First things first; RESEARCH! You must learn the history of fashion, and be aware of what you want to look for in your vintage pieces. When I started looking for those perfect pieces, I most certainly did my homework. You have to be aware of what women or men wore back in those specific era's (or whatever era you plan to emulate for that matter). I don't mean, look these things up on the internet; no sirree, make it fun...watch some films, look at some photographs of what people wore back then, if you have the channel TCM - watch it...that's your homework. Now, I am the type of person that doesn't dress the same all the time. I love all kinds of fashion, from the 1930's to the 1980's, and I'm always dressing up as something different every day. It's never the same with me. But my true era is the 1950's. I love the bright, and bold statements of the 1950's fashion. The big, beautiful dresses, unique hairstyles, and fabulous accessories. I always have more fun finding and putting together clothing from that decade, or at least try and emulate it with modern pieces that still have that 1950's feel.
When you feel that you've done your research and know what you want to look for, try finding a local thrift or antique store in your town, or town that is closest. In my town I have three major places that I like to get my things from and I go to them every week if not every two weeks. They always have something new, and you gotta keep your eyes out! It's all about luck in some of these situations.
Now, back in the summer when I was staying with a close friend, she gave me this box of patterns from from the 1930's - 1950's. I have a fascination in collecting old patterns, so I was more than happy to take them. I wanted to share them with you, because they can give you a feel for what you may need to look for.
Look closely to the pattern of the dresses, analyze them.
It's important to understand the color, texture and style of the pieces.
Now, I'd like to show you some of my pieces that I have purchased at my stores within the past year. I want you to know what to look for and what not to look for. Tips and tricks on what may or may not make it vintage. I'm going to start off with a shirt that is one of my favorite vintage finds. It's a white knitted short sleeved shirt that is perfect to pare with just about anything.
Now, here's how I have depicted the fact that this shirt is vintage: One, the design. The detail in the embroidering is a very unique and classic pattern, but the design itself shows that it's vintage - the boxed shoulder, where it just goes straight across the collar bone to the shoulders, shows that it's a 1950's design, as shown in one of the clothing patterns above. Two, the fact that there was no tag on it can also detect that is from this era. Many people in the 1950's and older made their clothing more often than usual (hence, no clothing brand tag), whereas today you barely see anyone who makes their own clothing. My grandmother made her own clothing back in the day, and some designs similar to this one. Three, my final detection is the tie at the bottom of the shirt. The knitted string that is attached to the shirt is meant to emphasize the waist. As you can see in the patterns above from the 50's...it was all about the waist, and making your waist shown. Clothing today just doesn't really emphasize that part of your body, which I find sad, being that your waist is really a best feature of the body (in my opinion). I now will show you what this shirt looks like on me. Bare with me, this is an old photo, and it was my first time wearing this shirt since I purchased it.
As you can see it sits at my waist. And if I tightened the string more then it would emphasize my waist even better.
Now, onto a jacket/blazer piece that was handed down to me from my Mom, from her grandmother. This red jacket/blazer has one big button at the top and then flares out the rest of the way down. It's from either the 1930's or 1940's, and is in perfect condition. I don't get all my vintage pieces from a thrift store, a lot of the time it's just passed down to me. I guess it's a perk of having a very stylish Momma (or stylish family for that matter). I've sadly never worn this blazer, but to get an idea on what it would look like, there is a jacket in one of the patterns above that is almost exactly what it would look like on.
When it comes to the tags in these vintage pieces, look at how tattered it is. The material used for the tag, and the design of the tag. There are a lot of materials that were used for brand tags back in the day, but in today's world you get a weird itchy or paper-like tag that's just not that nice.
One of my favorite things to look for in thrift's are cardigans. I'm going to show you two different cardigans that I have purchased at probably the same store. The first one you'll see, is a yellow cardigan. Again, this cardigan has no tag. The design, material, and pattern used are indicators that it's a vintage piece. The second one is a baby blue cardigan that has very delicate and unique material, that really isn't something used for cardigans today.
