"If your hair is done properly and you're wearing good shoes, you can get away with anything"  - Iris Apfel

 A single shoe changed Cinderella's life for happily ever after. That's the exact same feeling owner Jasmine Dantzler tries to recreate for her Pearled Shoe Box customers or 'Gem Pickers' as she likes to call them. I had the pleasure of stopping by one of the P.S.B. pop-up shops at Detroit's revitalized Eastern Market. It was like walking into a treasure chest full of handpicked vintage and one-of-a-kind shoes and accessories. 

Where'd you get those shoes?

The Pearled Shoe box curates it's gems from a wide variety of venues including estate sales, rummage sales, and exclusive buying events between Detroit and Chicago. If you need to make room in your closet, you can even schedule your very own closet cleanse. The Pearled Shoe Box will gladly take your new and gently used shoes and add them to their collection. 

There's no denying that the love of shoes seems to be universal. While I was visiting P.S.B. I noticed women from all different walks of life stopping by to check out what was new and even some coming by to show off their previous purchases. With such a broad customer base, I asked Jasmine how she decided what to buy. Her response was that she runs things by her mom, her best friends, and her younger sister when she's not sure if something will work. If it passes that tests, then she knows she's got a true gem! 

You can catch P.S.B. at the Detroit Eastern Market every Sunday until October 18th and back again during the Holiday shopping season for Holiday Market. If you're in the Chicago area, you can visit their various pop-up shops as well. To stay up to date on where the traveling shoe gems are going to be next visit their Instagram page @PearledShoeBox.

Meet the Owner: Jas the Shoe Gypsy

I've made it a habit now to ask every Fashionista I interview: 'When did you fall in love with fashion?' Jasmine fell in love with Fashion at the age of 13. After a growth spurt, family members urged her to get into modeling. After researching careers in the industry, she decided to focus more on the business of Fashion. Jasmine graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago with a Fashion Marketing and Management degree. It was there in 2010, where she got the idea for what would eventually become The Pearled Shoe Box. A class project prompted her to take a business plan and turn it into reality. A few years later and with some inspiration from her daughter Giana, The Pearled Shoe Box was born. 

P.S. Jasmine and I  both are Cass Tech Alumni and we also served on Nordstrom's Fashion Board in high school together. It's so refreshing to see a fellow Detroit Fashionista making moves and turning a passion into reality. 

-XOXO Ash