Gather & Collect

Today marks the start of the Glen Ellyn sidewalk sales! My favorite downtown Glen Ellyn activity. Almost every store in our town hauls out their best products onto the streets and puts everything on sale! A section of Main Street is blocked off, and the street is lined with goodies and treats available at an awesome discounted price. Gather and Collect is honored to participate in this sale! I love working it more than I love shopping it. Though some may call me crazy for that, I love a good early morning and the hot sun. I have worked four sidewalk sales since working for Gather and Collect, and working such a busy day can give you a good handful of stories to tell. My favorite sidewalk sale story is the infamous day it rained. 

Leah and I had been working for Julie for about a year, and with one sidewalk sale under our belts, we felt confident about our second. We were at our old location on Main Street, the small one! Meaning, we hauled out almost half of our store every year, and put it under big sun tents, so people had some shade while they were shopping. We all had these beautiful white t-shirts on that said “Kindness crew”, which is horribly ironic if you have ever stepped foot in our store. The day was beautiful, sunny, and not a single cloud in the sky. But, what do you know, dark clouds start to roll in near the end of our long day, and all of a sudden it starts to downpour. I am not talking about a drizzle or even a normal rain. I am talking pouring. So, everyone is running around like crazy, trying to shove all our stuff inside before the clothes or vintage items get ruined in all the rain. And in the process, all our white shirts are getting totally soaked and see-through. Imagine the scene: a bunch of people running around like maniacs with stuff in their hands, basically half naked in the pouring rain. And it’s not just us, it’s all of Mainstreet! We finally get everything inside safely, away from the danger that is the outside world, and what do you know, the rain lets up, and it is again beautiful outside. 

As weird as it is, that’s why I love the sidewalk sale. It has created so many good memories for my coworkers and I. Stories that we still tell to this day. Photos that we still laugh at. It also helps us connect with you guys, getting to get outside, and engage with the community on a day where everybody is out enjoying the weather and our town. 

At Gather and Collect, we do a 15% discount on everything in the store! We are on Pennsylvania now, right around the corner from Main, and if you come down to us, you’re sure to find something fun for yourself or a friend. Also, I think our setup is always so cute! There might even be bubbles this year, so come visit us and enjoy our store! 

Stay awesome and keep collecting, 

Mallory

So, I have sort of introduced myself and the store. I have shown you all the places we love to eat and fashion tips from me to you. But you don’t know who we are! I’d like to introduce you to the Gather and Collect crew, the people who make Gather and Collect a home! 

Let’s start off with Julie, the starter of all of this craziness! Julie wants you all to know, “I am the owner/ curator of Gather + Collect. We’ve been in Glen Ellyn since May of 2011. I enjoy binge-watching serial killer documentaries, cheese, and floating in pools. Dislikes are most vegetables, chin hair, and assholes.” Is there anymore you need to know?

Next up is Heather, and boy, do we love Heather. Heather “is the glue that holds this shitsow together. Literally E6000 in human form. My likes are my couch and tv remote, serial killers, and cheese. Dislikes are basic: outdoors, organized outings, heat, and most people, floating in pools, chin hairs, and assholes.I am the BFF of the owner and have been here since 2018 or so!” I would like to add that she is also the one who buys all the snacks for the store, which I personally appreciate very much. 

Leah, or one of my closest friends, thanks to Gather, is an awesome member of our team. “I’ve been working here for 5 years in october! I’m now a junior at the University of Iowa, so you will mostly see me during the summer months! My favorite thing about Gather and Collect is our amazing puzzle selection.” 

Then there is Amanda! A newer member of our team, but loved just the same. “Hi! I’m Amanda, and I’ve been at G&C for just shy of 2 years. As is true for many, I drank the Julie Spiller Kool-Aid many years ago, and as fate would have it, I was lucky enough to land a job working for her. I live in Elmhurst and am a former stay-at-home mom, a soon-to-be empty nester, and an occasional writer/editor. My hobbies are: mindlessly scrolling through Instagram and spamming people with useless content, swearing, cuddling my dogs, and playing mahjongg. I also occasionally read, exercise, and spend time with my family and friends. Oh, and I’m a puzzler. Stay fresh, Cheese Bags. IYKYK.” 

And next up is Rose! “I am a new edition to the Gather and Collect family but I have known Julie for years! 🙂 I am an avid reader, love true crime documentaries and from that have a very morbid sense of humor. Come visit me at the shop!” Rose can’t have her photo up, so instead we drew this very lifelike, spitting image rendition of her for you all! 

Ophelia, our sweet, sweet little! “I’m Ophelia! Reader, writer, and collector with obsessions ranging from Taiwanese rap music to sassy socks and everything in between. Ask me about my dog!” 

