street, ushering in what I believe will be many more small creative retail projects in the coming future. The instant success of Dalaga on a street with sparse foot traffic seems to prove the adage, "If you build it, they will come." I sat down with Michelle to talk about how Dalaga came to be and about her vision for Spring/Summer 07.

EP: Talk about your design philosophy and your concept for the store.
MM: My ideas about clothing are changing all the time, so when it comes to designing or buying for the store, it's all about filling the need. I feel like the store is an extension of my own closet. The decor concept for the store is 'boudoir meets mysterious interior garden,' a private space where you can feel free and comfortable to reinvent yourself. [Note: the store fixtures are part of a Victorian bedroom set, which includes armoire, end tables, dresser and headboard which are adorned with silk flowers.]

EP: Tell us about the name, Dalaga, and what you carry.
MM: Dalaga means 'quintessential woman in her prime' in Tagalog. We currently carry 3/4 women's and 1/4 men's. Clothing, denim, shoes, belts, jewelry, bags. We're always looking for Greenpoint designers. People really get into the fact that the person who made this lives in the neighborhood. In the beginning we also carried designers from the Philippines which sold really well. We are working on sourcing more. And of course we carry the Dalaga label which I design.

EP: Tell us more about your design background.
MM: I started sewing at 10, took a Fashion Marketing program in high school and designed my first collection. I attended the San Francisco Academy of Art with a major in Fashion Design. In San Francisco, I was lucky to fall in with a collaborative underground boutique where I developed and produced my designs and showed them at a local club. I followed my [now fiance] to New York and worked as a freelance designer for a missy/juniors start-up for a year. After that I continued to pursue my own label [Dalaga] and tried to find partners. In the meantime, I held sample sales once a month in a warehouse on Green Street [in Greenpoint], which I promoted on Craig's List. I have always thought about having a store, but thought of it as five years down the road. Then one day, much sooner than expected, the time and place were right.

EP: How long have you lived in New York?
MM: Three years, all in Greenpoint. July will be the one-year anniversary of the store.

EP: Name the hottest 3 designers you carry.
MM: CASTE by Micah Cohen out of L.A. He does menswear. DALAGA. MADE IN HEAVEN which is a line of high-rise skinny jeans, recently revived by the daughter of the label's original spokesmodel.

EP: What are the trends you will capitalize on for Spring/Summer?
MM: Cute, sexy platform shoes that are walker-friendly and wearable. Primary color dresses in bold yellow, blue, and red, with a very mod look. Circle prints. And we'll continue the prairy, lacey, eyelet-y looks that we always have going on in the store.

Thank you so much Michelle! As I finish writing up this interview, I am eager to get back to your store and see what's new. Happy Birthday! See you on Saturday for cupcakes, but I think I'll pop in today for a sneak peak.

Dalaga
150 Franklin Street
Greenpoint, Brooklyn 11222
877.287.8395
G to Greenpoint Ave

DALAGA is the first store portrait in our new "Shopping on Franklin" special feature. Watch for a new store portrait next Thursday.

Two of my favorite details in the store: the Victorian tin ceilings
and the elaborate carving above the register
[actually an upside-down headboard-- part of a Victorian bedroom set
which serve as the store fixtures. So clever!]


Fun prints, fun shapes for Spring/Summer 07

Some of the shoe selection at Dalaga. There are many more great bags too.

The designer clothing business is certainly booming in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. I am so happy to see that my neighborhood is supporting these individually owned, designer-run creative retail projects. Both Dalaga and Alter, at 150 Franklin St and 109 Franklin St respectively, have expanded their shops this month.

I reported on the Alter alteration on Tuesday. On Friday, I checked out the new and improved Dalaga which expanded its retail square footage significantly this past month. When you enter the new store, which has doubled in size, you won't believe your eyes. The store is positively cavernous. Owner Michelle is certainly doing something right. It is exciting to watch her business grow.

Michelle has invited me back this week to take photos, after the final paint is applied and all the finishing touches are in place. So stay tuned. But I had to say 'wow' in the meantime. If you want to see for yourself, take the G to Greenpoint and have a shopping day.


Dalaga
150 Franklin Street
Greenpoint, Brooklyn 11222
877.287.8395
G to Greenpoint Ave

Dalaga is open until 9pm. I am off to do some night shopping. That is one way to beat the duldrums of the time change. I will let you know what goodies I find.

Dalaga
150 Franklin Street
Greenpoint, Brooklyn 11222
877.287.8395
G to Greenpoint Ave

Twill Dress and Georgette Blouse by Tulle
on dalaganyc

How great is this photo on Dalaga's new Website? And by the way, how great is Dalaga's new Website and Blog? I am adding both to my shopping links and blogroll right now. I am very flattered to be credited in writing their About Us. Thanks so much for the link Michelle and Bob! I loved writing that piece and interviewing Michelle. Her story is quite inspiring.

