Many a magazine, movie, and vintage rack would have you believe that until very recently, everyone was rail thin. The problem with movies and magazines as an all-encompassing, representative source is, well, we know better.
“Everyone of all sizes has always existed,” says Grace Womack, the curator behind State of Grace, a mid- and plus-size vintage reseller. “No matter what the magazine tells you, they were there and they were well-dressed. They were shopping from the same catalog.”
The proof is in Womack’s sourcing. “It’s not necessarily that I’m shopping in different places than a lot of the other vintage sellers,” she says. “It’s just that I’m looking for something different.”
Like many vintage resellers, hunting down time-tested treasures and sustainable statement pieces has become a way of life for Womack. Working at North Lamar’s Revival Vintage before striking out on her own helped set up the clothing fanatic for a career of dedicated, ceaseless searching. When traveling, she opts to drive rather than fly so she can collect more pieces along the way. Digging deep through estate sale closets and small town thrifts just to come up empty-handed is just a part of the job.
“I want to do the hard work for you,” she says. “It’s a lot of being willing to walk out of a place with nothing enough times that you walk out of a place with something really good.”
If she has sourcing secrets, this fashionable shopper isn’t sharing them, but she does have two messages for vintage fiends. First, it’s really, truly okay to stop by a booth and just chat, she promises. “We love to talk,” she laughs. “And even if you don’t buy anything – totally fine.” Second, if you’ve spent your life dreaming of a purple suede coat or the perfect empire waist gown, let your local reseller in on your journey.
“If there’s a piece that you’re really interested in and you can’t find it, and you don’t want to stay on eBay for 400 hours and find it, we will gladly do that for you, because we’re freaks, and that’s our favorite thing to do,” Womack says.
Her wares, always available for perusing at South Lamar’s multi-vendor extravaganza Potluck Vintage and found many weekends at local pop-ups, focus on natural fabrics that have, as she says, “lasted so long for a reason” and lean toward a Nineties-onward style.
“You can go up to my market on a Saturday and you can find something that fits you pretty easily – and in a whole sea of other things that could also fit you,” says Womack, with the confidence and satisfaction of someone who knows how valuable that feeling is. “I don’t feel as true to myself when I’m not selling things that wouldn’t even fit me.”
State of Grace vintage will sell clothes, accessories, and more at LoLo Wine on Saturday, Jan. 17, from noon-5pm.
This article appears in January 16 • 2026.