Jan 20, 2008

New shop opens in ErieBy Liz AllenGoErie.com

After a Financial Times of London reporter described us as “the unfashionable town of Erie,” in an otherwise flattering story on GE Transportation, I didn’t know whether to be offended or proud.

I’m glad my hometown doesn’t exude snob appeal, but I consider our working-class heritage sort of trendy.

Accents on the Bay, a new gift shop in the old Dispatch Printing building, shows how to coax beauty from our roots.

A former job shop for the Dispatch Herald newspaper, the circa-1865 brick building at 29 W. Fifth St. boasts 14-foot ceilings and arched windows. The store shows that “fashionable Erie” isn’t an oxymoron.

When I walked in, co-owners Barbara Corbett and Judy Tucci admired my Vera Bradley purse and said they hope to add the Bradley line.

I don’t covet designer labels and no one would call me chic; my Vera Bradley handbag was a gift. But when they spotted my purse, I felt stylish. I liked the image I projected and appreciated the fact that an occasional indulgence is OK.

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