And finally, there is I! I’m Mallory, but you can call me Mal. The Latin root for bad. I love music, gyros, and fun colors! I dislike mean people, rollercoasters, and the heat. There is much more to me than what I’ve written, but it is so hard to talk about yourself! Gosh, why don’t you try it! 

There is a lot more to all of us! A lot you can learn if you visit us at the shop, there is a new person every day with new fun things to talk to you about! Thanks for reading and learning a little bit more about us. 

Stay awesome and keep collecting,

Mallory

With Pride month coming to an end, I find it important to acknowledge that love should be a year-round endeavor! Here at the store, we surely think so. Our pride section is small, but mighty, and has many nifty gifts you might need to show those around you that you love them. We have everything, buttons, cards, socks, candles, flags, lots of knick-knacks that are perfect for last-minute gifts, and if you just need a pride treat for yourself! 

Fear is very prevalent in our political climate right now, for the queer and trans community. As a member of that community, I understand how horrifying it is to have your rights and love under attack. At Gather and Collect lots of past and current staff identify with queer identity, and a lot of our customers do too. This means that the people we love and care for are struggling and scared for their futures. That is why, here, you will always have a safe space to be yourself! We welcome everybody and anybody into our store; all your weirdness and craziness. Authenticity and love are so important to us. We show this love by supporting small LGBTQ+ businesses and supporting local communities. Fostering joy is such a powerful way to uplift your community, and we hope we do that here by making you laugh and feel comfortable within our walls.

We hope you find something that you enjoy in our store, whether that be pride-related or not!

As always, stay awesome and keep collecting,

Mallory

At Gather and Collect it’s very rare to find people bringing in their own lunch, or not eating for that matter. Someone’s always got a snack; we are hungry women! As hungry women, we have a few spots we frequent on the regular, things you can always find us enjoying on the job. 

First up is Glen Oak, a classic in the Gather and Collect rotation. This place is a local diner that offers a wide range of options to suit your taste. My classic choices are their gyro or a grilled cheese sandwich. Maybe a little childish, but if you have it, you’ll understand. Heather and I always get the grilled cheese sandwiches together. Grilled cheese Tuesday we used to call it. My favorite day of the year is when it happens. If you don’t like those options, don’t fret; they have everything from burgers to omelets. A great choice for families or when you’re starving but don’t know what you’re craving! 

We frequent Javis Glen Ellyn, which also has a newer location in Wheaton. The Glen Ellyn is a take-out only store that serves my favorite tacos in the world. A classic steak taco with cilantro and onion always makes my day ten times better. When Leah and I always order, she gets the crispy chicken taquitos. I used to never get those, but I had one bite of hers, and my world changed. Javis does catering and small orders! If you are a fan of Mexican and haven’t tried them out I urge you to! Great restaurant, great people, and great food! 

Main Street Pub is also a go-to for us. Julie always orders their burger sliders, and man, do they melt in your mouth. This classic pub is great for families too, but has flavors and drinks that work for everybody! From chicken wings to burgers, it is a classic pub that will make you feel right at home. Their food is always fresh, even when we order for to-go, and when I go to pick it up, it is always ready. 

Another great spot is Nemic Brothers Pizza, a newer pizza shop in downtown, right next to the movie theatre! This spot is always changing vendors, and we are hoping this one stays, which is exactly why you should give it a visit! White garlic pizza and meat lover options, there is a pizza for literally anyone here. They also have a giant cookie that is basically a cake and is one of the best cookies I have ever had. 

If you love supporting our small business, I know you’ll love supporting the small businesses we love. These food options really have been staples in the gather and collect food rotation. Odds are if you come in around lunch time, you’ll find us eating from one of these four restaurants. So, give it a try next time you are looking for somewhere to eat! 

Stay awesome and keep collecting,

Mallory 

In my last post, I mentioned how easy it is to get lost in our store. From the clothing section to the back vintage rooms, there is a lot you can miss. Thats why in this post I will be giving you a guided tour through Gather and Collect! Our old store was much smaller, so small that you could see most things in under a couple of minutes. And there were only two small hallways! Can you believe that! 

In the front half of our store, you can find all our newer options like cards, puzzles, toys, candles, and more. We have so many cards spinners its easy to feel disoriented, never be afraid to ask us for help! We even have some handy Hokusai gifts to celebrate the exhibit at the College of Dupage. 

There is a separate room in the back right corner of the store that has goodies as well! Right past our pride section, you’ll find a little room full of notebooks, hats, candles, thank you cards, and even baby socks. This is an extension of the new stuff, and is a nifty room we got the joy of filling. 

