On April 30, Savvie’s Blue Shell Boutique opened as a new coastal gift shop in Solomons Island, Maryland, providing the community with a new destination for coastal lifestyle collections. Owner Vickie Kite Milburn says her new store is full of resort-inspired fashion, unique handbags and accessories, thoughtfully curated gifts and a large selection of Solomons name-drop apparel and souvenirs.
“One of the things I love most about the location is that our front porch overlooks the Patuxent River,” Milburn describes. “It’s such a beautiful place to work, and that waterfront setting definitely inspired the look and feel of the boutique.”
Savvie’s isn’t Milburn’s first store, nor is it her only store. Prior to opening Savvie’s, Milburn has been running The Blue Shell Gifts & Decor since November 2021 as a gift shop inside her sister’s business, Jacqueline Morgan Day Spa in Solomons. The spa store has much more than traditional spa-themed finds, as it’s full of coastal decor, jewelry, candles and thoughtfully curated gifts.
“I wanted the gift shop to be filled with beautiful things that I would love to receive or give as a gift,” Milburn says of The Blue Shell Gifts & Decor.
But as that store grew, so did customer requests. Milburn says many people came into the spa store asking for apparel and accessories.
“We expanded our Solomons collection with T-shirts, sweatshirts, hats and souvenirs, and eventually added fashion, which quickly became one of our fastest-growing categories,” she says. “The challenge was that The Blue Shell simply wasn’t designed for a growing fashion business. The store was getting crowded, and I wasn’t able to display the clothing the way I wanted to. At the same time, I was running out of room for the gifts and home decor that had originally been at the heart of the store.”
When Milburn learned that new store space was opening in town near the spa in early 2026, an idea for a new store sparked.
“When I heard the space was available, something just felt right,” she recalls. “The more I thought and prayed about it, the more I felt like God’s hands were in it. I wasn’t looking for a second store, but it came along at exactly the right time and turned out to be the perfect next step for both me and the business.”
Coastal, cozy and chic
Milburn signed a lease for the new Solomons storefront in late February. When preparing for the new store, she wanted to make sure it felt coastal, cozy and chic.
“I had a vision in my head of what I wanted the store to become — I’m a very visual person. I can usually picture a space long before it comes together,” says Milburn. “I wanted Savvie’s to feel coastal, cozy and chic — a place where people would enjoy wandering through the store and discovering something around every corner.”
Milburn painted the walls navy and white to remind customers of the water surrounding Solomons from both the Patuxent River and the Chesapeake Bay. She adds that she painted much of the furniture in the store herself, repurposing some fixtures from The Blue Shell and having a friend build her a display table from an old door she had been saving for years. Her husband, Scott, also helped in picking out furniture and arranging it for the store.
“Almost every piece of furniture has a story,” she says. “Some came from my own home, while others came from my sister and niece, Facebook Marketplace, antique shops and generous friends. One of my favorite pieces is a beautiful 1920s candy counter that originally came from a business right here in Solomons. I love mixing old and new because I think it gives the store warmth, character and personality.” The new store’s name also has some personal significance to Milburn.
“When my great niece Maura was little, I thought she might call me ‘Gavi,’ for Great Aunt Vickie. Instead, she called me, ‘Savvie,’ and the nickname just stuck,” she says. “The name has always made me smile, so when I opened the new boutique, it felt like the perfect name.”
With fixtures in place, Savvie’s is carefully organized in a way that each area focuses on a different element or theme.
“I wanted to create different spaces throughout the store, each with its own personality,” Milburn explains. “Of course, the spaces overlap a bit, but that was intentional. One area focuses on fashion, another celebrates coastal living, another highlights our Solomons apparel and souvenirs, and throughout the store you’ll find handbags, jewelry, accessories, gifts, home decor and a few specialty snacks. I wanted the store to feel interesting and inviting, with something new to discover wherever you looked.”
Opportunity to grow
Savvie’s hosted a ribbon cutting and grand opening celebration on May 8, with attendees from the community, county officials, local business owners, friends, family and loyal customers from The Blue Shell. Since then, Milburn says she’s been excited to see customers stopping in both Savvie’s and The Blue Shell Gifts & Decor this summer.
“Many of our customers shop both stores, and that’s been especially rewarding to see,” she says. “They’ll start in one store, then stroll over to the other because each offers something a little different. Together, they’ve become a fun shopping experience for both locals and visitors.”
With the extra space, Milburn says she’s hoping to expand both the product offerings at her stores and opportunities for community events and workshops. She is planning to offer some oyster shell art workshops at Savvie’s in the fall and hopes to offer bow-making classes and fashion workshops in the future.
“Savvie’s gave me the opportunity to create the fashion boutique I had envisioned, with room to expand our women’s fashion, handbags, accessories and our Solomons apparel and souvenir collections,” she says. “It’s also allowed The Blue Shell to become the gift shop I had originally envisioned. Today, each store has its own personality, and together they offer a much larger shopping experience than either one could on its own.”
