Every Piece Has a Story with New Collection from Santa Barbara Stylist Nina Quiros

Every Piece Has a Story
with New Collection from
Santa Barbara Stylist
Nina Quiros

Nina Q Brings New Life
into Vintage Clothing

By Tiana Molony | Photos by Gabriella Ferreria
January 11, 2024

Nina Quiros’s (Nina Q) love of fashion was inevitable. Lying on the floor in their mother’s closet as young girls, Quiros and her sister would watch their mom pick out clothes from her abundant collection and assemble beautiful outfits. They would stare in awe at the alluring fabrics and endless choices, holding fashion shows and gossip sessions among the shoes and jackets. “All the important things happened in my mom’s closet,” said Quiros, as we sat in her funky yet inviting downtown store, The Story.

Unsurprisingly, her store is one big, glamorous closet boasting endless racks of vintage clothing and walls lined with vintage shoes and hats. A love for fashion that started in her mother’s closet has blossomed into a dream closet of her own. And on this particular day, birthday balloons were scattered throughout the shop because it just happened to be Quiros’s birthday. She wore a blue monochromatic ensemble and sat crisscross on a couch resembling a block of cheese. When I asked her, “Why blue?” she said, “I just really like the color.”

The Story is a by-appointment-only space. Whether you’re hoping to find an outfit for a big event or acquire some everyday looks, Quiros hopes to provide her clients with a full ensemble, not just one piece. “Nina is defining the vintage shopping experience,” said Gigi Cantiller, Quiros’s assistant, who wears many hats at The Story. In her styling sessions, Quiros highlights the versatility of each piece, allowing her clients to create multiple outfits. “I don’t want anybody walking out of here thinking they will only wear something once,” said Quiros.

This year, she took her unique appreciation for vintage clothing further and created her first collection, RE: NINA Q, upcycling vintage pieces by reworking the clothing into unique ensembles. Her seamstress, Lena Sablina, a fashion designer and refugee from Ukraine, first proposed the idea of a collection to Quiros. With Quiros’s fashion eye and Sablina’s talent, the two created a collection of unique pieces playing with plaid, tulle, and denim as the main themes. 

The finished looks were photographed in philanthropist Lily Hahn’s Montecito home. The photoshoot featured Hahn, Achok Majak, Grant Nestor of Hammies, stylist Alice Brophy, and Santi Garza, the visionary behind Ditto, among others.

As we transitioned to another sitting area, Quiros pulled the clothes off a rack and discussed the vision behind each piece.

The genderless collection includes long, mix-matched pattern skirts, asymmetrical dress shorts, and reworked men’s shirts, among other items. The collection certainly pushes the boundaries of fashion, especially in a laid-back town like Santa Barbara, where the preferred dress code is casual. But Quiros hopes to inspire locals to take risks with their clothing. “Just wear it to the grocery store,” Quiros tells her clients. While she acknowledges that upcycling vintage is already a popular practice, she aims for the collection to go further. “Nothing’s new; everything has been done,” she said. “How do we redo it? How do we re-create it?” Quiros asked, as she showed me her unique take on a plaid men’s suit with asymmetrical shorts.

She said she has always operated with a “go with the flow” attitude. At 15 years old, Quiros walked out of her family’s high-rise in downtown Houston, Texas, and crossed the street to the mall. There, she took on her first job at Express, folding shirts and tidying up the store. At 19 years old, she upgraded to Versace and worked as a salesperson, though she found it challenging to save her money when surrounded by beautiful clothes. “I would spend my paycheck on one dress,” she said with a laugh.

[Click to enlarge] RE: NINA Q Collection | Credit: Gabriella Ferreria

Quiros studied art history in college but wasn’t sure what she wanted to do for a career. Yet, things seemed to fall into place like they usually did for her. When she was 28, her friend invited her to the Javits Convention Center in New York, where people buy clothes wholesale in bulk to sell in stores. Quiros walked into the building and thought, “This is where I was always meant to be.” From that point on, she knew that she wanted to sell clothes. In 2007, she opened her first store in Durango, Colorado, named Blue, and would go to market twice a year to source clothing for the store. In 2016, she moved to Cabo and opened a second store she aptly named Beach Blue but closed both stores in 2018. In the same year, she moved to Santa Barbara. 

Upon her arrival, she promptly introduced herself to vintage-store owners, familiarizing herself with the local community. Over time, she amassed quite a collection of clothing from all over but was never sure what she wanted to do with it. If she felt drawn to a piece, she would purchase it, even if it wasn’t her size.

Before the COVID-19 closures, she began exploring potential storefronts but didn’t pull the trigger until she inaugurated The Story in February 2022 with a rejuvenated perspective and impeccable timing.

Rather than holding herself to rigid milestones, Quiros prefers living in the moment, a mindset that translated into her fashion designs as the collection came together. “I don’t really have goals,” said Quiros. “I never really thought about what things will look like five years from now.” However, Quiros teased the possibility of another collection if inspiration strikes. “Everything has been unfolding very naturally,” said Cantiller, who has been working for Quiros since August.

[Click to enlarge] RE: NINA Q Collection | Credit: Gabriella Ferreria

Quiros hopes the collection inspires people to dress outside of their comfort zones and embrace each piece’s storied past. “Everything has a story,” she said. “Where it went and what it looked like.” There are some clothes Quiros won’t dismantle, like certain designer items. Quiros chose items she was confident she could enhance, not destroy, when selecting pieces to reconstruct for the collection.

Whether designing a piece or choosing an outfit for her clients, she has a vision for the finished product. She’s constructing a story and putting the pieces together as she goes through the process. She employs the same approach when assembling an outfit for herself. “When I leave the house, I’m usually in something old, something new, and something borrowed from my store,” said Quiros. “And something blue,” Cantiller joked.

For more information, see ninaqstyle.com. To make an appointment to visit The Story by Nina Q, email hello@thestorysb.com.