Wearing and Finding Vintage Clothing
Every day of my life I wear at least one item of vintage clothing. It’s a part of my style that is pretty ingrained in me. Whether it is a pair of vintage boots, a jacket, a shirt or tie, I think vintage clothing adds character and texture and feels like a logical extension of my interest in keeping the past alive and relevant in the present.
Like many people who love antiques, I’m sentimental about times in which I’ve never lived myself, and wearing vintage clothing from those periods makes me feel connected to aesthetic of an era. I also wholeheartedly believe that good fashion is timeless, and that good vintage clothing mixes beautifully with new pieces that are made well and have great style.
In each episode of MARKET WARRIORS, I wear a pair of vintage boots, which come in handy when I’m trudging the fields looking for bargains. I also carry a vintage newspaper carrier’s bag from my hometown paper, The Morning Call, where I worked writing obituaries and community stories in high school. Finally, I wear a pin that belonged to my grandmother on the back of my hat. All of these items are a part of my style and bring me joy at the same time.
Most of my vintage clothing…especially the jackets…. comes from thrift stores such as The Salvation Army or Housing Works. I began shopping in these places when I very young because I wanted interesting clothing that had history. My brother did this, so I took my fashion cues from him.
Other vintage clothing items in my collection come from dealers who specialize in procuring ‘new’ old-store stock. There’s one in Manhattan that finds pieces from the 40s through the 80s that are from old stores or warehouses in Europe, so not only am I getting fantastic things, but I’m getting many that have an international flair.
Still other vendors I buy from find clothing by digging through items at estate sales and auctions. They go to painstaking efforts to find amazing things, and I’m very grateful to them for doing so. Some of the best things I own were tucked away in someone’s closet for years…unworn or gently used, and now have new life.
Finally, buying vintage clothing is not only cool and offers a unique, one-of-a-kind look, but it is also GREEN and compared to new pieces, quite a bargain. Happy hunting!
