By Jasmine Willis
DANSVILLE — If you enjoy vintage and upcycled timeless treasures you are in luck.
The V.A.U.L.T. has opened its doors in historic downtown offering vintage and upcycled lasting treasures that everyone can enjoy.
Dansville ArtWorks still operates out of their solo exhibit that is currently hosting “Believe in Boxes” by Colin Toomey.
The V.A.U.L.T. takes up the rest of the space at 153 Main Street. It is a way to reinvent the wheel during the Covid 19 Pandemic.
Nicole Alioto, The V.A.U.L.T. owner said the idea came from having pop-up stores on Main Street. They had all this space in the building and could open it up for this concept. There are about 12 different vendors who operate within the space.
“The first week went really well. Each of our vendors sold something. We have more stuff coming in every single day. The big thing about pop-up stores is they have a start and end date. We will only be doing this until Dec. 26. That is the big difference with us. Since we won’t just have it for a couple of weeks. We will have it for an entire season,” Alioto said. “We really appreciate that we were allowed to make this happen. Having this partnership allows us to be open more during the week.”
Salome Farraro, The V.A.U.L.T vendor said she was cleaning her attic and felt inspired by the vintage things she discovered.
“I have had a lot of this since the 1970s or 80s. It was exciting to discover this in my attic after all of this time. I had a 1950s child sewing machine that was given to me when I was a kid. It is a workable children’s sewing machine. I saw it and remembered using it as a child. I think it would be excellent on display as well,” she said. “I had a mid- 1900s schoolhouse desk that was in my office for a long time. My former father-in-law refurbished it for me a long time ago. I had each of my children use it. I have vintage games we used to play growing up. There is vintage Chinaware from my grandmother’s collection.”
Farraro is especially pleased with her mother’s 80-piece Avon Cape Cod Dinnerware Collection. It is available to be sold in its entirety with the vintage collector’s book talking about the collection. This is a very rare set.
There are a couple of historic Dansville items in her collection as well. A photo of John Klink from 1907. An Acme Coupon from the O’Connor and Sutfin store in 1890s. A railroad pass from Dansville and Mount Morris Railroad in 1934.
“You never know what is going to work unless you try it. We already knew going in this would be short term. Sometimes something small turns out to be something much bigger in the end. We have had people stop in every day. We already have repeat customers coming in looking for specific things. We have already become a destination spot,” Farraro said.
Roxanne Simeone, The V.A.U.L.T. vendor said she wanted to be part of the new adventure.
“I love selling my hand-made masks here at the new store. It is a lot of fun for me to come and resupply the space. This is different for the community. We really needed something like this here. I never worked in a retail environment before, so this has been very exciting for me,” she said. “I have done really well here to make sure everyone has what they need in these very hard times. I have made a lot more masks for the kids. I have Dansville Mustang colors for the students. I just made a bunch of Gator masks that I really like as well. My mother has helped me out a lot with the newest item, which is our headbands we are selling.”
Alioto added the new venture came in the right time, since the organization had to do what was needed to thrive in uncertain times.
“We had a network mixer at Battle Street Brewery, and everyone brought something to work on. People were very happy to share what they have been working on during the quarantine. We have opened a way for Fairy Doors to partner with us here. We plan on doing a vintage upcycle kit of some kind soon for the holidays. People can make a gift for Christmas,” Alioto mentioned.
The V.A.U.L.T. has been a way for generations to come together for nostalgic storytelling.
“There are so many generations that love the 1950s and 60s. There are many who lived through it, and some who have grandparents who talk about it. People come in with their kids or grandkids and talk tell stories about what it was like for them as a child. We have a lot of conversations come through here that I don’t think would happen if we didn’t have this place for them,” Alioto added. “It all came together for us here. The idea of vintage and upcycle both being a lasting treasure. We can have a piece of history that lasts forever.”
There are a couple more spots for vendors if anyone is interested until Oct. 1. You don’t have to devote your entire time to the store or volunteer every day. You can resupply your space when you need to. If a customer has a specific request don’t forget to ask and the treasure seekers will work hard to find it.
The V.A.U.L.T. has local things from the area as well as items from all over the world. It is open Wednesday to Friday noon to 6 p.m and Saturday 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. It is located at 153 Main Street in Dansville. Remember to bring a mask and practice social distancing.