Shopping On Franklin: 1. Word, 2. TBA, 3. TBA, 4. PA Grocery,
5. Alter, 6. Dalaga, 7. Pencil Factory, 8. The Queen's Hideaway,
9. Greenpoint Coffee House, 10. Franklin Corner Store,
11. Brooklyn Label, 12. Casa Mon Amour, 13. Hayden-Harnett

With a flurry of recent retail activity, Franklin Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn* (see map) is developing into a new shopping destination. Just a year ago, Franklin Street was entirely dusty and dug up by road crews, and looked more like the urban frontier. The only retail activity happening during the weekday afternoon was at the corner bodegas, laundromats and the seemingly single 'outpost of cool' Greenpoint Coffee House (#9).

There were also some hidden gems though, like Rudy's, where I would get the best egg sandwich with the tastiest hot sauce and delicious coffee (now sadly gone and changed hands to Brooklyn Label, #11) and the Franklin Corner Store (#10; still in business, thankfully), with an extensive menu of creative sandwiches at great prices, from $2.50-$7. I recommend the "New Mexico" with black bean dip, eggplant, tomatoes, hold the lettuce, pepper, jack cheese, avocado, jalapeno and pressed for $5.50. Delicious. But I digress.

I thought it necessary at this point in Franklin Street's retail development to create a new feature for the blog, Shopping on Franklin. For the past weeks, I have been out taking photos** and gathering field notes about this new retail culture. I will be bringing you individual portraits of four new stores***, which I think you will enjoy.

• Dalaga. Opened June 2006. Designer-owned boutique featuring the Dalaga label and other hot women's and men's clothing collections, jeans, shoes, handbags and jewelry. Very affordable. Nice surprises. (#6 above)
• Hayden-Harnett. Opened March 2007. Designer-owned boutique featuring the complete Hayden-Harnett luxury leather goods collections including handbags and small accessories (also carried at Barneys Coop!) and showcasing their complete clothing line, which is not to be missed. (#13 above)
• Alter. Opened February 2007. Designer-owned shop featuring the deconstructed/reconstructed Alter label, jewelry, denim, and affordable men's and women's clothing. (#5 above)
• Word. Opened March 2007. A bookstore featuring the latest fiction and non-fiction, stationery, gifts, tees by Modern Planet and a dedicated children's section. (#1 above)

Stay tuned!


*Greenpoint is my neighborhood and Franklin is my street. I can give you the day-to-day blow-by-blow.
**How do you like my Franklin Street storefront collage?
***Four new stores at the time of this post. As more stores open, I will bring you the news.

The deconstructed-reconstructed look of the This Old Thing? label
translates well to the decor of the store.
I like how the skeletal wall is cleverly transformed into clothing racks.
Below, the wall has been chiseled away to partially reveal
the years of paint layers and older brickwork underneath.


Form follows function with This Old Thing? designs.

Surface details often follow menswear tailoring details

enhancing the fit of the garment.


Detail of the fitting room curtain.

The ALTER signature boot vase with black flowers
is just one of the clever ready-mades in the store.


A closeup of the ALTER 'wallpaper'
handmade and one-of-a-kind, of course!

Designers Roy Caires and Tommy Cole exude such raw fashion energy, you will be rewarded with a different treat for the eyes each time you visit their shop. The two own and expertly run ALTER, now nearly 4 months old, and also design their own hot-selling clothing label 'This Old Thing?' (principally Menswear, but with plenty of Womenswear; deconstructed and reconstructed vintage).

Believe me when I say, when you visit ALTER you will get into such interesting, exciting and in-depth conversations about fashion, trend and creativity that you will ask yourself, "Why do I leave my tape recorder at home when I come to ALTER? This is really good stuff. I could not possibly remember all the great things I just learned. I must bring my tape recorder next time."

Talking to Roy and Tommy is somewhat like talking to Karl Lagerfeld. They have their own clear design vision and can speak about it eloquently. These two have their finger on the pulse of something uniquely their own; and it is rather exciting to hear their ideas about the world of design. When you visit the store, you get to understand a bit about what makes them tick and how they see the world. Plus you will get many referrals about more cool things to check out: Websites, blogs, podcasts, a special event where Tommy will be DJing, stores, designers. You get the idea.

I got to find out a bit more about Tommy Cole and Roy Caires via e-mail. Their story might inspire you to open you own store. Or at least, plan a shopping trip to theirs!

EP: Why Franklin Street?

