The Vintage Blog

Shopping for vintage just went mainstream! The Brooklyn Flea Market is such a New York summer tradition that it is no surprise that someone finally picked up on it and decided to do a collaboration. Madewell is hosting a “summer share” at their SoHo and East Hampton locations starting Thursday June 25th. They will open up space for some of the Brooklyn Flea’s most amazing vintage finds! Madewell’s marketing director, Gigi Guerra, and stylists, Lisa Schulner, have worked in conjunctions with the popular vintage dealers to find their best vintage garments and accessories that will complement the Madewell brand of products. And why not? What goes better with those Madewell jeans than a great selection of affordable vintages top and yesterdays jewels? Happy hunting!

The Brooklyn Flea Market is located at:

Brooklyn Flea takes place every weekend in two locations:
Every Saturday in Fort Greene (10am-5pm), and every Sunday under the Brooklyn Bridge on the waterfront in DUMBO (11am-6pm).

Click here for a map and directions to both locations.

The Fort Greene Flea is outdoors at Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, on Lafayette Ave. between Clermont and Vanderbilt Ave., and features 150+ vendors of vintage furniture, clothing, collectibles and antiques, as well as new jewelry, art and crafts by local artisans, plus delicious food. It is open from 10am to 5pm—rain or shine—every Saturday.

Brooklyn Bridge Flea takes place directly under the world's most beautiful bridge with gorgeous views of the Manhattan skyline and the bridge overhead. It features 100+ vendors with a similar mix to the Fort Greene Flea, including many of the same vendors. Brooklyn Bridge Flea is open from 11am to 6pm every Sunday.

http://www.brownstoner.com/brooklynflea/

Growing up in Texas there was a lot of Mexican influence all around me. I have fond memories of going to flea markets and finding bright colors rugs and throws, embroidered dresses, and embossed leather purses. During the summers my friends and I would go to the park and sit on these heavy braided striped throws. They were great for a pick-nick!

The brightly colored embroidered tops and dresses are especially endearing to me. I think they look great today worn with your favorite jean skirt or shorts. The tops are loose and comfortable in the crazy summer heat. The bright colors of flowers and chickens embroidered on them are perfect for summer and make any outfit a little more festive.

The great thing is that they’re not too hard to find either. Many of the designs have been made over and over year after year. So, a vintage Mexican top looks almost the same as a new one. For better or for worse this has kept the prices down. Look for them in your local thrift stores or online. All items here were found on Etsy.com.

I have often promoted the many vintage fashion and textiles shows that take place in different cities here in the U.S. But they happen across the pond too!

Shopping for vintage items at such trade shows and fairs has numerous advantages. First, it offers one stop shopping. Most shows hold over 50 dealers all under the same roof. Second, you are meeting people that normally are not available to you in that location. This is because many of the dealers that show at these events come from areas outside of that location And many only work the shows, so you would never have the opportunity to see their products if you didn’t come to the event. Shopping trade shows is a wonderful opportunity to find great deals on many one-off products. Finally, shopping these trade shows is what the pros do. Often times more than half the attendees are people working in the creative industry including fashion designers, stylists, costumers, historians. They know they are not going to be able to find anything like it anywhere else. You should take your cues from them and shop like a pro, too!

The London Vintage Fashion Textiles & Accessories Fair was established in 1999 and claims to be the 1st and the best vintage fair in London. The fair takes place approximately every four to five weeks. The next one is this weekend on July 5th at the Hammersmith Town Hall, King Street, London W6. Click here for more information.

Today is a sad day as we remember this pop culture icon. Michael Jackson was the King of Pop, and he influenced so many people. He will be remembered for his unbelievable talent, musical gifts, dance ability, and iconic style.

He started so many trends not only in dance, and music, but also fashions. Michael was never caught up by the trends and popular fads of the moment. His fashion sense was composed of classic styles, with addition of his own touches like his trademark armbands and other military inspired accessories.

Below are what I feel are the most memorable trends that he started and will always me synonymous with.

1) He made stark white socks and black loafers cool.
2) He wore his pants short…on purpose. (Could Tom Brown be influenced by MJ?)
3) The single glitter glove that we all had to have.
4) Parachute pants.
5) Red leather jacket with lots of zippers.
6) The only man that could trick out a band uniform to look militant and “bad.”

Katherine Jane Bryant (better known as Janie) is the genius costume designer behind the hit TV show Mad Men That has brought back everything from pencil skirts to twin sets.

Costume design was sort of an accidental career for Janie who studied fashion design at the American College of the Applied Arts. After graduating  she moved to Paris, then to New York, where she worked closely with fashion designer John Scher. By chance she met a costume designer at a party.

Bryant caught her big break when she started designing for the David Milch television series Big Apple, and then his HBO series Deadwood a couple of years later. She won an Emmy Award for her work on Deadwood in 2005. This year she won the Costumers Guide Award for her work on the ABC series Mad Men.

For Mad Men Janie actually designs and builds most of the costumes from scratch for the principal cast and some of the regulars. She also shops for vintage items, too. “ We have great resources for the costume shops in Los Angeles. I love Palace Costume and I love Western Costume. It's amazing how much more space you have in L.A. to keep a closet full of vintage clothes than you do in New York!”

This talented designer is now in the beginning stages of developing her very own clothing line, which we can only hope will evoke the flare of eras past in the same way her screen work has done. No details yet, but we will keep you posted!

Calling all divas, fashionistas, shopaholics, and socialites alike! Next week is the most fashionable charity event of the year and you don’t want to miss it. The New York City Opera is hitting a high note with their annual Divas Shop for Opera event.

