This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
For the most part, apparel from the French Connection is not in Lindy Shopper’s budget, but if we’re talking 50% off, well…we are in the realm of possibility.
This British clothing and accessories retailer has some great vintage-inspired pieces in their line right now, for both men and women. I am particularly fond of their 1940’s inspired dresses and their menswear has some nice basics, like a cotton blazer. Here’s a taste of what’s available:
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
My Baby Jo has a little bit of everything to help you embrace your inner pin-up girl, and some essential menswear clothing and accessories for the swing era gent. My Baby Jo has a retail store in Los Angeles, CA, but thankfully they also offer their excellent 1940’s and 1950’s-inspired clothing, shoes, and accessories online.
The website has a great selection of women’s dresses, swimwear, undergarments, hair flowers, jewelry, shoes, handbags, cosmetics and men’s jackets, shirts, pants, shoes, hats, pomade, ties, and vintage watches. The vintage men’s watches are especially good, with watches from the 1920’s through the 1950’s that look like they are in sturdy, wearable condition. Their swimwear selections feature the best of Esther Williams’ swimwear line. The site also offers some fun pieces that may fill gaps in your wardrobe or Halloween costume (like that Rosie the Riveter jumpsuit – where else do you find that?). They also have an extensive selection of men’s hats and hat-care items, including brushes and felt cleaner.
There’s so much goodness here, I’ll try to narrow down my favorites:
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
Someone posted on Yehoodi this week asking about where to find skirts for a dance team, either to be made or to order. This post jogged my memory and I immediately thought of Swing Outfits, a website that sells custom, made to order clothing for men and women from 1930’s and 1940’s patterns. Swing Outfits offers some wonderful options for just about any basic swing garment you could think of in an almost endless selection of fabrics.
Swing Outfits has a section of their website devoted to dance team shopping. I understand that selecting an outfit that everyone agrees on is nearly impossible; however, Swing Outfits offers some sound advice on selecting a team or couple’s costume:
“For couples that dance regularly in competition or performance it is especially important to have a costume. It is one thing to dance at a party, and a different thing to dance on a stage before an audience. It is not enough to just have nice clothes on each individual performer – you need to look like a unified couple.
What makes a good stage costume for a couple? First of all, your costume must be tailor made for you – we will need measurements from both dancers. You will also need to select a fabric and a design for your costumes. Pictured below are three sets of costumes: Silk, Polka Dots, and Plaid/Stripes. Within each set are a number of elements that you can select for your costume, and each will be made from the same material you have chosen.”
The website then walks you through three easy steps to select pieces for your performance outfit. The beauty of these pieces is that they can be mixed and matched with anything – with each other or with something you might find at Target or H&M.
Another great thing about having team costumes made for the team members is that you avoid the one-pattern-fits-all problem that you encounter when purchasing something from a retail store. Having personally experienced the pain of not fitting into the mold of a chosen team costume, I would personally rather pay more and get something that fits perfectly, that I don’t have to pay someone to alter, and that I might actually wear again dancing.
Which leads to my next point – you don’t have to be on a dance team to wear and enjoy an outfit from Swing Outfits! Make sure to browse their selection of patterns, then their selection of fabrics, and think of the endless possibilities. The Libra in me may never be able to decide…
Here’s what I love from Swing Outfits:
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
I first happened upon RetroSpect’d Clothing at All Balboa Weekend 2009, as it was one of the vendors setting up shop outside the ballroom. I heard that a contingency of Australian dancers had come with garments stuffed into each of their suitcases so that the company could sell clothing at ABW. As usual, I was waiting with anticipation as the garments were put onto the racks and quickly made my selections, then headed to the bathroom to try things on.
I left the bathroom with one of the most universally flattering dresses I own – Retrospect’d’s 1943 dress in red crepe. Several other girls, of varying sizes and shapes also tried this dress on and it was simply the most flattering dress on everyone, giving the illusion of or accentuating a tiny waist. A flirty skirt, expert fit, cute tucks and gathers, a simplicity of form, crepe material, and sleeves make this dress easy to wear for a variety of occasions year-round.
