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Peas Hon
Chalk It Up to Vintage
If Peas looks familiar to you, chalk it up to LAH’LAH’LAND’s and YAA SUI’s current prominence in the KL scene – you’ve probably seen her at a fashion event or the hippest party around town with her troupe of outré outliers. JUICE speaks to the woman behind the counter at Chalk about vintage and her affinity for blackboards…
Why ‘Chalk’?
We want to bring back the simpler days when we were still in school, and teachers still conveyed their lessons to us through chalks on blackboards. Based solely on that childhood memory, we put up a DIY chalk signage, and placed many little blackboards around the store with chalks lying about for us, as well as the customers, to have something to play with.
How would you describe the type of fashion style Chalk carries for its customer?
We’re a big fan of vintage printed dresses and shirts, and most of our stocks come from countries like Japan and Thailand. We’ve always believed that vintage prints will never go out of style, and it remains a key piece that accommodating styles would usually gravitate to. Besides the regular flow of vintage pieces coming in, we would also apply some DIY fashion products to our collection, as well as some indie fashion labels from across the region.
How do you think Chalk stands out from the other vintage-inspired stores around town?
Personally, we don’t think we are any better or any more specialised than any of the vintage shops in the Klang Valley; we’re just happy there are more people out there out to promote vintage fashion and educate the local crowd about it! The common misconception of “vintage” prevails: the locals still assumed that vintage clothing are hand-me-downs, dirty and even outdated, thus not generating much interest from the public. Chalk and many other vintage shops out there are here to educate them, teach them more about vintage fashion and how it’s not mere used items, but is actually brand new items recently uncovered from a forgotten attic or basement. Like a lot of fluent vintage store owners out there, we’re particular of the handmade items we choose – how they were produced and what kind of fabrics they used… Besides that, we take great care in choosing the pieces, checking that they are in mint condition, and if not, we will get them repaired and even sterilised if need be, before we sell them off to avid vintage fashion fans.
Do you have a personal favourite vintage item in your possession?
I do love the pleated skirt I found in my grandmother’s closet years ago. It’s been a go-to fashion piece for me, as it’s very comfortable and it does make me happy whenever I walk down the streets, and feel the flow of the skirt around me.