Aside from finding one-off pieces at amazing prices, I adore how charity shopping breaks down barriers, bringing together women from a multitude of ethnicities and backgrounds through a mutual love of clothes. Every week I rummage through the rails alongside women dressed in hijabs & salwar kameez, waxed cotton kaftans and headwraps to Shein and Marks & Spencer and we excitedly show each other what we've found and discuss what we're going to wear it with.
My Romanian friend (who always calls me "Miss" despite being a good twenty years younger than I am) was curious as to how I'd wear this 1970s black velvet dress as she thought it was a bit plain for me.
I wore it this morning especially for her, albeit under a coat, it was freezing when we left the house at 7am this morning. Here it is in action....she loved it!
I found this beauty in the Compton Hospice shop this morning to an echo of that's so you from my bargain- loving mates. Isn't the cutwork detail gorgeous? None of us recognised the label, Seraphina, London but after Google Lens-ing it when I got home discovered that it's a luxury online boutique and this blouse currently retails at £235 (I paid £2.99), I can't wait to tell the other ladies!
I have a Cowgirl-chic inspired outfit in mind - it looks good laid out on the bed - let's see how it transpires when I wear it tomorrow!
At festivals, the question we're most asked is Where do you get all your stuff from? Aside from charity shops and online finds, a lot comes from private sellers, clearing out their own - or a loved one's - wardrobe. Its such a priviledge to be asked and you really do get a fascinating insight into other people's lives.
This is the second collection of clothing I've bought from this lady currently sorting out her late mother's home. She was obviously very stylish, her clothes were of fantastic quality and in pristine condition - and how excited I was when I spotted what some of the collection was stored in....only a Past Times carrier bag! I know there's a lot of us who still get a bit misty eyed over the demise of that wonderful shop.
Vintage 1980s high waisted white cotton trousers by Telesport
Two leather belts by Viyella and a 1950s wool fedora.
A handmade 1960s chiffon party dress.
A vintage 1960s watered silk bridemaid dress.
Russell and Bromley leather loafers (their current ones retail at £250)
A raw silk boned cocktail dress from Monsoon's Twilight collection (1980s)
Vintage 1970s Jaeger all-wool kilt
1980s-does-Victoriana Monsoon cocktail dress in poison green taffeta.
1980s Mondi, West Germany strapless maxi with a boned bodice (and pockets!) in 100% cotton.
1980s Phool gold harem pants (with the boutique labels still attached).
1970s Pinco Pallino wool tank top.
1960s nylon full slip by Rosy of Paris.
1980s Frank Usher velvet cocktail top.
1980s Mondi, West Germany linen and cotton blouse (which was worn on a cruise with the strapless maxi dress.)
Thanks for reading, see you soon!
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Fabulous!
ReplyDeleteI can't resist vintage velvet! xxx
DeleteGosh you look lovely the black velvet dress. I had a lot of Mondi items when I was in my 30s and I always thought they were good quality. I used to love Past Times. They always had wonderful sales and I bought lots of real silver jewellery. I still wear pairs of silver and amethyst, silver and onyx and silver and turquoise earrings that are fab and cost me just a couple of pounds and a great silver filigree bracelet that was £3. Those were the days. Regards Sue H
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sue! That cotton velvet is lovely and cosy to wear, just the thing for now, it's gone so cold!
DeleteMondi was such a classy label, their clothes were always a bit different and very colourful.
Your Past Times jewellery sounds gorgeous, I had a look on Vinted this morning and there's a lot on there for really good prices, I'm tempted by a lapis lazuli brooch! xxx
That black velvet dress is stunning in itself, but I absolutely love how you "Vixified" it :-) and yes, that Seraphina blouse couldn't have been more you! I can't wait to see it in action!
ReplyDeleteThat Past Times bag is everything, how I do miss that shop, which was a highlight of our UK holidays. As for that lady's late mother, she definitely had a wonderfully diverse taste in fashion! xxx
Thanks, Ann! I wsa tempted to shorten that dress but I'm glad I left it the length it was. that blouse is gorgeous, the buttons are all embroidered, I can understand why it cost so much but am baffled as to why anyone would part with it!
DeletePast Times was my go-to place when I was waiting for the bus home from Birmingham! xxx
I had a sequin covered waistcoat by Frank Usher which I'd bought from a car boot years ago. Hadn't worn it in ages so decided to see if I could give it away on a local free site. I didn't expect any takers to be honest, but a young woman who was at school with my son took it to wear at festivals. She messaged me once she'd collected it to say how excited she was. Arilx
ReplyDeleteThe older Frank Usher stuff is lovely, I've got a couple of their 1960s dresses. The 1980s blingy stuff is very popular at festivals, I bet that girl was thrilled! xxx
DeleteGosh, that velvet dress is fabulous! Love how you styled it.