The event kicks off June 24^th at 5pm with a VIP shopping preview. General admission is from 6-10pm. While shopping, guests will enjoy cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, music, and will leave with a fantastic gift bag.  Tickets for this fabulous charity event start at just $75.

Co-chairs Patricia Field, Faith Hope Consolo, Rebecca Taylor, Elsa Klensch, and Lorry Newhouse found exquisite pieces donated exclusively for this event. This year peruse merchandise from Alice + Olivia, Carmen Marc Valvo, Dolce & Gabbana, Tamsen Z by Ann Ziff, MacKenzie-Childs, Oscar de la Renta, Nanette Lepore, Prada Rubin Singer, Chado Ralph Rucci, Tuleh, DKNY, Luca Luca, and many more. You won’t find this kind of selection anywhere else!

All proceeds from the evening fund the design and creation of costumes for productions at New York City Opera.

Can’t make it to Thursday night’s event? You can still take part! For the first time City Opera Thrift Shop will open a POP UP Shop the next day following the event OPEN to the public from June 25^th-28^th. It will be located at 717 Madison Avenue between 63rd and 64th Streets. So stop on by and shop for a great local cause.

For more information regarding the event, to purchase tickets, or make a donation, please call New York City Opera Special Events at 212.870.5622 or go to www.DivasShopforOpera.org.

This past week Barneys in NYC unveiled a new capsule collection by YSL’s designer Stefano Pilati called “New Vintage.” The small collection of approximately 50 pieces of one or two-of-a-kind pieces were intended to showcase Pilati’s concept of the grand house using green and sustainable materials in a different way. The collection was brought together with the use of YSL’s archive of fabrics. While the fabrics embrace the eco-friendly mentality, the price point persists at the couture level with items priced from $495 to $4,100.

Pilati explained, "'New Vintage' is my way to reflect our social and economic state by capitalizing on existing resources to translate sustainable 'values' into 'forms.'" And in a speech during the showing, Barneys fashion director Julie Gilhart called the collection, "limited, exclusive and beautiful." Creative director Simon Doonan hosted the event shown above with Pilati.

I love the idea of a couture house recognizing the importance of working with sustainable materials, and I love the idea of these capsule one-off collections that will certainly be collectible items. However, I have a major problem with the use of the label “New Vintage.” The term “vintage” is being grossly misused. There is actually NOTHING vintage about this collection. Even though they used left over materials from the archives, in an article from WWD last week pointed out that the fabrics in use only dated back to Tom Ford’s era, which is hardly vintage. Tom Ford worked for the house from 1999-2004. A garment or fabric must be AT LEAST 20 years old to be considered vintage. All I can say is buyer beware!

Nothing is more fun than getting your best girlfriends together for a small intimate cocktail party. And nothing is chicer than serving up some fresh new cocktails on a unique coaster set. We found these great coasters made from vintage scarves from Etsy shop owner Sidney Ann. They are $30 for a set of four. Visit her Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=40356

One fresh new drink to try this summer is a raspberry mojito. You’ll need:

A handful of fresh mint leaves
3-5 fresh raspberries
Juice of 1 lime
2 tsp sugar
ice
1 1/2 oz spiced rum
splash of ginger ale

In a highball glass, muddle the mint, raspberries, lime juice and sugar. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice; add the rum and shake for 15 seconds. Pour into the glass and top with the ginger ale. Garnish with mint leaves and a straw.

At your next cocktail party we want you to serve them up in style!

I just love the look of the old vintage lampshades. You know the ones that are big and round with either solid or print on them? They are kind of the shape of old hat boxes. There is a simplicity that is very unique. Anyway, I’ve spotted some retro reproductions at places like Target. Then I found this fabulous Etsy shop, Drawflowers, from Italy that takes original vintage vinyl wallpapers from the 70’s and turns them into these amazing lampshades! They are so colorful and quirky. They are sure to become the centerpiece of any room. They can be used as floor lamps or suspended.

Ever wonder what you can do with those old pumps that you just don’t wear anymore? Why not turn them into a walking piece of art by getting them hand painted with a fun, colorful and artistic design?

We found Etsy artist, Mathieu Missiaen, who came up with this ingenious idea to offer within her Etsy shop, NDEUR, a place where people can choose their design. Then, either send in their own vintage shoes to be hand painted, or tell him your size and he will find the perfect pair of vintage shoes for you! Talk about customer service! Did we mention there is a 20% off sale going on? Ya! Run!

He also pains on canvas too. So, break out those old sneakers and be prepared to funk them up! To see more of Mathieu’s artwork you can visit her Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5361137, or visit her Myspace page at http://www.myspace.com/ndeurr.

This is the perfect summer outfit! Who can resist this orange slice of heaven? I am pinching myself.

It isn’t hard to turn your favorite vintage pieces into the IT pieces in your closet for the summer. My rule of thumb is: take any bright colored tank top and mix it with a fun vintage skirt. I personally am a sucker for wild prints. I picked this one because the tiny liberty florals give a lot of punch to this outfit. You could wear pretty much any color top with this skirt and look awesome.

Next, find a simple shoe, vintage or just vintage inspired. I love wedges and gladiator sandals myself. Both are in right now.

And finally, accessorize! I was lucky enough to find this awesome vintage Prada clutch that just so happened to match my tank oh so perfectly. When you are shopping flea markets or running to meet a friend at an outdoor café this summer try to travel light. Clutches are not just for evening. They carry exactly what you need, money, metro card, keys, and lipstick. Boom! You’re done.

Don’t forget to protect those precious little eyes of yours! Colorful shades are in. So look for a retro pair that livens up your mood.