Why Vintage: Our Earth Day Rant Part Deux

So this is the second part of what started out as a simple nod to Earth Day.  What I thought would be a quick post turned into a two part-er and I have now realized that it could really be a chapter in book.  Yesterday I told you all of the environmentally friendly reasons you should buy vintage.  Today, I will tell you all of the practical reasons, i.e., why you will look good, feel good, and save money.

When you mention the word "vintage" so many people have such negative associations with the word.  Images of rumaging through piles of dirty clothes at yard sales and thoughts of musty mothball smelling dresses from your grandmothers attic.  The list goes on and on.  I remember watching an episode on Season 4 of The Real Housewives of Atlanta (Yep, totally embarrassed to admit watching that one) where NeNe Leakes was, as usual, expressing that she was too good for something.  This episode it was "vintage".  She said "Vintage clothes are clothes that people have had on their bodies before....." with a smug look and a twitch of that horribly done new nose.  Well, duh.  But the level of her ignorance truly floored me.  Now every time I get an uneducated smug look or a "Oh, it's vintage" comment with a smirk, I think "Come on now, girl.  I know you must be more intelligent than NeNe Leakes.  Or at least I though so".  Since when did we all strive to have the same level of values as an uneducated ex-stripper?

At the end of the day, I am usually the one with the smirk on my face.  Most all of the outfits that I get the biggest response to are vintage.  And the responses are overwhelmingly positive.  My clothes don't typically come from yard sales and anyone who knows me, knows that much to my husband's chagrin, I don't pay a dollar for anything.  I will, however, wear that awesome vintage maxi dress that I scored for $22 and smile like hell when I accept all 15 compliments that I get on it in two hours.  I will now get down off my soapbox and get on to the actual reason for this post.

Some of the many reasons to purchase vintage clothing:

1.  Everyone knows that like history, fashion repeats itself.  What is old always becomes new again, the key is how you style it.  Vintage is the true source of inspiration for many of today's fashion designers.  They often buy vintage pieces, create patterns from those pieces, and reproduce it to sell under their own label.  I know, I've worked for them.  If you buy vintage, you will have the original.

2.  Vintage always stresses quality over quantity.  Vintage pieces are often times made by hand.  Better materials and techniques were used in addition to specialized details, buttons and finishes.  These hand sewn pieces were made to last.  Vintage pieces have survived decades.  How many wears did you get out of that $15  top from the mall?  How quickly did those $10 earrings manufactured in China fall apart?  Hmm....

3.  Purchasing vintage pieces not only allows you to save a garment from the landfill, it also provides you with a unique one-of-a kind garment or accessory.  You will never have to worry about "seeing yourself" at the party in a mass produced garment.  Vintage pieces add true individuality to your style.

4.  Vintage clothing is an investment.  Unless you are spending loads of cash on haute couture, clothing is much like a car.  Just as a car decreases in value when you drive it off the lot, your clothing loses value the moment you cut off the tags.  Collectible vintage only becomes more and more valuable as it gets harder to find.  You will never loose money on that Bill Blass dress from yesteryear.

5.  Sources of vintage clothing often benefit great causes.  Goodwill Industries and the Salvation Army function to help those in need.  There are many local thrift stores that use their proceeds to support various shelters.  Are you likely to find a vintage Pucci dress at your local donation center? Not a chance but you when you drop off that donation box of your own you may want to take the time to look around.  You never know what unique pieces you may find.

By now I am sure I have bored you with all of my "text" so I will finish up with a little visual impact.  Here are pics and a little info on a few of today's celebrity vintage aficionados.  How can all of these gorgeous women be wrong?

ANGELINA JOLIE  

Pictured in 2007 at her A Mighty Heart premiere not in couture but wearing a $26 dress from LA Boutique, Wasteland.

Photo courtesy of Access Hollywood.

CHLOE SEVIGNY

In a May 2009 interview with Elle magazine, lifetime vintage shopper Sevigny said "It's not what you spend but how you wear it that counts".  How true.

KATE MOSS

Kate is a true purveyor of vintage- wearing it, using it as inspiration for design, even smelling like it.  In 2009 Kate launched a fragrance called "Vintage" that was a fruity floriental fragrance, meant to be a scented capsulation of her love of vintage clothes.  Kate has been quoted as saying "I am fascinated by vintage pieces because they not only have remarkable beauty but also an innate sense of history.  I love that each object has its own story to tell".  

Courtesy of Luxist.com

NICOLE RICHIE

Richie, a long time fan and wearer of vintage debuted her own vintage inspired clothing line, Winter Kate in Spring of 2010.  From the mouth of the girl who started the huge sunglasses craze, "The beauty of anything vintage is that you're not going to see lots of other people in the same thing.  I like to be different".  

ALEXA CHUNG

The former MTV host and hipster muse of Karl Lagerfeld is touted by many as the Kate Moss of this generation.  She made the cut on British Vogue's Best Dressed List for 2010 and was once in talks to develop a show called "Thrift America" where she unearthed treasures from her favorite vintage shops.

Photo courtesy of Peter Roberts

KATE BOSWORTH

Kate along with her longtime stylist, Cher Coulter, created the monthly "fix" for their jewelry obsession.  JewelMint sends you monthly recommendations for pieces based on your style profile and pieces that are inspired by what else....vintage.  

Photo courtesy of Nylon 

AGYNESS DEYN

Deyn is known mostly as a fashion chameleon with her mish-mosh of punk, rockabilly, and Hollywood starlet style- all with a little tomboy thrown in for good measure.  I mean who else can dress like Michael Jackson and look so phenomenal?

Photo Courtesy of Harpers Bazaar

MARY-KATE AND ASHLEY OLSEN

The power duo created a fashion capsule of their clothing line Elizabeth and James exclusively for Barney's this spring.  The inspiration for the fab floral print- vintage wallpaper.  

Photo Courtesy of Barneys

RACHEL ZOE

Oh, my.  And here we saved the best for last.  Rachel Zoe has become a household name in the last two years.  Everyone who has ever seen a pic of her or watched 5 minutes of The Rachel Zoe Project knows that she is a vintage hound.  Did Zoe, however, take her "vin-spiration" a little too far when she  replicated a vintage dress from a styling segment for Teen Vogue in October 2007?  Or did she just get busted doing what every other designer does?

Photo courtesy of Fashionista.com

We hope you have enjoyed our very lengthy presentation on the value of vintage clothing.  We thank you for allowing us to beat you up and bash you repeatedly over the head with VINTAGE, VINTAGE, VINTAGE.  Now please -go and buy some vintage.

Till Next Time,
Tricia and Jennings