The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
‘We’re both artsy’
Mother-daughter team open ‘thrifty boutique’ in Winsted
WINSTED – Pam Fiorillo and her daughter, Danielle Bilodeau, were riding in a car a little over a year ago, when they decided to open a boutique.
On March 16, Peacocks and Lilacs Thrifty Boutique held its grand opening at 452 Main St.
It wasn’t quite as out-of-theblue as that, of course. Mother and daughter both loved finding bargains at flea markets, estate sales and auctions, and when they decided to make a business out of it, they redoubled their efforts.
Jeff Fiorillo, Pam Fiorillo’s husband, said there were truckloads of furniture, artwork and clothing stored at their Winsted home. When they found a location after looking for a year, it took only about a month to renovate the space and move merchandise in.
Walls are painted a soothing lilac, a favorite flower of Bilodeau. Many items have a peacock theme, because Pam Fiorillo is fascinated by that colorful bird.
“We have a lot of vintage items,” said Bilodeau, who lives in Plymouth. “And we try to repurpose things. We repurposed the chairs as displays. We repurposed an old door, attached an old drawer to it and put Hitchcock legs on the drawer.”
The “Welcome”-emblazoned wooden door is a backdrop and a support for the white-painted drawer-turned planter; its floral display illuminated by an overhead vintage light fixture attached to the door. The individual components were acquired separately and assembled by Jeff Fiorillo, working from a design conceived by Pam Fiorillo.
Another idea of hers was for Jeff Fiorillo to cut Ethan Allen tables in half and attach them to the wall in order to display vintage shoes, purses, an oil painting and jewelry.
“We also have a special display over here of Edward Herrmann from ‘The Gilmore Girls,’” Pam Fiorillo said. The women acquired items from the personal wardrobe of the late actor, who is also known for portraying Franklin D. Roosevelt in the miniseries “Eleanor and Franklin.”
A label inside one of Herrmann’s Saville Row Londontailored dinner jackets has his name embroidered on it.
“We handpick things,” Pam Fiorillo said. “Over here, we have Christian Dior. We have some Burberry jackets, and we have Coach jackets. We have other names, like Chico’s and Talbots.”
“And Coach purses,” Bilodeau said.
Minutes before the doors opened on this first day of business, Pam Fiorillo and Bilodeau said they have driven from upstate New York to the Long Island shoreline, searching for bargains.
“Whenever we see an estate sale or auction, we just kind of bid on things that look like they would fit in the store,” Pam Fiorillo said.
Both women have business experience. Bilodeau said she worked at T.J. Maxx in Bristol and as a cook in a nursing home in Plymouth. Pam Fiorillo worked in a facility for equine myotherapy and also did some catering.
“But we’re both artsy,” Pam Fiorillo said. “My husband and I have redone homes, the interior decorating sort of thing.”
“She would dream it, and he would build it,” Bilodeau said.
Mike, “Mikey,” Saucier, Bilodeau’s partner, said he helps with painting and hanging pictures in the shop.
“Jeff and Mikey worked together to kind of put things together that we envisioned,” Pam Fiorillo said.
She and her daughter said their motto is, “Save the clothes, save the planet.”
Pam Fiorillo said people on average wear an item of clothing about seven times before discarding it.
“So, we’re kind of taken with good quality clothing that people don’t have any use for, and everybody loves designer brands, so we want to just offer that,” she said.
One of their first customers on opening day was Kelly Wilson, a Winsted resident who works at a discount store in Barkhamsted where Pam Fiorillo shops.
“She told me she was opening this place this morning, so I made a plan,” Wilson said. “My reaction? It’s stunning. It looks fantastic in here.”
She said she had her eye on handwoven Yemenite baskets and a sofa that is in the store window.
Laurie Merola, a Winsted resident looking to decorate her new apartment, purchased two small sculptures and some peacock feathers.
“I’m so excited,” she said. “I love the lilac paint color.”
Peacocks and Lilacs Thrifty Boutique is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. It is closed Monday. For more information, call 321-289-7982 or 860-837-1627. On Facebook, search “Peacocks & Lilacs Thrifty Boutique.”