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vintage

THE BEST ONLINE VINTAGE SHOPPING

by Amber on November 10, 2008

Last month I wrote a guide to Auckland’s best vintage stores – and enjoyed it so much I vowed to scour the virtual world for the best online vintage shopping!

This is in no way definitive but rather a few sparkly corners of the Internet to get your vintage fix. Especially good for those of us living in odd locales or don’t enjoy the hours of rummaging in teeny musty store (though I am horrified and offer you my full support in learning to love it). I’ve divided it into 3 easy sections – the dot com store fronts, the reliable eBay stores and the etsy shoppes.

.COMS

Judith Leiber aqua snakeskin belt.

Judith Leiber aqua snakeskin belt from Archive Vintage.

Archive Vintage – has a focus on classic designer pieces, in particular Chanel. Archive also sells a range of highly collectible fashion books which is worth keeping an eye on.

1918 Vintage – has great accessories; like their neat scarf deal called ‘scarfpalooza’, 6 vintage scarves at once! I like Meg’s blog too – she appreciates Man Man too!

iheartcheekychops – is based in the U.K. and has recently had a site refresh. It’s cheap, cheerful and there is a real cute 80’s flavour to their choices.

Nasty Gal – a very popular store with both vintage and new pieces. They seem to have the niche of more structurally extreme vintage covered! Think wacky cocktail dresses and suspenders. Expect to pay more but it saves you the hassle of bidding.

EBAY

Lullie Vintage – lush vintage pretties direct from Hollywood, California. Expect loads of fresh items every week and possibly a few bargains! Design That Kills has a great interview with Shae Acopian Detar, the lovely lady behind Lullie.

Lullie Vintage dress

Lullie Vintage dress

Trashy Vintage – they also have a web store but I really like their ebay presence – they have a lot of items! And most seem to start at US$9.99 so you’re bound to find something sweet for cheap.

ETSY

Greasy Waitress Vintage describes itself as “vintage finds to discerning scenesters”, stocking a lot of brightly hued eighties gear for both gals and guys. I love the sequined butterfly cape – imagine it teamed with incredibly stacked stilettos and sprayed on black jeans.

Dancing Queen Cape from Greasy Waitress Vintage.

Dancing Queen Cape from Greasy Waitress Vintage.

FreeStyleVintageCo wins my heart on sheer quantity alone – 200+ items and all relatively cheap! I like the pairs of wooden stacked heels very much.

Dewberry Vintage – a thoughtful wee collection and such a cute name! Who could help being charmed? You’ll find lots of woolen items here – natty sweaters and snuggly coats.

Santoki Vintage – is a trove of sexy boots and vintage delights. If you’re a size seven, don’t delay -please run and buy these boots and let me live vicariously through your joyous dancing in the streets. Urgggh.

Santoki Vintage Boots

Santoki Vintage Boots

TIPS

Sometimes it can be a mixed bag/varied experience when you buy something online but you can make it so much easier for yourself!

  • I keep a giant list of vintage stores in a bookmark folder and look at them regularly for the best pieces. Open the entire folder in “all tabs” for maximum efficiency!
  • It’s also handy to keep a text file where you can record every single measurement you may ever want. If I need to know my waist size, it’s right there – in both inches and centimetres. Simple.
  • Always know that you can ask the purveyor for extra information – how wide are those sleeves, what material is it made of, what does the care label say? Nothing is too much to ask, honestly! If it makes your shopping experience better and with less worries – do it.
  • On that note – don’t be afraid to let vintage sellers know what you are looking for if there is something in particular you’re after. They see a lot of stock and could keep an eye out or could have just what you need out the back… it does happen!
  • Need new sources? Read online zines like N.E.E.T. for hot tips or browse flickr groups focused on vintage.

If you’ve got any fantastic online vintage resources, please share them in the comments. Sharing is wildly encouraged here!

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VINTAGE SHOPPING IN AUCKLAND

by Amber on October 18, 2008

I’ve spent many a happy hour stomping up and down city streets (everywhere) looking for vintage stock for Catch & Covet, but also just for the sheer love of adding to my wardrobe. You could say that when it comes to vintage, I’m as seasoned as a 1972 Christian Dior belt!

There aren’t many vintage stores in Auckland (comparatively!), nor are they large. Local girls serious about second-hand pop to Melbourne for the weekend, but that’s not for everyone… So I thought I would write a guide to Auckland’s best vintage stores.

This guide comes complete with a map (see the PDF download) and refreshment suggestions. Whether you’re visiting Auckland on holiday or you’ve lived here forever, I hope you find the guide useful.

Luckily, there are some note worthy spots to indulge in your vintage passion! They are all located handily around the CBD/city fringe areas, only a short stroll from one another. Our journey starts in the city, just off Queen Street…

TANGO
Little High St, access off Durham Lane and High St, City

This is what I’d call a classic vintage cave. Chock full of furniture, mannequins and lamps! It has a wide selection of known designers, thanks to European buying trips. It also has a fine selection of hats – get into the thick of the vintage hunt by trying on a few of them. Take heed though: prices have varied visit by visit in my experience…

Tango is our only stop in the central CBD. You might be interested in checking out the Recycle Boutique across Queen Street, but in my opinion it requires a weekly search and this guide is about edited collections! So onwards, up to Karangahape/’K’ Road.

… take a breather …

If you’ve walked up the hill, you might be in need of some sort of refreshment! Right before you hit the second stop is the lovely Verona café (169 Karangahape Rd). Delectable coffee, blood red flocked walls and cozy booths for slouching in. I highly recommend their affrogato.

If you’re doing this walk on a Saturday the Hari Krishna centre (286 Karangahape Rd) has free, yummy vegetarian meals – however you should try give them a small donation as well as a smile!

