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Kim Johnson ReportingShe's been a fixture in Sugarhouse for more than a decade and her antique clothing makes the rounds at vintage shows all over the country.
The sign outside simply says "antiques", but inside Barbara Fegley has one of the largest collections of vintage wedding gowns in the western United States. Her oldest gown was first worn in 1889.
Barbara: "Here, you've got to lift this and feel how heavy that thing is. Look at the beautiful silk on the inside. You can't buy silk like this today."
She has more than forty gowns from ten different decades. Two of them tie as her favorites: a 1940's gown, which she says would flatter any figure, and what she refers to as her "Titanic dress".
Barbara says a new bride who wants a vintage dress will hunt high and low to find the perfect one. One such client who flew in from Chicago, decided to be married in one of Barbara's 1930's nightgowns.
Barbara: "It was beautiful, white, off-white with lots of lace. It was sleeveless with a v-neck and fit tight around the waist, it was gorgeous but her mother nixed that idea."
Barbara fell in love with wedding gowns when she made one for her sister. She says she loves the feel of the old silk, the details, the stories behind each dress.
Barbara: "If I have a feeling that it's not going to be taken care of or appreciated, I don't show it."
Barbara has quite a vintage clothing collection too--a fact not lost on some in Hollywood where vintage is in.
Barbara: "A friend of Suzanne Sommers comes in and buys some dresses for her. She was in before Christmas and bought some cut velvet dressing gowns that had never been worn."
Barbara says she can't imagine ever giving up wheeling and dealing in vintage clothing because she'll always see a future for pieces of the past.
Barbara sells her vintage gowns for $150 to $350 each.
