The Paper Bag Princess

Don't consign your things here. Ask anyone. The owner of this business, Elizabeth M. Mason, is a pretentious freak with severe narcissistic disorder suffering from extreme delusions of grandeur. All the reviews you read about her she writes herself. Yes she's been on Oprah, but that was many years ago, and she's never been invited back. Don't take my advice, if you want to be abused and taken advantage of. Ask anyone, none has a nice word to say about her. more

Disaster on all levels, although not apparent on the first try. I submitted one Delvaux bag, one Ferragamo bag and one brand new Hermes scarf for consignment. After appx one year, the Ferragamo bag sold. My take was $50. It took 3 months to collect the $50, and that was after many threats on the telephone. After another year, I wanted my Delvaux bag and the Hermes scarf back AND THEY COULDN'T FIND THEM. I had to go to the store myself and try to find them, since their inventory records are apparently non-existent. The poor saleswoman, Melissa, stated that she would go through all their sales records, but to ""give her some time."" When she showed me their bookkeeping in terms of my client statement, it was laughable, since it was ZERO. No inventory numbers, nothing written at all - merely a copy of a consignee receipt - that's the extent of their bookkeeping records. After writing and sending a certified letter with threats of a Small Claims lawsuit, Melissa phoned me upon receipt of the letter and told me the items had sold. I have yet to receive a check for the items. I really hope I meet with Elizabeth Mason outside of her store some day, because I will read her the riot act and then some. No wonder they have a huge security guard in the store - he is there to control the clients as they probably go insane in there from trying to obtain some sort of redress. Deal with Elizabeth Mason and The Paper Bag Princess at your own risk. more

A beautiful addition to my memories for my wedding. I had been on the haunt for the perfect vintage wedding gown for almost a year now and a friend suggested I try 'The Princess'....she had seen gorgeous bridal gowns in their windows when she drives to work everyday...so I called ahead and set an appointment to view their collection. They have the collection safely tucked away behind a pink velvet rope, how cute!!! This is my kind of place! The girls there were so helpful taking me through the entire collection piece by piece because I really did not know what I wanted. It is a little difficult with vintage wedding gowns because they only have ONE of each gowns and they don't come in other sizes, so it's tough if you fall in love with a gown and it is too small, which is what happened to me. But, and this is an amazing but, Elizabeth Mason the owner has her own contemporary design collect collection where she can create almost anything that your heart desires, inspired by, or to replicate her vintage collection. I had my heart set on an incredibly sexy 1970s Norma Kamali wedding gown when the salesgirl Jill showed me a stunning white silk gown Elizabeth had designed for the actress Ayelet Zurer for her premiere of her movie Angels and Demons...WOW ! I never thought I would look so .....well....sexy! I felt like the most gorgeous bride in that gown. I could not buy Aylete's actual dress but Elizabeth measured me from head to toe and they made me my very own Red Carpet Stunner just like it. My wedding is not until next Summer, but I wanted to have everything all settled well in advance. The only problem is I am dying to wear my beautiful gown now ! UGH!!! We are planning on altering it into a cocktail length dress after my wedding so I can wear it again and again. Honestly, I never would have imagined a place like this existed, where my prettiest fashion fantasy could come true. The best part really is the fact that it is also truly a one stop vintage shop, with everything I needed from a great pair of silver Manolos and a lovely off-white French hand-beaded little clutch from the 50s. I had a great time, brought a pile of my girlfriends in for my final fitting with Elizabeth and will remember the experience forever as a really big part of my wedding memories. It sure beat the heck out of hitting one of those cookie-cutter bridal stores. I had sort of hoped I would wear a vintage wedding gown, but having one inspired by the 1950s that is all my own is just fine by me. We may even try to put all my bridesmaids in complimenting vintage dresses. I guess the only downside is that the shop is a little more expensive than most vintage places, but considering the service and the designer vintage I would be hard pressed to get better value in a regular retail store where almost everything these days is manufactured in China. My gown was hand-made just for me in America! Pros: Incredible collection, great personal sevice Cons: I wish I could buy more, they are expensive more