FUZZY VIBES JUNCTION
151 Karangahape Rd, Newton – 09 309 1451

You’ll spot this one by the spray painted signage and arrows pointing down the stairs. There you’ll fine the orange interior of the fuzzy cave chock full of groovy stuff. While groovy isn’t really my thing it might just be yours. They’ve got the usual range of threads, plus an extensive selection of home wares. I really took a shine to their mint condition fondue pots and retro tea sets. It’s definitely got a different vibe to the other stores!

FAST & LOOSE
Shop 3, St. Kevin’s Arcade, Karangahape Rd, Newton – 09 309 9063

Local stylists adore this den of 80’s pomp, which sits just on the corner of the iconic St Kevin’s Arcade. They have a great selection of garish gold jewelry (yes, this is a good thing!) and a few cocktail dresses to choose from. What really makes this store shine is the layout and careful curation of objects; grouping tooled leather bags on simple white shelves, and the separation of men and women’s clothing.

VIXEN
St Kevin’s Arcade, Karangahape Road, Newton – 309-8884

Right next door to Fast & Loose, in double the space, Vixen has a much bigger selection of shiny pretty things to choose from! With less focus on the 80’s Vixen is a fantastic port of call whether you’re looking for something amazing or just a pair of cowboy boots. They seem to have a spectacular never-ending selection of patchwork leather bags. It’s where I go when I’m looking for a well worn band t-shirt, or one with a summer camp slogan. Awesome!

PEACHY KEEN
374 Karangahape Rd, Newton – 09 377 2733

I have super fond memories of one particular piece sourced from this store. In my slightly gothy phase I found and coveted a frothy tulle 1980’s cocktail dress, which was then cut in half to make a ragged skirt. I lived in this black cake skirt. Since then, the store has changed hands but it still seems pretty good – lots of boots and it even has baby vintage wear! Friendly staff too, which is always a bonus.

TATTY’S
191 Ponsonby Rd, Ponsonby – 09 376 2761
(To get to Tatty’s either walk along to the end of K Road and down Ponsonby Road, or catch one of the striking green Link Buses for $1.60)

A mixture of vintage and designer resale, Tatty’s made the list as it has some gems for all budgets! I’ve seen Ann Demeulemeester pieces here as well as a lot of local New Zealand high fashion. Tatty’s has wonderfully friendly staff and illustrations by local artists on the walls. Also, look out for their ridiculously cute and well-dressed possum.

Conduct your vintage celebrations and commiserations over the two-sizes too small shoes at the daintily named café Agnes Curran (179 Ponsonby Road). Here you can enjoy a lovely tea or coffee surrounded by their retro-wares. If you’ve still got money left over, this would be a good opportunity to buy the milk jug of your dreams.

Even though these stores are vintage specialists (as opposed to charity/thrift/op shops – a whole ‘nother ball game there!) there are still some tips that will make your experience superb!

  • The first thing I do when vintage shopping is to feel the fabrics, often along an entire rack before I pull any garments out. The higher the material quality, the more likely you are on to a wicked find.
  • Things can be taken in, but not often made to fit a bigger sized body… So if it’s obviously too small, give it up! Some creativity can be exercised, for example: vowing to always wear that boy’s button-up-shirt undone.
  • Choose your vintage shopping outfit wisely. I recommend slip on shoes or flats, a simple skirt and a singlet top, layered with a cardigan if it’s chilly.
  • Also, take a sturdy, large bag with you. There’s nothing worse than moving on to the next stop with a handful of plastic shopping bags. Buy your clothes, stash and flip your bag over your shoulder. Keep both hands free!

Phew, that’s it! For easy reference, here’s a PDF with map and store addresses for you to print out (click on the image or the text link).

CFS-Vintage-Guide

Mark it up if you find any other spots you love! ❤ Oh and don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten you international kids, check back soon for a CFS guide to online vintage shopping – with loads of useful tricks and tips.

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GIRLS TOTALLY LOVE SHOES

by Amber on July 6, 2008

Tired of trawling ebay for vintage boots? Despairing at the local op-shops’ lack of everything your size? After designer vintage shoes that will delight and cause people to stop you on the street? Try Girls Love Shoes New York’s cool online shoe store, run by the two Ziprin sisters.

Above are some of the shoes that I picked out as winners, reflecting my current tastes for anything shiny, and shoes with cut-outs. I imagine the Andrea Carrano’s (on the left) would be awesome for late summer/early autumn hijinks. Apparently GLS have an incredible 2000 pairs of vintage shoes in their archive! A couple of them are pictured below, yes – drool worthy! I figure even I (with my exceedingly large feet) would be able to be find some stunners if I was to visit their LES store.

Photo credit: NYMag

On the basis of this collection the Girls are currently writing a book on notable shoes of our time. Sweet! In the mean time, shop online and check out an interview in NYMag, where Zia Ziprin discusses her fine tastes.

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EIGHTY SHADES

by Amber on June 18, 2008

Nasty Gal Vintage has moved off ebay (although not without controversy) to their own online store. These guys are serious full time vintage peddlers and hence, do come across some darling finds! Currently Nasty Gal has quite a good selection of dead stock frames up – there is a lot of eighties goodness there. My picks are the blue mirrored Testarossa Safety Shades, the rather sweet Eye Heart Glasses (in purple but they do have a range of colours) and the France Romance Shades*.

As flaunted above, I am always a fan of the bold retro eyeware look: on the left we have faux Ray-Bans with swallow detailing, and on the right Le Specs – Nu Ro Scenesters. I love the brash types that Karen Walker designs ad with which she has had a lot of success (her 2007 collection is particularly awesome). Looking good and not damaging your skin from all that squinting? Hot stuff!

*I just succumbed to the charms of the France Romance shades and hopefully will be receiving them in the mail soon!

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