Julia Bellaflores and husband, James Blake, have a passion for saving clothing. The couple said they disliked the wastefulness of apparel filling landfills and the pollution it causes, so to reduce waste, the couple opened Fashion Revisited in Tomball.

“We live in a throwaway nation,” Bellaflores said. “If we don’t buy the bales [of clothing], it will go to the landfill.”

The resale shop, which opened in April 2017, features men’s and women’s clothing, shoes and handbags for $1. Other items, such as jewelry and vintage dishes, are priced at buy two, get one free, Bellaflores said. Previously, the two owned a resale shop in Spring.

“It’s not about the clothing cost but what they are worth,” she said.

As a former fashion designer in Puerto Rico for 15 years, Bellaflores said clothes seem to be going out of style faster in recent years. Many retailers, especially those with a focus on fast fashion, change out their in-store inventory weekly, she said.

The short shelf life of clothing causes many people to dispose of a higher quantity of clothing more often, Bellaflores said. Many of those items end up in the clothing bales Bellaflores rummages through to find the store’s selections. She said she hunts for undamaged pieces or those that need a minor repair, such as a loose hem, missing button or small stain.

“The work that goes into the repair is important,” said Bellaflores, who learned to sew from her 91-year-old mother, a former seamstress for the luxury fashion designer Balenciaga in Spain. “I want to make sure someone can enjoy it.”

Bellaflores said as Fashion Revisited brings in little more than enough money to cover store expenses, the couple operates a second business, Chest of Treasures, located next door, which offers high-end items, such as handmade jewelry and mosaic artwork.

Blake said he enjoys the diversity of customers who come to shop and is regularly impressed by their creativity and vision for fashion. For example, he said customers browse the resale racks for everything from prom dresses to fabric for Renaissance Festival costumes.

“They see the value,” Blake said. “It makes sense. Cloth[ing] need[s] to have more value than we give it.”

Fashion Revisited
407 W. Main St., Tomball
281-690-1636
www.facebook.com/fashionrevisited
Hours: Thu.-Sat. 10 a.m.-6 p.m., closed Sun.-Wed.