Repurposing Vintage Clothes To Inspire Stylish Western Fashion

Photo courtesy of The Shop Outpost | The Shop Outpost is brimming with curated vintage goods from floor to ceiling.

Step into The Shop Outpost in Denver’s Park Hill neighborhood and you’ll be instantly charmed by displays of vintage Western clothing and rustic antique furnishings, shelves lined with cowboy boots and displays of hats. Vintage rugs cover the floors, and stenciled onto the walls are such messages as “Buy Less, Choose Well, Make It Last,” a sentiment attributed to the late British fashion legend Vivienne Westwood.

That message, even more than all the alluring merchandise, sums up the mission of owner, designer and entrepreneur Taylor Woodard. “I want to combat fast fashion by curating a space with vintage, antique and secondhand clothing and décor,” she said during a recent tour of her store on East Colfax Avenue.

Photo courtesy of The Shop Outpost | Taylor Woodard, owner of The Shop Outpost, is all smiles when it comes to vintage Western fashion and decor.

Clothing production is one of the world’s major pollutants, and Woodard’s inventory demonstrates that you don’t have to buy new to be stylish. For a start, peek at her Instagram account @theshopoutpost and you’ll see Woodard in such looks as a vintage black-and-white gingham dress paired with a bolo tie and red cowboy boots, or a Johnny Cash T-shirt and fringed skirt, a pile of silver and turquoise necklaces around her.

Photo courtesy of The Shop Outpost

The store features repurposed goods like jackets made from vintage quilts, and sweatshirts that Woodard handpicks and has embroidered with such sayings as “Once a Cowgirl, Always a Cowgirl” and “What Would Dolly Do?” Jewelry from Ostrich Moon incorporates antique charms and beads. Woodard also collaborates with local artists like McKenzie Parrott, who has decorated hats with large floral motifs. 

Photo courtesy of Suzanne S. Brown

Woodard scours estate sales and flea markets for goods and buys from individuals as well. She not only wants to tread lightly on the environment but also is committed to local nonprofit organizations. Among those she has supported are the Children’s Law Center, Anchor Center and Max Fund. She is a member of 1% for the Planet and contributes 5 percent of her sales to local charities.

Photo courtesy of Suzanne S. Brown

Woodard named her business after the place where she spent endless hours while growing up, The Shop, a home décor and interior design business run by her grandmother in Indianapolis, Ind. The Shop Outpost carries vintage home items, and Woodard also does interior design. Her interest in Western décor was piqued when she began furnishing a ranch home that she and her husband bought in northern Colorado

Photo courtesy of The Shop Outpost

She originally thought the shop would change themes every few months, but when she hit on Western, it resonated quickly and deeply with customers, so she stuck with it. She’s surprised that there aren’t more purveyors of new or vintage Western fashion and wares in the area. While Western comes and goes on the fashion cycle, she finds its appeal timeless and uplifting. “You can’t have a bad time when you dress up in your Western boots and a hat,” she says.

Community events are also a priority for Woodard. The Shop Outpost hosts parties during the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo and throughout the year at its Hat Bar. Groups can come in and customize hats with bands, brands, feathers and pins, or just shop.

Among the shop’s fans is Barbara Macfarlane, the self-titled Queen Bee at upscale market Marczyk’s Foods a few blocks to the west. “Taylor is a force, creatively and business-wise,” Macfarlane says of her neighbor. She visits the store frequently and recently bought a vintage Rockmount Ranch Wear denim skirt there, noting she admires Woodard’s eye for clothing as well as décor. She also appreciates the retailer’s community involvement, as they both serve on the Colfax Mayfair Business Improvement District. “Taylor always is willing to not only suggest things to bring energy to our street, but also to lead the charge,” Macfarlane says.