Some shops you will visit in the summer of love
Which stores do rockers and San Francisco folks frequent during the Summer of Love? what did they buy? Bob Cut takes you back to some of the shops in 1967 San Francisco that offered hippie clothing.
Richard’s House
address: 1541 Haight
background story: Richard’s House is a boutique owned by Richard Cherney. On January 7, 1967, the Independent Journal in San Rafael described it as a “hippie-owned and hippie-friendly store”. The paper also spoke of a clerk working there who wore colored prism glasses, creating a “psychedelic vision”. The store is called Exotic in Charles Perry’s book Haight-Ashbury: A History.
what would you buy there: Mexican clothing such as ponchos and huarache sandals:
Anastasia’s
address: 631 Clay Street (also has a place in Sausalito)
background story: In 1961, Helene “Helie” Robertson and her mother Marie opened the first Anastasia’s in Sausalito. A second boutique opened in Clay; soon Robertson was sought after for his handcrafted designs, which were later manufactured and sold nationwide.
what would you buy there: Original, handcrafted clothing with a mix of modern and hippie styles
Poster from the San Francisco Library Archives.
Xanadu
address: 1764 Haight Street
background story: Xanadu is advertised on several listings as a leather goods store from the ’60s.
what would you buy there: Xanadu sells leather crafts, and according to the book “California Split”, you can go there to make custom sandals. According to Terre’s psychedelic poster above, the boutique also apparently sells clothes.
Velvet Underground
address: 471 Broadway Street
background story: Apparently, Stevie Nicks will visit this store before it’s a big hit. She told concertgoers she couldn’t afford the clothes, the most expensive rock star clothing store, but vowed to shop there whenever she got the chance. Before that, she claimed that her position in the center of the room was hers. Nicks also mentioned that Janis Joplin and Grace Slick would buy all their clothes there. Janis Joplin is said to have bought her gold fishnet vest at the Velvet Underground. Among the lyrics to “Gypsy,” Stevie sings:
“So I went back to the Velvet Underground
back to the floor i love
Go to a room with lace and paper flowers. “
According to a 1967 Lesley Kamstra psychedelic poster (above), the store is open from noon to midnight.
what would you buy there: In an article in the Los Angeles Times, Stevie Nicks said Velvet Underground has a lot of pretty stuff, including mid-thigh tunics and flared pants made from pyjamas. While she was here, she decided these were the clothes she would always wear.