ReplyDeletePast Times was a gorgeous shop. I have a heavy wool cardi/jacket in a medieval print which I bought from Kinky!
I remember that cardi very well, it was a beauty! xxx
DeleteI love that beautiful black velvet dress on you! So pretty!!! You look stunning in it with that exquisite waistcoat. The Sephora blouse was a find! I find some of your finds perplexing. Why would you spend so much and then get rid of it??? Your gain though! I wish I could find someone local to buy some of my vintage and retro clothes that no longer fit me. You're doing a good service to ensure the clothes find a good new home!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kezzie! I was excited to spot that dress last week, you can't beat proper cotton velvet. I also wonder why on earth someone would pay £££s for something only to donate it to a charity shop weeks later....you'd think that anyone spending that much money on a garment would have to absolutely love it! xxx
DeleteYou styled that black velvet dress so well. No wonder your Romanian friend was impressed.
ReplyDeleteYou look amazing!
Thank you so much! xxx
DeleteWell you were ahead the game here girlie vintage is SO having a moment. I interview so many people in NY and Paris fashion week and everyone was wearing vintage. And many made their own clothes.
ReplyDeleteI just love seeing all the wonderful pieces that you find. You find the best pieces from the 60s and 70s just love it!
Allie of
www.allienyc.com
Allie, I love that the cool kids in NYC are embracing vintage and girly stuff, it's about time! I'm so bored of all that "Normcore" nonsense! xxx
DeleteI'm SO bored of seeing beige, flesh-coloured,grey and neutral lounge-wear!!!
DeleteYou certainly have some very good pieces here - I like the Frank Usher velvet top with the Phool gold harem pants - they deserve some outings. Your black velvet dress looks quality. I would style it with lace tights and a pink feather boa!- I remember the first dress I ever bought myself as a teenager was a velvet Biba dress with embroidery on the bodice - from a jumble sale I paid less than a pound for it as remember rummaging for coins - remember jumble sales? I wish they would make things like that again. Betty x
ReplyDeleteShe had some fabulous clothes, i just goes to show that if you buy quality it never goes out of style. Those Phool trousers would look wonderful under a block printed midi dress and the Frank Usher top is lovely. Funnily enough I did think about wearing that velvet dress with magenta tights. I did have a quite a decent collectio of old feather boas but sold tem all at festivals!
DeleteI loved jumble sales. Remember when Jon & I used to help run one in the days before Covid? We used to come back with some much cool stuff! xxx
Wow, that lady certainly had good taste! I love that she’s obviously looked after everything too. I thought that black dress was a bit plain for you too, but then you Vixified it and all was right with the world again. Sometimes it’s just about seeing the potential xxx
ReplyDeleteIf that dress hadn't been velvet I'd probably have left it behind. I was tempted to shorten it but with waistcoats and snazzy tights, I think it'll be a useful base layer! xxx
DeleteSuch a beautiful black dress! You are always inspiring to see what you hunt for. You are a professional at this! Some amazing finds. 💗🎀💗🎀💗🎀It is getting colder here in the heartlands, but to the north of us is snow. 💛💛💛💛💛💛Thank you for your comment. I do cherish them! 💛💛💛💛💛💛Stay golden!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ellie! The temperatures have dropped here as well, I'm hoping we don't get snow, I'm not a fan! xxx
DeleteOh I used to love the Past Times shop and the catalogue that used to come out at this time of year. You did so well with that black dress, it was definitely YOU once it had been added to. I would love to see you do a completely different styling of it. :-)
ReplyDeleteOh yes, I'd forgotten all about the catalogue. I searched Past times o Vinted this morning, there's some beautiful things listed.
DeleteHmmmm...a wonder how else I could style that black dress...now there's a challenge! xxx
You brought the black dress to life. Seraphina's blouse looks expensive; it doesn't surprise me that it costs so much new. The raw silk dress from Monsoon has a beautiful color; it must look wonderful on. A great post about how clothing creates connection.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Andrea! That blouse is exceptional quality, I can understand why it was so expensive, I wonder why the previous owner donated it?
DeleteThat strapless Monsoon dress is so beautiful! xxx
So many beautiful finds.. some of those dresses are wow!
