PEA RIDGE — "This has been a dream I've had for nine years," said Ina Easter, owner of Royal Fashion Resale.

Racks of men's and boy's clothing adorn the front room of the cottage-style house on North Curtis Avenue.

Other rooms, formerly bedrooms of the once-residence now commercial building, contain racks of women's and children's clothing and shoes.

Inside the shop, each colorfully painted room holds not only clothes, but various used items, including miscellaneous items such as books, knick-knacks and a bicycle.

"My goal was to have the men's and women's departments separated," she said.

With the new visibility of the shop and added space, she hopes to grow her business.

Easter, originally from Marshal, has lived with her husband in Pea Ridge for 20 years. She started her resale shop in April of 2008 in the basement of the old VFW building which houses Curves.

When a more desirable location came available in March of this year, Easter moved her shop to its present location on Curtis Avenue.

Easter buys the items and then marks them for resale at a fair price. She also accepts donations.

"I don't want any clothing with missing buttons or stains - I like to try to keep things modern and put something different out on the racks and on sale each week," she said.

Between seasons, Easter reduces the price of clothing and puts racks of clothes outside to draw in buyers. Unsold clothing is given away to clear space for the coming season.

Any item that Easter cannot sell is donated to the Arkansas Council for the Blind, located in Springdale, which sends clothing it cannot use to missionaries overseas.

Royal Fashion Resale is open from 2 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

News, Pages 1, 8 on 08/12/2009