Guys always seem to be looking for pants and Retrospect’d has two pairs of reproduction pants to choose from: the New Yorkers and the Californias. The New Yorkers feature (and pardon my lack of menswear knowledge, Lindy Dandy might correct me later 😉 ) a tab front pant with pleats, cuffs, and buttons for suspenders and comes in 5 classic menswear fabrics. The Californias have a similar wide leg and cuffs, but accommodate a more relaxed, belted look.
There are lots of other fun things for sale, including vintage repro jeans, adorable 1940’s shorts, ladies’ pants, a bevy of colorful dresses, men’s shirts, full skirts, wrap tops, ladylike blouses, and the infamous ski bunny knit top.
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
By way of Lindy Dandy, today’s featured retailer is the J. Peterman Company. Although I can’t help thinking of Seinfeld when I see this name, the J. Peterman Company is anything but a parody, offering “high-quality men’s, women’s, home and one-of-a-kind merchandise,” “traveling the world to find uncommonly good stuff.” Sounds like a fantastic job, right? Where does Lindy Shopper sign up?
There are definitely a lot of items with a nod to vintage in the catalog, made to look even more so with the help of the catalog’s hand-drawn illustrations of the clothing (which, themselves, look like a nod to vintage pattern drawings in the way that they are shaded). I’m trying to decide if the hand-drawn illustrations of the clothes are helpful or not. Generally, clothes are modeled by someone who is tall and rail thin, so it’s hard to tell how it will fit in that instance as well. In any case, the clothes are beautifully sketched and it is a novel way to present them.
I am particularly in love with the 1947 plaid dress and the seersucker sailor pants for women and their men’s pants and striped shirts.
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
It is unclear to me whether or not the real Bettie Page endorses this website or does anything other than inspire the fashion, but, intellectual property issues aside, the Bettie Page Clothing website is full of vintage inspired clothing of the Bettie era. The site offers two lines of clothing – the original Bettie Page line, with 1950’s reproductions and inspired fashions, or the Violated line, which offers “edgier, more contemporary dresses.” Either way, the results are adorable and a little spunky, kind of like Miss Page herself.
Here are some of my picks from the site:
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
When the Atomic Rhythm All-Stars went on their first mini-tour this past weekend to Greenville, SC and Charlotte, NC, I knew we’d have a few hours to kill in Charlotte before the Saturday night dance, but wasn’t sure what exactly that would entail when traveling with five guys. Fortunately, our esteemed band leader, George Knott, is a vintage hunter and gatherer of things, including old musical instruments, which leads him to some interesting destinations like the Sleepy Poet Antique Mall in Charlotte, NC. He’s driving the bus, so who’s to argue?
I’ll admit, I had low expectations of finding any worthwhile clothing at Kitsch-y-Cool Vintage, as antique mall clothing tends to lean more toward undesirable leftovers from someone’s closet thrown in with their antique furniture and knick-knacks. To my surprise, in the center of this antique mall, an entire store was set up, with racks upon racks of real vintage shoes, clothing, jewelry, and accessories. The area was even decorated well! There was definitely a lot of 60’s and 70’s clothing, but there was enough 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s clothing that I would recommend stopping by if you are in the area. That said, the 60’s clothing was really good and I was tempted to leave with a pair of mod silver heels.
The prices are fantastic, between $30 and $70 for dresses in excellent condition ($70 for the “designer” 1940’s dress I saw), but the real steal were the men’s accessories – $2 for really awesome tie clips, loads of cufflinks, belt buckles, and our saxophone player, Peter Lamb, left with a really shiny pair of sunglasses and a pipe. I was in heaven because the clothing was organized by size and each item had a tag describing the item and the decade. I do love an organized vintage store!
