MIAMI — For the past couple of years, the city has been garnering a reputation for becoming a major player in the art and fashion world. Pioneers have been taking notice of Miami’s endless opportunities and are starting to capitalize on it. Tobi Salver, 26, is one of the entrepreneurs who see the potential this city offers for the world of art and fashion.
“Miami seems to be growing everyday with people who have a unique style. I feel there is a huge market to cater to.” Salver points out, well aware of her niche in styling, and, in turn, has launched her latest entrepreneurial endeavor: Fox House/Myfoxhouse.com, a website specializing in selling clothing pieces and accessories whose broad range appeals from budding fashionistas to the everyday working girl, and everything in between. Prices are solely based on: designer, rarity, condition and quality, even so, Myfoxhouse.com still manages lean on the more affordable side of the spectrum. Salver also wants to make it a point to showcase talent from the local designers along with the ‘fresh out of fashion school’ designers on her web site.
Salver, a local Florida girl who was raised in Fort Lauderdale, has always had her finger on the pulse when it comes to clothing and personal styling. With her particularly keen eye for bold, yet approachable fashion sense, Salver launched Myfoxhouse.com.
It’s no surprise that MyFoxhouse.com has been garnering a lot of buzz recently. Salver’s eccentric and unique personality can be seen through the beautiful pieces of clothing and accessories she carefully selects for Myfoxhouse. com, mainly focusing on unique patterns, colors, cuts and silhouettes. “But the most important key factors I focus on, go to the classic, timeless pieces. Clothing fabulous forty years ago, and still relevant today.” Salver stresses. “When it comes to vintage, everything stands out”. Really, the only blueprint formula that Salver follows for the vintage selection is just taking the time to search through hundreds of pieces, in order to find the classic, ‘diamond in the rough’.
When it comes to the process of selecting the latest items, Salver makes it a point to not follow the current trends. She rather, wisely focuses on pieces that turn heads, the ones that make woman feel confident and comfortable, and most importantly, compliment figures.
Salvers eye for style and art didn’t start with her; in fact, she has a rather fascinating history with fashion that is as unique and intriguing as her vintage finds.
Salver’s heritage of fashion and strong pedigree for styling and designing stems from her grandmother, Joanne Alterman, a well-known and respected fashion and interior designer in Miami Beach. Alterman studied at the prestigious Parson’s School in New York City, and went on to carry a line at Bendel‘s, the upscale department store there. Initially, she specialized in long evening patchwork skirts before moving on to coats and jackets. Alterman also became one of the first designers to use authentic textiles from the Seminole Indian tribe in Florida. At that time, the Seminoles were the only Indian tribe to sign a peace treaty with the United States. Alterman, just like her granddaughter Salver, saw incredible opportunity and approached the Seminoles, working out a fair deal with them, using their materials for her clothing line. All sorts of individuals owned Alterman’s creations, from Luciana Pignatelli, all the way to Christina Ford, wife of the auto magnate. Christina Ford even made it on to ‘Vanity Fair’ magazines list of ‘International Best Dressed Hall of Fame’ in a velvet Alterman skirt.
Alterman’s heavy influence on Salver started at a very young age. She taught her granddaughter how to skillfully paint and dressed her in hand made clothing. “I share an almost haunting similarity of style and eye as my grandmother. No doubt, she has inspired and shaped my style.” Salver sings her praises, and it’s easy to see why she credits all of her artistic and designing talents to her grandmother. To this day, Salver still goes to her grandmother for advice on running her online store.
It wasn’t until Salver was 24 that she became involved with the fashion and art scene. Before then, she had attended the University of Central Florida, where Salver did a ‘Semester at Sea,’ that whisked her around the globe to different countries such as: Thailand, Africa, Brazil, etc. exposing her to various cultures, rich in colors, styles, and tradition. The semester at sea ended, and Salver found herself back at home, bored, and in desperate need of creativity. She transferred to the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale and got a degree in Graphic Design. The same month Salver graduated, her lease of her apartment was up and she moved out west to Los Angeles. Salver’s depiction of Hollywood is that it was a “strange, but insanely creative place.”
It was in Los Angeles, where Salver became immersed in the fashion and art scene. After relentless networking and sending many emails to studios, Salver eventually landed a job working on several film sets in the art and wardrobe department. “I had no idea the title of set designer, wardrobe stylist, and prop master even existed. It was through meeting people in these fields, that I realized I had a calling for everything to do with styling.” This opportunity led Salver to style sets, people, photo shoots, and even go back to her roots of some graphic design for production as well.
“I had to work miracles with low budgets”. Salver says of her job experience. But it was exactly the type of experience and crash course training needed to give Salver the proper confidence in her styling abilities. “It was then, I realized I had a knack for finding gems in thrift stores, antique markets, estate sales, etc.”
After a couple years in Los Angeles, Salver made her way back home to Fort Lauderdale where she launched her website.
“The name ‘Fox’ stems from the idea that foxes, by nature, are not pack animals. They’re opportunistic feeders which translates into what I want my clothes to represent an individuality and uniqueness for the women who wear them. For them to feel confident and ready to conquer the day.” Salver’s goals for the women who shop at her web site are simple: “ I want women who shop at
Myfoxhouse.com to feel as if they put on an article of clothing, and are ready to go out there and ‘get it.’”
With the success of Myfoxhouse.com, talks of expansion are natural. Salver already has future plans to eventually open up a local storefront along with putting together a launch/fashion show. She also plans to add her own personal touch of hand made designs of hair accessories on her site.
I highly recommend Myfoxhouse.com to any girl that even has the slightest interest in fashion. I wouldn’t steer you wrong on this, it’s a great find.
Designers: if you’re interested in contacting Tobi Salver, please do so at: [email protected].
I enjoyed redaing your blog today. My grandparents were Cuban, French, and Spanish. Mrs. Pilgrim, Mrs. McCurdy’s mom, is from Austria! Bryson Fleming’s grandmother is from New Zealand. How did we all find White Oak! I’m just glad we did.