ReplyDeleteThey are beautiful, aren't they? She had fantastic taste! x
DeleteWell I was all inspired by your 'age is irrelevant to your hemline's post so I went to my local chazza in search of a nice dress to wear to my tapestry group's Xmas lunch tomorrow, after spending the morning polishing the family silver (not mine!). Anyway I found what I wanted, navy blue shapeless corduroy velvet high necked dress with two front pockets and cut to just below the knee (or maybe by the time my huge cahoonas inhabit the inside, to just above the knee)! Anyway, when I went to pay for it, the assistant looked me up and down then down and up again then uttered somewhat loudly 'it's a bit short'! To which I replied 'I don't care how short it is, I'm wearing it'! and wear it I will (with my knee length boots and perhaps even turquoise tights shock horror!). Thanks for the inspo!xx
ReplyDeleteI love how those comments encouraged you to hunt down a short dress for your do, Annie! It sounds fabulous, too. How cheeky of that assistant!!! From the snippet you snowed me, it looks absolutely fantastic and it was great to see those boots still being loved! xxx
DeleteI love that you've made friends with the regulars in your thrift shops, Vix. I never see the same people twice. That velvet dress is stunning on you, and the blouse with the cut-outs is gorgeous. What a beautiful collection you acquired (I pored over the Past Times catalogues! no stores here, but I ordered from the catalogue at least twice). I still see Mondi clothes sometimes here!
ReplyDeleteHello Sheila, there's areal sense of community in our chazzas, I suppose it because we all visit at the same time and on the same day every week. I love how we all encourage each other and how we look forward to seeing everyone wearing their finds.
DeleteMondi was a very posh label back in the day, their stuff was always vety colourful and well-made. There wss obviously a lot of money in West Germany. xxx
Bix you definitely know how to combine colors and textures!!
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful the black dress looks with the boots, the vest and the jewelry!!
The tik tok is very nice!!
I really liked the handmade chiffon dress.
Be well and have fun!!
Thank you, Katerina! xxx
DeleteHello Vix,
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't just your friend who liked the way you wore that black dress, I loved it too!
And that blouse was a real find and a bargain!
The clothes you got from that lady are wonderful!
Have a great week!
Thanks so much, Marisa! xxx
DeleteHi Vix, what an inspiring blog. That black cotton velvet dress is a beauty and as others have rightly noted you have styled it to perfection in your own unique way with other gorgeous pieces. I too love cotton velvet and how it captures colour so beautifully and is so tactile. That chiffon 1960s party dress is just gorgeous and the Twilight Monsoon raw silk strapless dress too. I have a Twilight raw silk jacket and skirt in forest green that I have yet to wear that I bought a few years ago from a local charity shop. I’ll have to get it out and wear it! It would be hard to find such quality pieces on the high street today. That’s the joy of buying vintage.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Alysia! I was thrilled to find that black cotton velvet dress, it feels so luxurious to wear.
DeleteThe Monsson Twilight collection was such beautiful quality and mostly made in England, too. I bet that jacket of yours is stunning and definitely needs to be worn. xxx
Oh my, the 1980s-does-Victoriana Monsoon cocktail dress is giving Jane in a blue silk dress vibes https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dante_Gabriel_Rossetti_-_Jane_Morris_(The_Blue_Silk_Dress).jpg
ReplyDeleteHURRAH to everyone who gives their glorious vintage to chazzers - I'm partial to a bit of vintage Jaeger. As to the passive agressive body shaming business - that is purely projected feckwittage (ie - that's a bit short = I could never dare wear it because the opinion of others matters more than my own). Ahem.
The plain black velvet only needed your horned headpiece!
Elaine Anon
Hello love! Always great to hear from you. That Monsoon dress is glorious, isn't it? Nort ure if you've seen the new Frankenstein film by Guillermo del Toro but the costume designer was obviously hugely inspired by Pre-Raphaelites, it was an abslute joy to watch! xxx
DeleteOh my - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4FbzHDDNxQ (faint-making costume feature) - thanks for the recommendation xx
DeleteAnd for the truly geeky https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMYuNMPKEc4
DeleteAh Past Times, I'm definitely in the misty eyed camp, I still miss it. I walked past the unit it used to be in in Oxford a little while ago and they were renovating, peering in you could see they had uncovered some of the walpaper that was there when it was Past Times it brought a tear to my eye.
ReplyDeleteIt was such a fantastic shop - if you search Vinted for Past Times, there's some amazing bargains! xxx
Deletewow, that's so inspiring, love how you accessorized that velvet dress, so brilliant and so Totally You!. And I've loved the music too!
ReplyDeleteSo amazing finds, that lady was really stylish!, so delightful pieces!
besos