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Mar 16, 2008 11:30 pm US/Central
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Finding Minnesota: Hmong Consignment Shop
ST. PAUL (WCCO) ―
In this day and age of big box and chain stores, it's nice to find a spot that sells things you won't find everywhere. One such place can be found in a Minnesota church basement.
It's certainly not where most people would think of heading to find that something special for someone, but you just might find it on the lower level of Christ Lutheran Church in St. Paul.
There are jackets, sweaters, skirts and accessories of all kinds -- a little showplace of Hmong handwork called Pan Dau.
"Pan Dau is a word that means flower cloth," explained Maureen Austinson, a volunteer with the Southeast Asian Ministry and the Pan Dau consignment shop.
"That's what they call all of their stitching, whether it's counter-cross stitch, whether it's appliqué, whether it's reverse appliqué, batik. All of their work is called Pan Dau," she said.
You'll find all kinds of it in the basement office, where about 175 Hmong stitchers display and sell their Pan Dau work.
Each piece is hand made without a pattern, using traditional designs handed down over centuries. Traditional Pan Dau was primarily used for clothing and ceremonial purposes, but the Hmong artists have expanded their handwork to create a market for it in Minnesota.
"They're making purses now, Christmas tree skirts, stockings, card holders, and so forth," said Austinson.
People can purchase Pan Dau at other locations around the Twin Cities, but because this particular outlet is based in a church basement, prices are hard to beat. Purses go for as little as $5, and intricate story clothing goes for merely 10 times that.
"Last year we sold over $10,000 worth of Pan Dau from here," said Austinson. "And that money then goes back to families and the community, 100 percent of it."
Volunteers run the consignment shop, which has been in business for a little more than 25 years.
"We sit here in Christ Lutheran Church on Capitol Hill and we take things in, and hopefully people find us and we can sell them for them," said Austinson.
The store is an unintended but well-kept Minnesota secret, one worth sharing once you've been clued in.
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