Since I became more active in posting about my Vintage wardrobe swap, I've received quite a few questions about the process; people ask what I did, how I did it, and what I think the essentials are- and they are all really great questions. To be honest, I wish I'd someone to answer many of the same ones for me when I was working out how to go about it- and so I thought I'd consolidate them all into one post, staring from the beginning.
Please be aware, however, that like with everything else on my blog this is my own experience and opinion. Some tips might not be applicable to your own style (once you find it), or budget, and that's more than fine. Hopefully, though, this will help to give you a rough idea of what you need or want to do to get your wardrobe fully changed over to your dream Vintage one!
⚶ Pick an Era ⚶
Most Vintage and Retro Enthusiasts have a favorite decade (or two ... Or maybe twelve). We just do; I have friends who prefer the 1960's Mod style, friends who prefer Modern interpretations of 1950's styles, and even one that prefers the 1920's. Now, if you have more than one, that's fine- and it's certainly not a requirement that you pick only one and never deviate from it ... However, what we like in theory doesn't always end up being what looks good in practice. And so the first step that I'd recommend to a complete newcomer is to pick one single Era or decade block that you wish to purchase clothes in the style of first.
The fact is, when you're first starting out and have no idea what you want (you only know what's visually interesting to you), picking a single era can really help the process along by narrowing things down so that it' not overwhelming; identifying individual trends and picking the ones you visually enjoy the most is much easier when you're only focusing on a single decade block or set of trends. This in turn allows you an opportunity to explore those trends without feeling overwhelmed or bogged down by the amount of already overwhelming information that's out there.
It also limits the money you spend on items that you may or may not end up wearing in the end, because you didn't like them for whatever reason. Additionally, if you don't end up liking the style, then you also don't have a complete wardrobe that you need to overhaul when you do finally find an era that you really enjoy.
⚶ Research, Research, Research ⚶
If you really want an authentic appearance- whether you buy solely authentic Vintage items, decide to go the way of Reproduction, or do a mismash of the two like I do- research should absolutely be a priority when you are first starting out.
Some great places to look are Vintage clothing catalogs, sewing patterns, advertisements, and even vintage photographs and movies from the era of your interest. Not all of these will offer a great representation of what the average person looked like (except maybe photographs), but they're all wonderful sources through which to research authentic trends.
The great part is? They're more easily available than you'd think! Some Vintage bloggers regularly post photos from their own collections of these items, and online historical databases and library catalogs exist as well- such as the Library of Congress' Prints and Photographs Catalog, and the Hesburgh Libraries' database of resources and tips for finding historical images online. Google, though, can be a bit washy in terms of image searches, but if you know what to look for and where to look, there is a wealth of free information out there from which to draw your research.
⚶ Identify your era's trends and pick a few ⚶
Trends themselves are multifaceted and amazingly complicated- but simple- things. They generally tend to appear throughout an entire decade block giving the decade a unique and easily distinguishable style from its counterparts,. What most people don't often realize, however, is that multiple trends always appear within a single era; you have Culture, Counterculture, and so many other things working in tandem and influencing one another in various ways.
Take, for instance, the 1950's. While most know the 1950's today because of our modern interpretation of "Pinup"? That's not at all what the 50's looked like. In reality, in the 1950's alone, there were several individual trend groups and trends changed drastically throughout the decade depending on what aspect of the Culture or Countercultures you were following or immersed in; you did have the 1950's Bombshell, but you also had Hollywood Glamour, the true average 1950's Housewife, and the lesser known Greaser and Beatnik culture, and so many more.
Like with deciding on a single era, whittling your era's trends down to one or two that interest you helps immensely in exploring without being overwhelmed. Furthermore, it helps on the issue of budgeting for your new style.
⚶ Know your Era's history and trend foundations ⚶
Knowing the history of the era can greatly help you in so many ways that it is almost absurd. This is because trends are impacted by a large range of factors- especially a country's socioeconomic and political climates. Knowing what affected the trends help you to better trace them and make modern adjustments for the style when purchasing items.
So say you decide that you want to look specifically at items from the 1940's- or the "WWII Era". WWII began in 1939, but where the WWII era trends really have their foundation in is trifold: (1) Patriotism that was heavily encouraged via government propaganda, (2) The movement of Women into industry professions, and (3) Wartime Rationing.
Fashion is not an island, and each of these things impacted trends very differently throughout the course of the 1940's. However, what impacted them the most was the limited civilian availability of various items; rationing was instituted in most Allied countries during WWII and affected everything from food, to clothes, to gas, soap, and more. This led to a much simpler fashion style during that era because the materials simply weren't available or were available in very limited quantities to the public.
⚶ Learn how to follow trend timelines ⚶
However, since trends tend to take time to form as well as time to die out even after a new trend has started, there may be significant overlap between the decades. Given the 5 year average rate at which prior trends can be seen to carry over into the next decade, you can generally tend to find items up to that point. If you are really lucky, you can sometimes find clothing in that specific trend even up to 5 years prior to the start of the decade in question and the time that trend became mainstream.
In terms of the 1940's, what the rationed items were and when the rationing was lifted in what country greatly impacts the availability and dating of the styles. For instance, in the US, rationing began in 1942 and was lifted officially in the US in 1946. In the UK, it began in 1940 and wasn't lifted until 1954; because the rationing began and ended at different periods in different countries, it's safe to say that if you're looking for the typical 1940's or WWII era clothing styles, you can search from approximately 1939 at earliest, all the way into the mid 1950's, as long as you pick your resources correctly.
Using an example from another era, take a look at the 1920's; 1920's fashion really started to emerge as early as the 1910's- most notably 1916. In these years you can still see quite a trend holdover from the Victorian Era (which ended in 1901 to 1902), but for the most part the silhouettes and cuts which were popularized in the 1920's can be seen emerging very easily as early as 1910. And so these, too, can be used as style inspirations if one's intelligent about it.
Knowing this fact and being able to follow trend timelines greatly opens up the number of clothing options and style which are available to you when you finally decide on a decade. As a result, you don't have to feel quite so boxed into a decade and have a bit more freedom of style.
Once you've gotten your research phase complete and you know roughly what you're looking for, it's much easier to tackle your closet in Part Two.