Diann Newell first thought of opening a children's fashion boutique when she realized there was a need in the area for cute, ruffle-covered little girls' clothing.

"We had a little girl, 18 months old, and every Monday, which was my day off, my mother and I drove as far as you could drive and back in one day, and we came home after about five weeks in a row and I said, 'I have to open a store, I can't find anything with a ruffle,'" Newell says.

She opened Hansel and Gretel Boutique with her husband, Mike, in 1973.

They began in a small store on Frederick Street in downtown Cape Girardeau. Since then, the boutique has moved several times, but has found its home for the past 13 years at 3048 William St. in Cape Girardeau.

"I have loved the landlord, loved the space, loved the parking, love the hours, love being my own boss, it's been great," Diann says.

Diann Newell, co-owner of Hansel and Gretel Children Boutique, poses for a photo inside the store in Cape Girardeau.Laura Simon

The business has developed generational customers, drawing back grandparents and even great-grandparents who began shopping at the store when their own children were babies.

Diann, who has three daughters and four granddaughters, says she has always enjoyed dressing up little girls and coordinating outfits and bows.

"We're very big on matching," she says. "If you have a newborn, a 3-year-old and a 6-year-old, you could have them all to match and that's extremely cute."

"You're never fully dressed without a bow" became a household saying for the Newells, and rings true for many outfits offered at Hansel and Gretel, considering Mike can make a custom bow to match practically any dress or outfit.

Diann says one of her favorite parts of the job is the reaction from her young customers when they see themselves in the perfect holiday outfit or special-occasion dress and bow.

Hansel and Gretel Children Boutique in Cape Girardeau.Laura Simon

"I don't know why I'm passionate; I love dressing baby girls," she says. "Our little girls here, when they come out of that dressing room and they're just all fluffed up and they've just got a huge smile, it just is heartwarming."

Having been open 42 years, Diann says she and Mike will keep the store open as long as they both are healthy and continue to enjoy their work.

"I love it," she says. "I love the frills, and I'm pretty friendly, I can talk to most anybody, and I like meeting new people and making friends, and it's just been a way to connect, I guess, with something [I] enjoy."