Thrift Store Thirties

Most of my vintage style outfits, day-to-day, are not very complicated.

I usually don’t try to look like I stepped right out of a movie from 1952 on a daily basis. There are a couple of reasons for this:

I’ve got stuff to do, and not all of it is really suited to wearing puffy dresses.
I usually forget to wear accessories. I usually forget to change my earrings, honestly.
Weather. Public transit.
While I admire very curated vintage looks, I usually don’t go in for a complete “costumed” look, myself.

So this winter, I’m ending up wearing a lot of variations on this:

Take one sweater, and put it on top of another sweater. Add additional sweater if necessary.

Continue reading “Thrift Store Thirties” →

An Interview with Milliner and Designer Sarah Haley

All I want for Christmas is every hat Sarah Haley makes.

I had the good fortune to meet Sarah Haley, of Sarah Haley Design and Millinery at a craft fair hosted by Vaudezilla Burlesque and Productions. My booth was set up next to hers, and I spent a good part of the day exclaiming over her work.

Promising “a hint of old-time glamour for your modern life” Sarah’s work is creative, charming, and just plain gorgeous. With equal parts whimsy and elegance, her hats are expertly constructed.

Sarah graciously agreed to an interview with Retrofitting Vintage.

Retrofitting Vintage: What is it about hats that excites you?

Sarah: Hats are exciting to me because they make a statement! Wearing a hat is an elegant display of confidence and style that most people envy. From the design standpoint, hats are exciting because they’re limitless! Unlike garments where you’re plotting around the physical limitations of the body, in hat design you can build in almost any direction – gravity is the only real limitation!

Continue reading “An Interview with Milliner and Designer Sarah Haley” →

A Photo Shoot with Dead Girls Vintage!

I could be a part-time model…

But I’m probably going to have to keep my normal job.

Last week, I had the de-lightful opportunity to pose for Kira Cahill for her Etsy shop, Dead Girls Vintage.

Kira is a fashion designer and vintage enthusiast who started her Etsy shop as a side gig, but it morphed into her full-time occupation. She scours thrift shops and estate sales to find all kinds of clothing from yesteryear.

If you haven’t figured it out, I’m a big fan of playing dress up, so I had a great time with Kira. I enjoyed her styling–it’s fun to inhabit someone else’s aesthetic sometimes. Here are some of the looks we shot. If you’re Megan sized and shaped, you can buy the pieces. And you should! They’re great! Kira finds great stuff!

Continue reading “A Photo Shoot with Dead Girls Vintage!” →

Month of Vintage Underwear: Keeping Warm

Winter is coming, and I’m not going to stop wearing skirts.

Not this year. Not this time.

I really like skirts and dresses. I wear pants, and a good pair of jeans is nice, and all, but most of the time I feel the most like myself in skirts and dresses. The problem, of course, is winter. It gets cold, and all of my resolve departs, and back into pants I go.

One of the primary purposes of undergarments is keeping warm. Now with things like central heating and better insulation, and lives where many go from house to car to building without much time spent outside, it’s easy to forget that.

Modern bras and panties are not good at keeping you warm. A long-line bra with a girdle that covers your core is way more effective. Throw on some big tall socks and it’s downright cozy. Continue reading “Month of Vintage Underwear: Keeping Warm” →

Month of Vintage Underwear: Sourcing Reproduction Garments

There’s a lot to be said for a good vintage reproduction.

Reproduction garments are new and shiny, and have never been worn. Their elastic is not 50 years old. They are less delicate. You can pick your size. You can sometimes even choose the color!

And yet, I don’t buy much repro, mostly because of the cost. However, there are some brands I like.

Merchants With Which I Have Experience

Rago Shapewear

Rago is not technically a reproduction brand–they’ve just been making stuff since 1945. A lot of it is pretty much the same. My (used) Rago cincher-girdle-thing is this one. It does the mid-century job. This is shape wear that does not mess.

Leg Avenue

Your basic stockings. Ubiquitous to costume shops and sex stores. I think they’re overpriced, but it’s convenient if you need to pick up a pair of stockings in real life.

Ebay

Not just the world’s garage sale–there are sellers of reproduction lingerie! Some of my favorites have been:

Europastyle0092–Good quality steel-boned corsets at an unbeatable price.

Handmade Petticoats–I love my petticoat from this seller–a collective of sewing ladies in Wales–and their prices are very reasonable. Goodness knows I don’t want to gather all that organza!

Brands I Don’t Have, but Have Seen Up Close and Covet

What Katie Did

If I were going to spend significant money on vintage reproduction lingerie, this is where I would. They have a variety of period-appropriate silhouettes in period-appropriate colors and it’s so purty I can hardly stand it. But I refuse to spend $50 on a pair of tap pants. That’s just not going to happen.

Orchard Corset

A wide selection of corset styles, and they’re well made and sturdy. Many colors and fabrics, sometimes good deals to be found in their clearance section. I don’t wear corsets enough to need more than one, at present.

Any good sources I missed?