A beautiful addition to my memories for my wedding. I had been on the haunt for the perfect vintage wedding gown for almost a year now and a friend suggested I try 'The Princess'....she had seen gorgeous bridal gowns in their windows when she drives to work everyday...so I called ahead and set an appointment to view their collection. They have the collection safely tucked away behind a pink velvet rope, how cute!!! This is my kind of place! The girls there were so helpful taking me through the entire collection piece by piece because I really did not know what I wanted. It is a little difficult with vintage wedding gowns because they only have ONE of each gowns and they don't come in other sizes, so it's tough if you fall in love with a gown and it is too small, which is what happened to me. But, and this is an amazing but, Elizabeth Mason the owner has her own contemporary design collect collection where she can create almost anything that your heart desires, inspired by, or to replicate her vintage collection. I had my heart set on an incredibly sexy 1970s Norma Kamali wedding gown when the salesgirl Jill showed me a stunning white silk gown Elizabeth had designed for the actress Ayelet Zurer for her premiere of her movie Angels and Demons...WOW ! I never thought I would look so .....well....sexy! I felt like the most gorgeous bride in that gown. I could not buy Aylete's actual dress but Elizabeth measured me from head to toe and they made me my very own Red Carpet Stunner just like it. My wedding is not until next Summer, but I wanted to have everything all settled well in advance. The only problem is I am dying to wear my beautiful gown now ! UGH!!! We are planning on altering it into a cocktail length dress after my wedding so I can wear it again and again. Honestly, I never would have imagined a place like this existed, where my prettiest fashion fantasy could come true. The best part really is the fact that it is also truly a one stop vintage shop, with everything I needed from a great pair of silver Manolos and a lovely off-white French hand-beaded little clutch from the 50s. I had a great time, brought a pile of my girlfriends in for my final fitting with Elizabeth and will remember the experience forever as a really big part of my wedding memories. It sure beat the heck out of hitting one of those cookie-cutter bridal stores. I had sort of hoped I would wear a vintage wedding gown, but having one inspired by the 1950s that is all my own is just fine by me. We may even try to put all my bridesmaids in complimenting vintage dresses. I guess the only downside is that the shop is a little more expensive than most vintage places, but considering the service and the designer vintage I would be hard pressed to get better value in a regular retail store where almost everything these days is manufactured in China. My gown was hand-made just for me in America! Pros: Incredible collection, great personal sevice Cons: I wish I could buy more, they are expensive more

I'd been on the hunt for a perfect vintage wedding gown for a over a year now & a friend suggested I try The Princess, so I called & set an appointment to view their collection which was safely tucked away behind a pink velvet rope, how cute! This is my kind of place! The girls there were so helpful taking me through the entire collection piece by piece. It is a little difficult with vintage wedding gowns because they only have one of each & they don't come in other sizes. But, the owner Elizabeth Mason has a contemporary design collect collection that she creates inspired by her vintage collection. I had my heart set on a sexy 70s Kamali gown when the salesgirl, Jill showed me a stunning white silk gown Elizabeth designed for the actress Ayelet Zurer for the premiere of her film Angels and Demons. WOW ! I never thought I would look so sexy. I could not buy Aylete's actual dress so they measured me from head to toe & they made me my own Red Carpet Stunner just like it. We are planning on altering it into a cocktail length dress after my wedding. I never would have imagined a place like this existed, where my prettiest fashion fantasy could come true. I also bought a great pair of high-heeled silver Manolos & a cute little white French hand-beaded clutch from the 50s. I would be hard-pressed to get better value in a regular retail store where almost everything these days is manufactured in China. My gown was hand-made in America just for me. What a lasting memory! Pros: Incredible collection, great personal sevice Cons: I wish I could buy more, they are expensive more