I picked up two adorable 1940’s dresses, one of them dead stock with the original tags still on. The label says “Lindner-Davis.” A quick Google search shows that this was a department store in Cleveland – funny that I’m picking up Cleveland vintage in my home state when I was just there last week…anyway, the price tag says $12.85, marked down from $22.95. How much would this dress cost today? Lindner & Davis merged with another store in 1950, so calculating from 1949, according to an inflation calculator, this dress would be like buying a $210 dress on sale for $118, only I really paid around $30 in today’s dollars for the dress. How’s that for bargain hunting? 😉
Here are pictures of the space and some vintage finds:
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
When Mod Cloth was discovered online by one of my friends, news of the web site spread like wildfire in my circle of friends because we were starved for a place to get modern retro-inspired clothing at a reasonable price. Variety is the spice of life and Mod Cloth takes this to heart by offering clothing from many different sources, including Trashy Diva, Stop Staring!, and Tulle, thus, giving you maximum exposure to brands offering what you want to wear. The really great clothing items sell out quickly, but I find that if they include the brand or maker in the item description, that the item that is out of stock on Mod Cloth may be in stock at the source web site.
Perhaps the reason Mod Cloth is so great is in large part due to the philosophies of its founders:
“Founded by high school sweethearts, Eric Koger and Susan Gregg Koger, and built on a foundation of love for vintage and retro clothing, ModCloth.com is an online clothing, accessories, and decor retailer that aims to provide a fun and engaging shopping atmosphere for you, our customer. We do this by interacting with you via social network sites like Twitter and Facebook, requesting your feedback through the ModLife Blog and product reviews, and asking you to vote on potential inventory with the Be the Buyer program, all with the intention of running a fashion business in a democratic style. Supplying you with the opportunities to have your voice heard is what keeps our company fresh, relevant, and growing by leaps and bounds. This is what allows us to continually accommodate your pioneering passion for modern trends. We invite you to comb through our clever product descriptions, flip through our stylebooks, shop our vast assortment of indie designs, find some unique one of a kinds, and get in touch with one of our friendly customer care representatives if you have any questions. We want to be the fashion company you’re friends with!”
A fashion democracy? Hear, hear!
The web site is so full of goodness that I’ll limit my favorites to the most recent arrivals:
Lindy Shopper is doing a series of articles for Atomic Ball Room, based out of Irvine, California. Check out the Atomic Ball Room Blog for my first blog entry “Lindy Shopper 101,” which discusses how to build a good swing dance wardrobe foundation. Excited! I’d like to thank Kyle Smith for inviting me to be a guest blogger. 😀
Run, don’t walk, to Winston-Salem, NC to experience the gorgeous vintage clothing and treasures at Putting on the Ritz. The store owner Hans Hauser has a lifelong passion for vintage clothing and accessories and it shows in every square inch of the house he has converted into a vintage clothing store. Through his vintage consignment sources, friendships with vintage collectors, and his own efforts to retrieve specific pieces from faraway locations, Hans has collected one of the best, if not the best, vintage clothing and accessories collection for sale in the state.
I met Hans about 5 years ago when my friend Sharon Ferris directed me to this treasure trove. I purchased a 1940’s bathing suit that I wore to VBLX that year for the battleship dance. Even though I had not seen him in 5 years, he knew immediately who I was today and pulled out the picture I sent him of me in the bathing suit from behind the countertop. My friend Laura Boyes and I ended up exploring the shop and chatting with Hans for about 3 1/2 hours – excellent company and excellent vintage!
The shop is jam packed full of a mix of vintage, designer consignment, and glitzy clothing. The list of notables is long: straw boaters, men’s 50’s hats, Yves Saint Laurent black satin pumps, a white fur capelet, 50’s prom and day dresses (some with matching jackets), 30’s and 40’s gowns worthy of an MGM movie, flowered 40’s day dresses, a velvet trimmed 40’s suit, wide brim ladies hats, art deco costume jewelry, wedding dresses from the Victorian era through the 50’s, delicious 40’s platforms, bias cut lingerie, and a burnout velvet 20’s dress that came home with me.
If you are interested in any of the clothing items I have posted or would like to know more, please contact Hans Hauser at (336) 659-9944. He is happy to work out arrangements over the phone and he also does layaway.
Putting on the Ritz
304 Harvey Street
Winston-Salem, NC
The shop is open Tuesday through Friday, noon to 6:00 p.m. and on Saturday from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
P.S. Pardon my unmade face – I think it’s easier on the clothes if I don’t wear makeup when I try on vintage clothing.
Lindy Shopper 