Vintageween: When the Halloween racks roll out onto Goodwill’s floor disguising unique vintage pieces.
With some time to myself I head to, (you guessed it,) Goodwill. This particular September day was a reminder of the warm summer days that will soon be behind us. “It’ll be a short trip,” I tell myself. As I enter the sliding doors, I grab my cart and expect autopilot to kick in. Instead, my eyes catch the black and orange signs in front of the store. My heart skips a beat and I instinctively walk a little faster. While most are searching for the perfect Halloween costume, I am determined to find all the vintage. Through my experience of thrifting and my love for vintage clothing, I have learned, when the Halloween racks roll out on the floor, you will hit the jackpot of pieces from the past. Between the princess dress, Dracula and the cow costume I find vintage. The next piece is hidden between Where’s Waldo and Woody from A Toy Story. I continue to slide each hanger. Witch, pumpkin, cheerleader, vintage! Cowboy, army guy, lady bug, football player, vintage!
Slide show below is of all pieces that I found in one trip at my local Goodwill during Vintageween.
Now that you know where (@Goodwill) and when (September) to find the most vintage at one time, let’s talk about some ways to spot them. Here’s what I’ve learned from my adventures over the years. The first thing you’ll want to do is to look at the tag. Then, take a peek inside the piece. Make sure to check out the hardware and the details. If any of the items listed below are true to your piece, there’s a good chance you’ve found vintage.
- If the logo is sewn into the tag
- If it says, “Made in the USA”
- If it says, “union made”
- If there is no tag at all
- If it looks like it was handsewn
- If the zipper is metal, (more than likely the piece is from before the 1960’s.)
- If there is detailed buttons, embroidery, rick rack
When you go looking for vintage, there are a few things you should know. The first and most important in my opinion is to know that the sizes have drastically changed throughout the years. More than likely, your vintage size is much larger than your current size. The only reason this matters is to look through all sizes and don’t rule a piece out because it isn’t your size. Try it on! Along those lines, while trying a piece on, make sure it’s comfortable enough to wear. I’ve purchased a couple pieces that were adorable but the polyester was just way too much to handle. When you find a piece, make sure to look it over really good before purchasing. Unless you have the skill to sew or you pride yourself in getting any stain out, you do not want to get a piece home and realize it’s not in the condition you thought.
The last piece of advice I’d like to leave you with is how to style vintage. Typically, I say keep it to one or two pieces of vintage at a time. If I decide on a vintage dress, I will pair it with current shoes and trending accessories. And while the Halloween rack has done you a favor while shopping for your pieces, wearing vintage head to toe may leave you looking like you are ready for trick-or-treating.
Do you have any other tips to finding or styling vintages pieces? Would you add anything to this list? I love learning about the style from the past, how it has evolved and I’d love to hear from you in the comments.
Happy Vintageween my friends!
Made New Style 