FAQs

Who is Christine Shirley?  

Christine Shirley is owned by Paige Sullivan. Her middle name is Christine and she grew up on Shirley Drive!  She is our fearless leader, constantly working hard to grow her business.  She loves using her creativity to bring people together, whether through sewing, selling at local art shows, or curating beautiful & unique shopping experiences.

Who is Dina? 

Dina Previti is a counselor whose mission is to help people in need, believing there is always hope. She daily counsels clients, oversees her team of counselors who are caring for people, and running her practice, Dina Previti & Co. 

Paige and Dina are firstly friends and secondly business partners, sharing every space they have and working together. Their mission and purpose are to care for those they meet, equip however they can, empower people to use their gifts, and encourage however possible. They love to work hard and play hard, making everyday fun!

Our 2021 success story is a silver lining that was born out of the troubles of 2020. Allow us to explain.

We were not prepared for the challenges that 2020 brought to small businesses. As the shutdown darkened our doors, we were classified as nonessential, a term no one had considered being labeled prior to March of that year. It was then we realized that even though we couldn’t continue our trade of creating fashionable trends and teaching adults and children how to sew, we could still sew. When the world began their hibernation, and it was announced that face masks were the ticket to grocery stores, we got to work. At first, we made and donated masks for medical professionals. Within a day or two, a barrage of messages poured in from our customers and friends asking for dozens of masks for their loved ones.

This was not a project we knowingly took on. In fact, had anyone told us on March 19, 2020, that we would spend the next 65 days in our studio making and sending masks to 48 states and 4 countries, we would've said they were insane. Yet, that is what happened.
Paige Sullivan, owner of boutique and sewing studio Christine Shirley, sewed all day every day with her dominant hand broken, and built a team of fabulous seamstresses and employees. Dina Previti, owner of counseling practice Dina Previti & Co., counseled clients and did the rest: customer service, tracking sales, Microsoft Excelling, shipping, packing etc. As business partners and best friends, we tirelessly worked together to help people and save our businesses. We unknowingly ended up in GQ magazine, on a list of ten featured businesses that were making masks, totaling over 18,000 masks with thousands donated. It was nothing less than extraordinary.

While sewing all day, Paige brainstormed. An idea developed for her boutique that was unique and ingenious: create an entirely new space every single month by flipping the whole store, top to bottom. And that’s exactly what we did in 2021.
The designs included ever changing paint colors and wallpaper on every wall, hand sewn display, handmade installations, posh apparel, home goods, and a distinct motif every month. Initially adorned by the jewels of Morocco to wandering the wooded Pennsylvania fall forest followed by a silvery, sparkly swan lake for Christmas, each month would be an entirely exclusive experience.

The idea soared and our customers love it. The monthly shopping event that lasts only six days per month requires two hundred hours of work by the Christine Shirley team. The space transforms before our eyes into a curated shopping experience. Fifteen events in and customers return regularly to witness the imaginative artistic displays, and have become some of our sweetest friends. We never thought there’d be a silver lining so spectacular as this to Masking America. Each month we look forward to our shopping event and customers reaction to the changes. We’re so grateful this concept has been our most successful endeavor yet!