I'd been on the hunt for a perfect vintage wedding gown for a over a year now & a friend suggested I try The Princess, so I called & set an appointment to view their collection which was safely tucked away behind a pink velvet rope, how cute! This is my kind of place! The girls there were so helpful taking me through the entire collection piece by piece. It is a little difficult with vintage wedding gowns because they only have one of each & they don't come in other sizes. But, the owner Elizabeth Mason has a contemporary design collect collection that she creates inspired by her vintage collection. I had my heart set on a sexy 70s Kamali gown when the salesgirl, Jill showed me a stunning white silk gown Elizabeth designed for the actress Ayelet Zurer for the premiere of her film Angels and Demons. WOW ! I never thought I would look so sexy. I could not buy Aylete's actual dress so they measured me from head to toe & they made me my own Red Carpet Stunner just like it. We are planning on altering it into a cocktail length dress after my wedding. I never would have imagined a place like this existed, where my prettiest fashion fantasy could come true. I also bought a great pair of high-heeled silver Manolos & a cute little white French hand-beaded clutch from the 50s. I would be hard-pressed to get better value in a regular retail store where almost everything these days is manufactured in China. My gown was hand-made in America just for me. What a lasting memory! Pros: Incredible collection, great personal sevice Cons: I wish I could buy more, they are expensive more

I have a weakness for vintage clothes. Usually go to more casual store because I can’t enjoy myself when the sales people in a store walk around with an air of self importance, and that place seemed like I to me from the outside. But when I finally walked in they were nice and helpful, and I sent almost two hours looking at their very extensive inventory, the accessories section alone took me a long while. They are a little expensive but some of the find I got there were worth it. Pros: great finds Cons: expensive more

I have a weakness for vintage clothes. Usually go to more casual store because I can’t enjoy myself when the sales people in a store walk around with an air of self importance, and that place seemed like I to me from the outside. But when I finally walked in they were nice and helpful, and I sent almost two hours looking at their very extensive inventory, the accessories section alone took me a long while. They are a little expensive but some of the find I got there were worth it. Pros: great finds Cons: expensive more

I was treated so horribly by this place when I was selling them a Valentino coat. They were all professional in the email correspondence, but when you get there in person, you're treated so terribly. Maybe if you were ready to drop 100,000 dollars will you get some sort of graciousness. And to top it all off, this place has been selling my beautiful aunt's (who passed away) clothing, using her name because she was an actress to make an extra profit. Makes me sick. Pros: Beautiful clothes Cons: Everything else more

This is my first review on City Search but I was so compelled to write one regarding this store. I found a wonderful dress I could not pass up but was horrified by the service I received and found it fitting to warn others! NO dress or anything is worth the lack of respect and consideration you will receive when you shop here. Go to Long Beach or other Vintage hubs if you can spare the time.. leave this place OUT. Pros: Nice vintage wedding dress selection Cons: Horrible service! more

I agree with the other readers -- this is truly the nastiest store in town! I have to say that I've never been treated so poorly, and I can't wait until they go out of business! These people are nasty, nasty, nasty. I'm guessing that the owner(s) have been opening and closing stores for years -- how can we get them to move out of town? more

What dissapointing service! I was looking for a gown for a special event, so I thought I might try something vintage. The owner herself was extreemly rude, she insulted and shouted at the sales staff in front of me. Most of the items were overpriced and in fair condition. This is the most unacceptable shopping experience ever. Pros: none, none, none Cons: Poor service more

Okay, first of all these people must be out of their minds if they think someone is going to spend the type of money they are asking for those pieces after they receive the most unprofessional treatment from the sales staff. It is a disgrace! If you want to just go try on the clothes and annoy the owner go for it, but I would not give them one red penny because the customer service is awful!!! Pros: Good Parking Cons: Rude Staff, Overpriced, Poor Customer Service more

I've passed by their windows for a while now and finally found time to stop in. They had free parking in the back and the Sales Associates were eager to help. They have a wide variety of vintage couture and can do custom designs as well. Not cheap, but compared to the original retail price on these items, you can't beat it. Pros: Amazing Selection, Good Parking, Great Service Cons: Somewhat Expensive, Too much good stuff more

I've passed by their windows for a while now and finally found time to stop in. They had free parking in the back and the Sales Associates were eager to help. They have a wide variety of vintage couture and can do custom designs as well. Not cheap, but compared to the original retail price on these items, you can't beat it. Pros: Amazing Selection, Good Parking, Great Service Cons: Somewhat Expensive, Too much good stuff more