TC: Franklin Street chose us. Last October (2006) a friend of ours came across a posting on Craig's List for a retail/commercial space in Greenpoint, so we called the realtor immediately. We had no idea where in Greenpoint it was, but we were sure we wanted to take it. When we got to the space and realized it was across the street from Dalaga (where we had been selling our line already) we knew it was meant to be. We signed a long term lease a few days later.

RC: Yes, our Franklin Street location was something of pure fate. The space randomly fell in our lap and was coincidentally a few yards away from Dalaga. I saw that this area was going through a massive renovation and modernization. So it fit perfectly with our aesthetic of mixing old and new. We thought it would be a perfect place to set up our shop and to be a part of this neighborhood's gentrification.


EP: Talk about your buying philosophy and/or vision for the store.

TC: My vision for Alter was to create a space with a strong, raw, creative energy to it. The build-out of the shop took about 10 weeks of 12 hour days. Roy and I built, painted, and reconstructed pretty much every inch of the space so that it would have the same kind of aesthetic as the clothing we design. Alter will always be evolving... a work in progress!

RC: Our buying philosophy always starts off by what we like to wear. Our style of dressing is very much mixing old and new -- designer and vintage. We try to evoke this style with our space and the items that we stock in the shop. We enjoy experimenting with texture, fit, and mixing pieces that give a unique twist and silhouette. We look for those characteristics when we select items for our shop.

The vision for the store is to continue to offer original designs and labels to our growing customer base. We are working on creating and stocking exclusive collections and products that embody the ALTER look. We have in the works exclusives from a variety of designers, locally and internationally. We are looking forward to expanding the shop to cater to the demand that we already have with just the 3.5 months that we have been open.


EP: How long have you been in the fashion business?

TC: I've been "in" the fashion business about 7 years. I had my first (of many) retail jobs in 2000 at a store in Boston called Ozone. I proceeded to work retail instead of going to college because I made good money, met amazing people, and got a fantastic business education for free. I started experimenting with reconstructing clothing during this time as well. I moved to New York in 2003, at which point Roy and I reunited and started our own line called 'This Old Thing?'

RC: I have been in the retail industry for 12 years now. Working for major corporate stores, small independent high end boutiques to internationally respected designer boutiques. My duties have always been in sales, managerial positions and even posts as visual directors. I have always loved retail from every angle and now I can put all my years of knowledge into my own shop.


EP: What are your top-selling items/designers?

TC: We sell a lot of our own This Old Thing? creations. They are one of a kind pieces, they are super funky, and they are inexpensive. We also do very well with Cheap Monday jeans and Fetty of Brooklyn jewelry. Oh, and dresses, tons of them.

RC: Alter's top-selling items are always This Old Thing?, our own design label. From men's vests and ties to women's dresses and jackets. We can't keep them in stock! Cheap Monday denim from Sweden is also very popular because of their great skinny fit and $65 price tag!


EP: Name 2-3 hot trends you will capitalize on for Spring/Summer 07.

RC: Its hard to pinpoint one or two key trends that we will be following for s/s 07 because we just do what we like and feel. And it changes all the time. But I have been thinking about color and volume for myself and so that will probably subconsciously translate into my spring selections for the shop.

TC: I don't know if they're hot trends, but I am always going for a garage glam/cowboy couture look. Lots of plaid and fringe, pointy pointy shoes, and really tight jeans are the basics of this look. Cropped jackets & blazers for men will soon take over the world as well, I will see to it!

Want to learn more about the making of ALTER? Check out this podcast docu-series about Tom and Roy (silhouettes pictured at left -- Roy has the scissors, Tommy is wearing cowboy boots), by David Becker and Pamela Romanowsky.

ALTER
109 Franklin Street (at Greenpoint Avenue)
Brooklyn, NY 11222
718.784.8818
G to Greenpoint Ave

ALTER is the third store portrait in our new "Shopping on Franklin" special feature. Watch for another store portrait in 2 weeks.

Split Screen
Left and right details of a one-of-a-kind men's shirt from "This Old Thing?'
(Click on the image to enlarge)

One of ALTER's exclusives: Fetty of Brooklyn
designs special pieces just for the store.
Pictured above: disc necklaces with black, champagne and white diamonds
and engraved Alter silhouette charm necklaces.

Roy and Tommy did the all of build-out for the store themselves,
including constructing all the fixtures. I love this piece.
The ALTER Altar, as I like to call it, is where the register sits.

The upsidedown hanger is just the beginning of the ALTER empire.

Bread for dinner!
Not the slices, but the restaurant in NoLita.
This recommendation from Michelle, owner of Dalaga.

