I’m excited to share with you my interview with Sofia Vintage Co-Owner Ashley Zisook!

Gossip Girl star, Leighton Meester, has recently spotted shopping at Chicago’s premier shopping destination, Sofia Vintage at 1165 North Clark Street. Leighton was in town for her performance at The Underground and was dressed head to toe in Sofia Vintage’s finest fashions for the red carpet including a sexy long sleeve open back, black lace top with trendy olive colored trousers.

L to R: Sofia Vintage co-owner, Ashley Zisook and Leighton Meester
photo credit Rob Grabowski

Launched in the spring of ’09, Sofia Vintage features a variety of men and women’s vintage clothing, emerging designers, and accessories, at all price points. Co-owners, Ashley Zisook and Allison Zisook Goldstein, Chicago natives and sisters with two drastically different fashion styles and backgrounds, join forces to bring Chicagoans unique vintage pieces with a goal to revive class, grace and beauty from decades past intertwined with today’s trends.

In this interview Ashley Zisook talks to Marta Walsh about her love for fashion and the creation of Sofia Vintage. Her meeting with Leighton Meester. How she makes her partnership with sister Allison work. Personal style and philosophy about life. 

Marta Walsh: When did you first become interested in fashion?
Ashley Zisook: I have always been into fashion… however, I never really thought it would be my career. I was in the music industry in Los Angeles and I felt I needed more creativity in my life so I enrolled in FIDM and started “The Piece” with 2 of my college friends from Boulder. The Piece was a once a month vintage sale for ladies we would do in our backyard–each month it would keep getting bigger! When I was moving back to Chicago I knew I wanted to continue doing something like The Piece, but on a much bigger scale—I wanted to offer Chicago a different type of shopping experience that hadn’t ever been done before.

Maybelline New York to hold sensational event July 30 at Grand Central Terminal Rite Aid and outside Grand Central Terminal. Professional Makeup Artists to offer on-the-spot mini sensational Lipcolor Makeovers inside Rite Aid and under Grand Central Taxi Stand at 43rd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Live musical performances by the cast of Broadway’s CHICAGO the Musical under the Grand Central Taxi Stand

Maybelline New York will be center stage Thursday, July 30, with the cast of Broadway’s CHICAGO the Musical to launch Maybelline New York’s new Color Sensational Lipcolor. The fun starts with free on-the-spot mini sensational lipcolor makeovers at the Rite Aid in Grand Central Terminal and outside under the Grand Central Taxi Stand at 43rd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Highlighting the event will be live musical performances by the cast of Broadway’s CHICAGO the Musical under the Grand Central Taxi Stand at 3:30 and 4:30 p.m.

Professional makeup artists will provide lip-scriptions and help women identify their perfect lip shades and offer first come, first served mini sensational lipcolor makeovers at Rite Aid, 26 Grand Central Terminal, July 30, 8-10 a.m., 12-2 p.m. and 3-7 p.m. Makeup artists also will be outside under the Taxi Stand at Grand Central Terminal 3-7 p.m.

Visitors can enter to win free tickets to Broadway’s CHICAGO the Musical, with Maybelline New York giving away a free pair of tickets every hour between 3 and 7 p.m. Coupons for Maybelline New York’s Color Sensational Lipcolor, gift bags filled with sample size products and 50 percent off discounts for CHICAGO the Musical will be available on a first come, first served basis.