Tag Jeans

Yesterday, I walked into a locally owned shop in Santa Fe and found clothes I liked and could afford.

Don't adjust your set. This mythical place exists. It's called Cupcake Clothing and it's at 328 Montezuma Ave. That's around the corner from Willee's and right next door to Elizabeth salon, for those of you who navigate using the nearest-bar-or-place-to-get-a-mani-pedi system.

Cupcake opened about six weeks ago. It's small but refreshingly uncluttered. It's not cheap. There was a skirt there for $200-something but it is reasonable and the clothes are current without being fashion-victim trendy.

Owner Kate Kruger, who like all good Santa Feans has another job (as the buyer for Get it Together), said she wanted to create a little neighborhood shop like those she knew growing up in Northern California.

She said the Cupcake customer is a little bit younger and more fashion conscious than the customers most Santa Fe shops cater to.

"You won't find any elastic waistbands in the shop," she said.

Instead, you'll find "great stylish clothing that is not astronomical."

Kruger said she wanted to create a shop where people can buy great jeans and T-shirts and not plunk down a bunch of cash. "It became so expensive to shop here I got fed up with it," she said.

Hear, hear.

But you'll find a lot more than great jeans and T-shirts at Cupcake. You'll find hand knit sweaters (these tend toward the higher end of affordable), wool pants (in sizes 4 through 12 for $129!), hoodies ($26-$95), cords and even some cami-panty sets ($33).

You'll also find '80s throwbacks, including an Esprit blazer ($99) and

Jordache jeans and playful accessories in the $25 range.

Sales girl Sarah Smith (who was sporting a super cute green-plaid blazer from Gwen Stefani's L.A.M.B. line) said most of the stuff in the shop is made in the United States.

For soul-searching Santa Feans with the time and inclination to care about the environment (good for you) there are even "vegan" handbags and Eco-ganic brand tanks made from organic cotton and embellished with the Virgin of Guadalupe. OK, so $62 for a tank is spendy, but if you live in Santa Fe and you have extra time, I'd be willing to bet you've got extra money, too.

The solid-colored wearable sweaters and jeans and the spare decor of the Cupcake shop make it a soothing place to shop. The dressing room has one huge mirror, two decent-sized changing stalls and big fluffy rugs for your feet.

I'm just getting more hopeful by the day that people who live and work here will start opening shops for people who live and work here.

In fact, it's happening all over the place.

Kit Noller, owner of Retrospect, recently opened a new shop in DeVargas Center called Surrender Dorothy.

If you know Retrospect, you know that Noller stock tends be all over the map. She has tons of florals and plaids and graphic-print garments in her new shop. But she also has a lot of simple, wearable clothes similar to those at Cupcake. The two stores actually carry a couple of the same brands -- Tag jeans among them.  Read More...