As you walk down the hallway, past our clothing section and dressing room, you will find two rooms to the right side. The first room is our colorful, full of everything, you guessed it, colorful. This is my favorite room because I love vibrant colors. You’ll find a lot of lamps in here and fun vintage childrens toys, and other random knick knacks. 

Next to the colorful room is its evil sister, the dark room. Not a photo rendering dark room, but instead a room where you can find all our brown, black, tan objects. Things like vases, an odd collection of wooden elephants, wicker baskets, and a wall of vintage photos. This moody room is perfect if you are into neutral tones. 

Leaving behind these two rooms, we take a sharp right, and on our left is the living room. Or that is what I like to call it, hasn’t caught on yet…But what a neat hodgepodge room! 

Next is the kitchen! This is my second favorite room, because it is themed just perfectly. With china and loads of plates and mugs, you can’t help feeling like you’re back in your grandma’s kitchen. All the pieces in here, besides aprons, are all thrifted china! I love looking through this room. The treasures you find are amazing. 

Last is the bedroom, tucked away in the back corner of the store. It’s called the bedroom because there used to be a bed in it, although it’s gone, the name still holds. Here you will find VHS tapes, floral posters, pottery, and little knick-knacks, sometimes the occasional toy. 

Now that you’ve gotten acquainted with the store, you can see how easy it is to get lost in. But getting lost in our store isn’t the worst thing that can happen to you. I’d like to argue that it can be fun. 

Stay awesome and keep collecting

Mallory 

When walking into Gather and Collect, you might be so taken aback by the craziness that you glance over our clothing section, or the back of the store, for that matter! Many people miss the back section of our store, because only a hallway leads to it. With summer sneaking up on us, transitioning from winter to summer clothing can be challenging for a lot of people. I know it’s tricky for me. I get so comfortable in my big sweaters and sweatpants that switching to shorts and tanks seems like the worst thing in the world, almost impossible. Not only because you find you’ve someone grown out of everything you used to own, but it is also hard to get used to all those different colors and cuts! 

There is no need to worry, or maybe you should worry, who am I to say? Gather and Collect has a great selection of women’s blouses, skirts, dresses even men’s shirts that can help you rebuild a summer wardrobe. All of our clothes are second-hand, hand-picked by Julie, except for a few wholesale pieces. Those are usually easy to pick out from our second-hand selection, having a newer look. Here are a few examples of skirt and shirt pairings that I think are just adorable. 

And one of our cutest dresses! 

Don’t forget the men’s shirts, this is my favorite, just look at the blues! 

The biggest tip I have for people when it comes to clothing is not to be afraid. Don’t be afraid of patterns, colors, or length. Wear something outside your comfort zone as often as you can; all of a sudden, you will find your comfort zone is a lot larger. Most of all, wear the things that make you happy, whether or not they happen to be in fashion. Wear the thing that everyone is wearing and the thing that everyone says is ugly; all that matters is that you enjoy it and find comfort and confidence in what you have on your body. Outfits always look better when the person in them is comfortable and happy. Fashion is such a cultural phenomenon, based so harshly on the political and social standards that surround us and our world. When we accept these things about fashion, we can also break through them and wear things that aren’t dictated by the world around us but rather by what we enjoy. So that is the biggest tip I can give you about fashion: find joy in it! Find joy in the things you can find here, at Gather and Collect, because we shop with joy just as much as we wear it.

This is more of a real tip than a sappy love yourself one. I learned something from a former coworker and friend when thinking about patterns. If you have more than three patterns on, then you can wear anything. Polka dots! Stripes! Zig Zags! The world is your oyster, and all of a sudden, it looks so good together! Experiment with your style and learn what suits your body type, but steer clear of comparing yourself to others while discovering what looks and makes you feel good.

It’s also essential to make sure you have a lot of basics in your closet. It is super easy to become obsessed with buying statement pieces, and hey, if you want to buy a lot of statement pieces, do you! But you have to have the basics to build around those statement pieces.

So, what I am saying is, mix it up, be confident, and love yourself.

Stay awesome and keep collecting

Mallory  

Gather and Collect started off about ten times smaller than it is now, on Pennsylvania Ave, where Punch Barber Shop is now. Owned by Julie and Lisa, with Jessica along for the ride… it held the name Vintage Minagerie and was filled with all the vintage goodies they could get their hands on. They were slaying it until one day, when arriving at the store to add inventory, they noticed a chunk of their inventory was gone and had been replaced with items they did not recognize. What the hell! So, like any sane person would do, they called the cops, wondering if someone had broken in, though that would be the oddest break-in ever. When the cops (actually, it was Rose who now works here) came, they had to do a sweep of the whole building to make sure whoever broke in wasn’t still there. Luckily, there was no one in the building or any signs that a break-in had occurred at all. So, they called their landlord to alert them about the craziness that had just occurred. Little did they know their landlord would only be adding to the craziness, because it was she who orchestrated the switch-a-roo! Something along the lines of, “You guys have a good gig going, I’m going to join in”. 