Cabana for lunch!
A pan-Latin menu with great salads.
This recommendation from Beth.
I will be meeting her for lunch at Cabana next week.

Dalaga for shopping!
That recommendation comes from me.
I just got the greatest pair of dark blue metallic flats there.
Michelle has a great eye. The clothing selection at her Greenpoint, Brooklyn boutique will get you hooked and keep you shopping week after week. Check out this week's feature about the store in AM New York, page 48!


This idea just came to me for a regular blog feature. I will expand this post later with more recommendations from friends. I have very creative friends who have very good ideas. Enjoy these 3 for now.

But must unpack first. I will be back later with posts and pics, but now to the unpacking from yesterday's Market NYC. Can I do it in 30 minutes? I will try.

I had quite the action-packed weekend. I showed my t-shirts to a new store in Brooklyn on Saturday, and then delivered their order the same day, in between the rain drops. Very exciting. If you are in the neighborhood, come check out their store, Dalaga. The decor is so striking! And the clothing selection is quite nice too. These two sisters have a great eye. (dalaga is Tagalog for a smart urban chic girl who has got it all together)

Sunday I did the Market and split the table with my friend Alyson who just moved back to Brooklyn from Boston. She was my intern 9 years ago and then my trusted production sewer for a number of years following. If I may do a little plug for her here, she is a graduate of FIT, and has worked for Marc Jacobs and Imitation of Christ before starting her own line, Redder Betty, which you can see a bit more of here. Her website is coming soon.

Within the last two years, Franklin Street has supported the openings of three designer-driven boutiques (Dalaga, Alter, Hayden-Harnett), a bookstore (Word), a record store (Permanent Records), a furniture store (Claank), a Dominican-French restaurant (Casa Mon Amour), a cafe (Brooklyn Label), a wine store (to come), and most recently on March 15, a gallery-like boutique with a minimalist aesthetic called Jan & Aya.

Excited to examine the merchandise in person, I took the grand tour from owners, Carolyn and Kai. Jan & Aya, named for the couple's two children, features handmade objects that are well-crafted and beautifully designed. Categories include home (poufs, candles and soaps, pottery, glassware, art), child (shoes, clothing, toys), self (jewelry, tees, shoes), and come Sunday, cakes. Organic cakes from artisanal baker Sarah Magid will be available by the slice or by the cake every weekend. In the summer, customers will be able to enjoy a slice of cake on the back patio with some lemonade. That sounds great.

When asked why the couple chose Franklin Street for their first retail venture, Carolyn replied eloquently, "This is the street that is having a kind of Renaissance as far as community-based businesses. It speaks to the artist's community of Greenpoint."


Jan & Aya
99 Franklin Street
Greenpoint, Brooklyn
718.609.1404

Store hours:
Thursday-Friday 1-7pm
Saturday noon-7pm

Sunday noon-5pm

Are there plans for more shoes? According to Carolyn, there will be clogs for adults,
hand-painted clogs for kids, and come summer, flip flops of the Brazilian variety.

Set of 6 nesting bowls, $180.
Tea towels, right, by Skinny LaMinx.

The peaceful mood at Jan & Aya: fresh flowers and blossoming branches
mixed among the minimalist displays, exposed brick, white floors, vaulted ceilings,
and a sheer curtain that hints at a backyard patio space, to come.


Children's moccasins, $34; Owl, $38, both by Zid Zid


Poufs by Zid Zid, $80-$260.

Art pins by Ashley G., $3.
Carolyn found this artist on Etsy.

*

Hardly. There is a new flurry of retail activity on Franklin Street once again. I can't believe all the new places that have opened in the last 6 months! I found this old version of the street. Wow. Before Dalaga even moved into the neighborhood. Before Hayden-Harnett moved into the neighborhood. Before Jan & Aya opened. And closed. Before Alter opened Women's across the street. Once it stops raining, I will devote myself to photographing all the new places on Franklin and environs to show you all the new cool places to visit. Stay tuned. By the way, when will it stop raining?


*Remember this old post from 2007? I need to make a new collage.

Dove of Peace, detail, gift from Pope John Paul II
on display at the UN

I fell in love with a certain bird necklace at the Chanel store today. It was a textured chunky silver with a variety of blue stones inset. And now I am sad that I did not sneak a photo, because I can't seem to locate it on the Website. The bird reminds me of the Dove of Peace mosaic displayed at the UN, in feeling anyway. I have a strong bird thing happening right now, to be sure. I just saw a great bird ring at Dalaga yesterday, which also reminded me of the UN dove. I will have to get a picture of it for you in the next day or so.

I was just combing Chanel.com for the picture of the bird, and found this instead. No wonder why the Dove of Peace reminded me of the Chanel bird.