Lake Forest Tailors and Just Nice Things
John Foster ran Lake Forest Tailors at 730 N Western Avenue. Foster had jazz playing in the shop and people stopped in, just to chat, listen to jazz, and learn from him. He was recognized as a great fitter of suits. He fitted the men of Lake Forest for suits, trimming and tailoring pants and jackets to fit. Over the years, he had collected a bin of trimmed fabrics, and decided to make a patchwork jacket out of it. One Lake Forest gentleman stopped in and admired the coat, asking if he could buy it. Foster agreed. The man wore it to an event in Boston, where it created a fashion stir, requiring Foster to make many more of them, where they became a local trend.
As his business grew, he invited Patricia (Carter) Simmons to sell some of her hats and accessories in the shop. When it came time to retire, Simmons took the location over. As she wasn’t a tailor, she rebranded the shop, Just Nice Things, where she sold hats, coats, gloves, and accessories. Working with another milliner, Wreather Osorio, the women sought out their wares in New York to sell in the shop. High season included pre-Kentucky Derby, where requests for custom hats was the norm. Another unusual request was for hats needed for audiences with the Pope. Simmons recalls filling at least four orders for that.
Simmons recalls the charm of the Lake Forest customers. One day when Simmons was upstairs having lunch with a friend, at Christopher’s, and she had left the shop open. A customer had come in, made a selection, and then left the money and a note for her when she returned.
Simmons retired and closed the shop in 1993. As a Marine vet, Simmons continues her commitment to the military as a volunteer with the American Legion, and became the first commander for the McKinlock Post 264 of Lake Forest Illinois, in 2016.
