“What made you move to Austin?” I asked the native Argentinian. “For love” she replied. The song “La Vie En Rosa” was appropriately playing in the background, and if I wasn’t such a hopeless romantic at heart, I might have rolled my eyes in disgust. Normally one might scoff at the thought of a woman leaving her entire world and learning a different language in order to follow a man. But looking at Mariela and hearing her say “love” in that romantic accent, it just all felt so dreamy and perfect that I couldn’t help but believe in it.
Mariela (whose last name is now Webber) has only been in Austin for 6 months now, but has already opened up her very own boutique in a prime location on East 6th. Determined to open the space sooner than her architects had quoted, Mariela took over the project herself and revamped the space creating a clean, feminine, but cool space for women to shop. After chatting with her, I soon realized that this wasn’t just a story of a woman following a man, but rather, a story of a woman following her dream. Set on creating something all her own, Mariela has opened Maga La Boheme.
Maga La Boheme, which has only been open for 10 days now, is the result of Mariela’s inability to find in Austin the exact style of clothing that she was used to having in Buenos Aires. There’s a distinct way of dressing in Buenos Aires that Mariela says involves lots of bright colors, mixtures of patterns, and oversized jewelry. What you will find at Maga is exactly such. The small narrow boutique is filled with color, interesting patterns, textures, and funky jewelry. But don’t fret, if color isn’t your thing, there’s a rack dedicated to some classy black pieces that are just as interesting as what the rest of the store has to offer.
One of the main attractions of Maga and something that is very unique, is the bags. Leather is much more prevalent and affordable in Argentina, so Mariela is definitely taking advantage of this fact and stocking her store with unique genuine leather handbags at prices you won’t see anywhere else. Mariela says she will also be getting some leather jackets into the store in the next couple of weeks, and, for someone who has been looking for a real leather jacket at a sane price, I will definitely be back to check those out.
Maga La Boheme is located at 1105 E.6th St.
Joanna Wilkinson
Keep Austin Stylish