The story behind fancy-free
​Before I tell you the story of fancy-free, I must start with the most important part: my Dad and my Mom. My Mom is an artist, my Dad a musician, and I am an artist AND musician! ​To start at the beginning, I grew up with nine siblings! We were a thrifty family! My Mom is one of the most creative and resourceful people that I've ever known - she could create anything we ever needed! My Mom has taught me everything I know and was also thrift store owner! When I was growing up, she owned a thrift store called "Finders Keepers." My childhood was full of thrifting, and I didn't realize it at the time, but this was greatest gift that I would ever receive because I love to find the beauty in old items. Which is what I do here at fancy-free! A lot of repurposing, recycling, and bringing things back to life. There is so much beauty in resale! If only our garments could talk to us, oh the stories they would tell.
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The other greatest gift in my life was given to me by my Dad. My Dad give his children the gift of music. There wasn't a day that went by in our house where my Dad wasn't singing. I have memories of all of us kids sitting in a half circle at his feet while he played his guitar for us as well as the many nights where he and my Mom would sing us to sleep. I remember an embarrassing moment in the grocery store when my Dad absentmindedly burst into song while looking for the best deal on ground beef, this was my life! I had a childhood that was filled with thrifting and music, which turned out to be two of my favorite things in the world. So fast forwarding a bit, it’s 2011 and I just graduated high school. I have no plans of attending college. Instead, I have my heart set on living in Alaska, because if there’s one thing I love more than thrifting, it’s adventure! I’m setting sail, about to conquer the unknown. At the young age of 17, three days after graduating high school, I board a plane and move to Alaska. This marks the beginning of an extraordinary adventure and a life on the road. I didn’t know I would fall in love with adventure, but after moving to Alaska, I never stopped traveling.
For the ten years that followed I travelled my beautiful country high and low, picking up seasonal work to support myself along the way. Sometimes I feel as though I’ve lived my life ten times over! In my travels I’ve lived in Michigan, Minnesota, Alaska, Wyoming, North Dakota, Texas, Florida, Connecticut, and New York City. I have worked as an Alzheimer’s caregiver, a waitress, a housekeeper, a cook, a nanny, a Segway tour guide, a school photographer, a camp counselor, a birthday singer, a teachers assistant, a Krispy Kreme worker, and an easter bunny. One time I even worked at a circus! Finally, my favorite job: being a small business owner in Marquette Michigan. Fancy-free means “Free from commitment.” So now you might understand where this name comes from. When people ask me why I chose fancy-free, I tell them I didn’t! Fancy-free chose me.
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Fancy-free is a curated resale shop where we celebrate creative expression in ALL through curated resale, live music, and local art. At fancy-free, our mission is “to stoke the wildfire of creative expression.” Creative expression is the ability to use our minds and imaginations to create something that represents ourselves. While creative expression means creating an outfit that communicates who we are and makes us feel at home, it also means much more. Creative expression means looking our loved ones in the eye and having difficult conversations. It’s telling a joke that makes someone smile. ​ Creative expression is making art and then sharing it! It’s silly dancing across the street and bursting into song at the store, the way my Dad did. It means no longer being afraid to be open and having the courage to share the creativity that lives inside of us all. Fancy-free is a place where art in all forms can be shared. At fancy-free, we share our art and music not to be the best, but simply to spread joy.
Creative expression saves lives. ​​
