Photo: Laura Dark Photography
Hair: Cat Monster
Make-up: On-Call Artistry
As you walk through the doors of Sudzy’s Pin-Up Palace, a red and white polka dot dress beckons for your attention. But before you can even touch its fabric, racks featuring dresses of seemingly every color interrupt your gaze. This cacophony of color, pattern and fit is both modern and 1950s-inspired fashion.
“My favorite thing of Sudzy’s is her dresses,” Emily Nickell, a friend of Sudzy’s says. “Every time I go into the store, I find a new dress I fall in love with. I just want to have everything in there.”
This is the new Pin-Up Palace of Scioto County, located in downtown Portsmouth. The palace opened on Aug. 27, 2016 and it’s far from your everyday clothing store seen at the mall. As illustrated by the baby blue dress with the red bow at its waist, Sudzy’s is anything but ordinary.
The store features an array of dresses in every size and style imaginable. Even women who aren’t accustomed to the vintage style of most of the apparel can walk away with something that they love.
Photographs strategically grace the store’s walls, and many feature Sudzy modeling various outfits of her own pin-up style. Portraits of women flaunting their outfits is how the term “pin-up” came to fruition in the late 19th century, so the images are Sudzy’s way of promoting body positivity within her store.
“I don’t know how many times I have gone into a store and been turned away because they didn’t have my size,” Sudzy says. “The world is tough enough as it is for us women, and if we can all feel confident in our own skin, I think we as women can accomplish some really great things.”
Sudzy carries sizes anywhere from extra small to 6XXL, and if she doesn’t have someone’s exact size, she is more than happy to order one. Sudzy purchases her merchandise from a variety of vendors, all with an eye for style and affordability.
With more time and investing into her store, Sudzy has plans to renovate a large room upstairs for a stage and runway for women to show off their favorite outfits and for body positive speakers to share their stories.
For now, Sudzy’s Pin-Up Palace will remain the most colorful and comfortable shopping destination in downtown Portsmouth.
“I want women to come in to my store and be able to find at least one thing they fall in love with,” Sudzy says. “Something that not only fits them but makes them feel beautiful and confident too.”