Vintage Clothing Fashion – Tips on How to Acquire Your Vintage Wardrobe

Posted by admin on March 2, 2010

Just like shopping for non-vintage, shopping for unique vintage clothing requires patience.

Start building with the basics.   If you happen to find some awesome vintage shirts, pick them up.   Skirts, shoes, whatever….if they are a good basic and they fit your body, then grab them.   I like searching online best, and this works well if you are a plus size or a less than common size as your search market is so much wider (the world!!).   eBay is a great source for vintage clothing!   Vintage stores are great, but often have a limited selection.

Know your budget.  It is easy to get carried away, so you have to watch the price tag.  If you find a gorgeous dress from the era you adore, but the price is high—what to do?  Think about it.  Will you wear it often?  If so, then buy it. If not, and if it is more of an occasional item, I’d recommend skipping it.  But that is just me!

Now, if you find the PERFECT vintage mink coat or evening dress and you can buy it, and then do so.   Spending more then you intend once or twice won’t break the bank and if you wear the item fairly often then you will find it to be a good investment.

Buying off season is a great vintage clothing wardrobe building tip.  Winter clothes are marked down in vintage boutiques (and even thrift stores) in the summer and vice versa.

Don’t forget accessories.  Having a great stash of vintage hats, shoes, handbags and vintage jewelry will make even a drab modern outfit have vintage flair.  These items are usually always well priced and you can get a bunch of them for the price of that 1 mink coat!

With vintage clothes too it is important to remember that many of them will have to be dry cleaned, especially the earlier era pieces.  The 60’s and 70’s are full of items you can wash at home but be aware of the upkeep of your next hot find.  A cheap shirt that has to be dry cleaned all the time suddenly becomes much less of a “good deal”!

Happy shopping and better yet…..happy vintage shopping!