Vintage shops at Front Street
Front Street (1001 E Second) is known as the area’s largest community of artists and art galleries, but I was recently reminded that it’s also a shopping spot. They held a Vintage Shop Hop, where people visited six different vintage shops located in Front Street’s Building 100. I missed that event but decided to visit one of the shops – Moon River Dayton Vintage I picked that one because of its name. I’m old enough (vintage enough?) to remember when Moon River was a hot new song and a favorite of mine.
Regular hours for Moon River are Saturday 11-4 and First Fridays, when all the shops and studios of Front Street are open, or you could do as I did and contact Moon River’s owner Ami Bement (937-416-1109) and arranged a time to visit. The store is located just inside Door C-D. When I arrived, I learned that Moon River shares space with another vintage shop, Mongdog Collective owned by Cathy Mong.
Ami told me she’s been collecting vintage items for about 10 years and selling them at various antique shows under the name Moon River. She met Cathy at these events and found out that they were both running out of storage and needed to make a change. The two decided to share this space in Front Street about a year ago.
I was drawn to their large selection of Hawaiian shirts. I could have used one when I went to the Weird Al concert this summer. They also have vintage pottery, jewelry, linens, and some furniture. The shop spills out into the large hallway and they have filled their walls outside the shop with a lot of artwork.
If you’re going to First Friday’s Art Hop at Front Street this week you should check out Moon River and Mongdog Collective. You could even purchase one of those cool Hawaiian shirts they have and then tour the open studios and art galleries in style.
