GLOCESTER – Lisa Marie Bevilacqua’s dream has come true.
Two weeks ago, the Burrillville resident opened her own store Black Angel Thrift in Chepachet Village.
The first three letters of “Black Angel Thrift” spell out “B-A-T.”
“I’m a big fan of bats,” explained new small business owner Bevilacqua.
She has taxidermy bats and bat decor in her home, and bat boxes in her yard. Some of her clothing has a bat theme, and she has bat tattoos.
What’s more the name “Black Angel Thrift” has a three-fold meaning; the word “black” is to honor bats, “Angel” to honor a recently passed beloved white cockatoo her mother had for 25 years, and “Thrift” to honor the daughter and mother’s thrill at thrifting.
Bevilacqua’s dream of having a thrift store is at least two-fold.
She is helping her beloved artist and crafter mother Patricia Harrington, and the store is located in the Glocester Route 44 shopping and dining district Beveilacqua is fond of.
Harrington creates “beautiful totes, clutches, makeup bags, key chains, wallets,” and more, “all by hand,” stated Bevilacqua, sounding proud of her mother.
Ordinarily, Harrington’s creations are primarily available for purchase at a variety of craft shows.
“Mom will be 80 this year, and I always wanted to help her not to have to do shows,” said Bevilacqua. “My mom and I have always thought of opening a store.”
The mom and daughter duo have a history of thrifty shopping, said Bevilacqua.
“My mom and I are ‘thrift junkies,” she said.
The mother and daughter combo began their treasure hunting adventures when Bevilacqua was just a youngster.
“We have been doing yard sales, garage sales, and finding things on the side of the road since I could walk,” she said.
Now Bevilacqua, with her mother helping out, is sharing with customers of Black Angel Thrift that experience by offering low-priced merchandise–bargains–from the practical to the unusual.
The small office-sized store is behind The Village Bean on Route 44 joining the also newly opened Big John’s Wood Joint and other small businesses in that busy block.
Despite its compact size, Black Angel Thrift is packed with a multitude of merchandise, from items crafted by Bevilacqua’s mother to bargain basement finds.
Rock bottom priced designer jeans, colorful bras, and stylish and comfy shoes are displayed nearby to shelves of DVDs, horror novels and collectibles such as a MJ Hummel trinket box, a vintage makeup vanity still filled with cosmetics, and a Replogle 12″ diameter globe, World Classic series, are among the goods available now, but likely not for long; for, merchandise priced low tends toward moving quickly out the door.
And, naturally, bat décor is peeping out her and there in the Black Angel Thrift shop.
“We are a small, local thrift shop, full of awesome clothing, great books and a little bit of CREEPY!!” the new business owner states on her Facebook page, where she posts featured items from the store.
Although the two women have “gone all over New England” shopping for thrift, as Bevilacqua explains, the Glocester location of the compact store is just right for its owner.
“I always have loved all the shops in Chepachet,” she said.
Now, she’s a shopkeeper herself in the village, Bevilacqua said with a smile.
“In my real world I’m an accountant,” she added.
Her dream world overlaps reality as Black Angel Thrift is now open for business, and not only does she have that accounting background for storekeeping, she was also volunteer director of the Burrillville Arts Festival for a couple of years. The festival was no small undertaking, and now, Bevilaqua is in another form of retail.
At Black Angel Thrift, a more friendly than creepy place, dreams do come true.
