The Fashion Mixmaster

Beacon clothier combines luxury and low-budget

A long with predicting the unpredictable weather, Ginger Zee, the meteorologist at Good Morning America, faces another challenge: how to assemble a new outfit for every day she appears on the show.

Zee supports sustainability and tries to avoid buying new clothes. Instead, she goes secondhand, borrows from friends and rents her fashion, sometimes from Wanderlux, a couture boutique at 475 Main St. in Beacon. This year, at GMA’s Oscars after-party, Zee wore an outfit from the store on air.

Figuring that meteorologists, athletes and social-media influencers would have trouble buying the high fashion they favor, proprietor Jennifer Cutinella sent direct messages to folks she thought might be interested in renting, the modern version of making telephone “cold calls.”

In addition to Zee, she signed up singer Eva Sita; Lindsay Slater, a weather reporter in Milwaukee; and Charlene Westfall, an influencer and former Miss Ohio.

“The world of high fashion can be intimidating and expensive, but I want to shatter the misconceptions,” says Cutinella. “Few people wear only luxe. The key is to blend in low-end pieces. I call myself ‘the fashion mixmaster’ and figured out how to do it on a budget.”

Other sources, such as Rent the Runway, offer wedding dresses and other clothing for special occasions. But it doesn’t carry menswear and the brands are mid-tier, said Cutinella.

Although Beacon High School graduates Elijah Hughes, who played in the NBA for three years, and Lenny Torres, a pitcher in the Cleveland Guardians’ minor league system, are Wanderlux clients, Cutinella doesn’t focus on men’s clothing beyond accessories such as sneakers, sunglasses, hats and coats. “We’re slowly building our men’s collection, but it’s a much harder market,” she says. “Men rarely have the same interest [in upscale fashion] as women.”

Cutinella, who grew up in Wappingers Falls, moved to Beacon 15 years ago. Her infatuation with fashion began in childhood. During the pandemic shutdown, she lost her corporate job, became an empty nester and decided to try her hand in the industry. Beyond following style trends, she also loves to travel, hence the outlet’s name.

The store interior is modeled after a minimalist SoHo boutique. Video loops of runway shows are projected on the back wall and the racks showcase established brands along with rising stars, including Valentina Perissi at DAPHNE Italy and Sophia Denim, designed by Sophia Tezel-Tzelepis, who teaches fashion history and business at Marist College.

In the formal gown showroom and changing space, sequins, sparkles and spangles adorn elaborate embroidered dresses.

Beyond the storefront, Cutinella offers personal styling. After setting a budget, deciding on a look and taking measurements, she puts the pieces together. Or she will look at everything in the person’s closet and decide with them what to keep and what can go to consignment. “Then I augment what they have by reinvesting in their wardrobe to elevate their look and add new pieces or missing staples that can be worn 20 ways,” she says.

To her, fashion is art. “Jumbling together H&M, Walmart and Hermes is my talent,” she says. “It’s not about brands, it’s about what looks beautiful.”

But foremost, she said, clothes should be fun. “Fashion and style have no age limit. Take a risk and don’t be intimidated. Start with one or two pieces and get out of your comfort zone.”