Julie and Jessica were having none of that and decided to abandon ship. Mourning the loss of their store, they decided to take a rest. After about half a year, a new location opened up on Main Street, so Julie and Jessica decided to jump on that, and thus opened Gather and Collect as you know it today. After two years of banging business, Jessica left to open her interior design business, Jessica Moran Interiors, saying farewell to Gather and Collect, leaving Julie sole ownership of the store! Julie stayed on Main Street for about ten years, growing out of the size of the store around year four. If you remember the old shop, you might recall that it was small. About 650 square feet of vintage items and goodies. That’s when Julie started collecting people. First, Heather, her best friend and helper of all things crafty. Then Leah and I, otherwise known as the littles. 

The business was growing, so was the need for a new space, and when another space opened up on Pennsylvania, Julie decided to go for it. The space we are in right now is about five times bigger than the original location, which offered endless opportunities to expand our merchandise and products that we carry in the store. Our clothing, gifts, hodgepodge, and cards all expanded to hold so much more than we could before. Some people don’t even realize how far back our store goes until we tell them! I remember the days of moving. We hand-carried all our pieces over, pushing over bookshelves on wheels, carrying baskets of pottery, and juggling handfuls of books or clothes. 

 As you can see, we’ve done some growing over the years. New spaces, new people, new products, and new chaos. The memories just keep piling up. Along with stacks of goods we need to get out on the floor… 

Stay awesome and keep collecting

Mallory 

Here we are, the Gather and Collect Blog! It has been a long time coming, and we are so excited to start regularly putting out blogs again for you! Things are going to look a little different this time around. Let me introduce myself. I’m Mallory, and I have been working at Gather and Collect for under four years. You might recognize me if you come in regularly! I’m an English Major at school, so Julie and I thought that this summer would be a great opportunity to practice the skills I have been learning: writing this blog for all of you! The catch is I will only be here for the summer, so I hope to enjoy my time writing as much as I hope you all enjoy your time reading. I hope to change topics every week, allowing us to discuss what goes on in our store, what we enjoy around town, and the craziness that happens when running a store like ours. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to comment on your thoughts! Don’t let me be the one doing all the talking. 

When I started working at Gather and Collect, I was 17 years old, which at the time felt like the oldest someone could be. Turning 21, finding internships, right on the cusp of graduating from college, has given me so many perspectives and thoughts about the world around me, good and bad. But what Gather and Collect has taught me is to laugh right through it. Whether that be politics, personal relationships, or the mess that is running a small business, you just have to keep laughing. That is what I have learned from our customers, too, hearing all your laughter throughout the store from the moment you walk in to the moment you leave. The whole world just needs one big laugh, and I hope we can provide that for everyone who walks through.

Stay awesome and keep collecting,

Mallory

Well, it’s been a short minute since I last posted on the blog. Or I guess a year and a half? Whoopsie! I have intentions of posting regularly, but never set aside the time for the task. Feels like I do that for so many aspects of life. This is my attempt to get caught up. Let’s see…we all remember that little ole’ two and a half years with Covid right? Well the good news is, we made it through it personally and professionally. The shop hardly skipped a beat on Main Street. Things were moving along swimmingly with the shop bursting at the seams with products and customers. In October of 2021, as I was just set to sign a lease for my Main Street space, a space FOUR TIMES the size became available right around the corner on Pennsylvania Avenue. Shawn Sargent Designs was moving to a different location, so I bugged the building owner for the next few days, looked at the space, began dreaming, and the rest is history. We moved in about two weeks later on Halloween weekend, smack dab through the middle of the Halloween parade!

It didn’t take long to begin filling the space up. One by one, we opened up the little rooms as we dug through bins, my garage, my basement…Moving during the height of the holiday season was CRAZY, but we made it through and boy did it come in handy having space to move around in! To look around and see 20-30 people shopping around with room to walk! I love the building, the two story exposed ceilings, the big front (yet drafty) window…Though I miss my old neighbors, The Bookstore, String Theory, Joe the Hot Dog Guy…I have loved being on the block with Ten Thousand Villages and Treasure House. They have been so welcoming.

Stop in and see the expansion. More cards, more clothes, pottery…you name it. Our new address is 501 Pennsylvania Avenue, next to Ten Thousand Villages and across the street from the Glen Ellyn Fire Department.

Thanks for sticking with us for 11 1/2 years. I am humbled and grateful.