The detailing on this cardigan alone made me jump at it. Cardigan's are just not made like this anymore. Also the cut, material and color give me that indication that it is a vintage piece. This sweater does not have a tag, which also gives me an indication.
This cardigan was something that I needed when I first laid eyes on it. When I saw the tag as well, I knew right away that it was a vintage cardigan. If you ever find a piece that has an tag on it and looks something like this Winkelman's tag, try looking it up...you might find out some very interesting information.
Now, for my absolute favorite pieces to find...lingerie. I have this one little thrift store in town that I love to visit because they have a section in the back that is filled with vintage slips, nightgowns, bed jackets, and more. I'm going to show you two pieces, one of my favorite nightgowns and one of my favorite bed jackets.
This mint green nightgown screams vintage. The material: delicate, soft, and cool to the touch. It just so happens to have pockets, and the detailing on the sleeves and neck collar are a dead giveaway of it being vintage. As well as the stitching on the inside, can be a way of telling that it's vintage.
Closeup on detailing.
This soft pink bed jacket is probably my favorite bed jacket that I own (and I own quite a bit). The soft, delicate material is lovely. The detailing around the collar, sleeves, and all around the jacket is a piece of artwork. Again, the tattered and vintage tag says it all.
When it comes to skirts, and dresses I find it a lot harder to come by. I usually find modern pieces of clothing that have a vintage-style to it. For example, I have this beige pencil skirt that I wear often. It's tight in the waist (again, a must have!), has a high waist, and is long enough to go past the knees (another must have for the authentic 1950's look). I have some pictures from a photo shoot I did this past summer and I was wearing this specific skirt. It's much easier to visualize when seen on.
Photographer: Kristi Fox.
When it comes to accessorizing such as hats, belts, shoes, and jewelry, it's simple. For hats, you want to look for those Jackie Kennedy box hats...but to be honest, if you do your research you'll be able to tell what hats are vintage and what hats are modern - believe me. For belts, I keep it simple, tiny and thin, opera belts are also a go-to belt as they were popular in the 50's. For shoes, it's very very hard to find an authentic shoe from the 1930's, 40's, or 50's, because women had such tiny feet back then and I have never once found a shoe from either of those era's. I'm a size 9 or 10, depending on the shoe, sometimes an 11. So yeah, I have huge feet. I get all my shoes for low prices at Wal-Mart because, why not? They have cute shoes for affordable prices! Or you can go to a Payless Shoe Store or any 'ole shoe store, and look in their discount section. For the type of style of shoe, if you want a high heel, look for a rounded toe heel, not a pointed one (I don't think I've ever seen a photograph of a woman wearing a pointed toed shoe in the 1950's or older). Maybe a heel with a tiny bow on it, or even an open toed shoe (like in the photograph above), with an ankle strap. You could also go for a simple black flat, or tennis shoes, or even a nice boot with a thick heel. I'd love a pair of saddle shoes, but I've never found a pair in my size. Finally for jewelry, look when it comes to the 1950's, you can wear a lot of bracelets or very little, or a thin strapped watch, or a thick metal bracelet. Never over do it. You want it simple and chic. Rings are simple, just a gold band with a few ruby's in it would be fine. Earrings, go with something small, and light - just a pearl earring or something to that effect would be fine, I never really worry about them anyway. My favorite piece of jewelry to wear are brooches - I cannot leave the house without one on me. You can find all kinds of neat brooches online and at an antique store.
It's really all about finding that perfect piece...search, search, search!!! I also find that lady luck has a little something to do with it. But once you find that perfect vintage article of clothing or accessory, well you feel like a winner. I know I do. Sometimes I even feel like I won the lottery. I hope some of you out there who have read this, have found this to help you out a bit and are eager to go searching for your perfect vintage piece.
If any of you are having trouble or I didn't cover something that you'd like to know more about, or just have any questions at all, feel free to comment below! I'd love to answer and help you out with anything.
Sincerely, Miss Voodoo.
Love your blog!
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