Thrifting, Vintage and Style-My Favourite Thrift Finds

Following on from my previous posts on Thrifting, Vintage and Style, I thought it appropriate to show my favourite items I've thrifted over the last couple of years and proof it can be done if you're prepared to rummage for those bargains!

Outfits first, followed by accessories:-)

Marc Jacobs silk tea dress, Help the Aged, £5

See by Chloe halter dress, Haven House £2.75

70s vintage M&S vest, Help the Aged, around £2 and 7 For All Mankind Jeans, PDSA, £5

Thierry Mugler body con 80s vintage top, Boot sale, 50p and DKNY black dress trousers, Boot sale £1

H&M bandeau dress, Sue Ryder, around £6

Anya Hindmarch vintage silk clutch, Sue Ryder, £3

Topshop brown leather fringed bag, Boot Sale, £1

Cacharel scarf, Cancer Research, £3.25

Gucci vintage shoulder bag, Boot Sale, £6

Missoni scarf, All Aboard, £2

Thrifting, Vintage and Style-Labels to look out for!!

Labels or Love? Well you'll have both, if you thrift hard enough for any of these!!

Haute Couture labels, past and present, include:

Balmain, Balenciaga, Chanel, Christian Lacroix, Christian Dior, Givenchy, Jean Paul Gaultier, Louis Feraud, Nina Ricci, Thierry Mugler, Valentino, Worth and Yves Saint Laurent.

Worldwide Labels include:

Alaia, Alexander McQueen, Bill Blass, Chloe, Claude Montana, Diane Von Furstenberg, Dolce & Gabbana, Emilio Pucci, Escada, Fendi, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, Helmut Lang, Hermes, Herve Leger, Isaac Mizrahi, Issey Miyake, Jil Sander, John Galliano, Karl Lagerfeld, Lanvin, Loewe, Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs, Marni, Missoni, Michael Kors, Miu Miu, Moschino, Oscar de la Renta, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Roberto Cavalli, Roland Mouret, Salvatore Ferragamo, Sonia Rykiel, Stella McCartney, Versace, Viktor & Rolf

UK Labels include:

Aquascutum, Betty Jackson, Bruce Oldfield, Burberry, Christopher Kane, Jaeger, Jasper Conran, Jean Muir, John Rocha, Joseph, Julien MacDonald, Katherine Hamnett, Luella, Margaret Howell, Matthew Williamson, Mulberry, Nicole Farhi, Temperley, Vivienne Westwood, Zandra Rhodes

Older Labels include:

Annacat, Biba, Bill Gibb, Body Map, Bus Stop, Gerald McCann, Gina Fratini, Hardy Amies, Janice Wainwright, Jean Varon aka John Bates, Laura Ashley, Marion Donaldson, Mary Quant, Norman Hartnell, Ossie Clark, Pam Hogg, Quad, Quorum, Radley, Patrick Kelly, Stephen Sprouse

USA Labels include:

Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, Ralph Lauren, Norma Kamali, Todd Oldham, Tommy Hilfiger, Vera Wang, Zac Posen, Zang Toi

Other International Labels of note include:

Alice McCall, Ann Demeulemeester, Cerruti, Christian Francis Roth, Dries Van Noten, Georges Rech, Leonard, Paganne, Martin Margiela, Cacharel, Hugo Boss, Marc Cain, Strenesse, Alessandro Dell'Acqua, Giambattista Valli

Feel free to print this off and take out with you when you thrift and hurrah for any of you who have successfully thrifted any of these labels-definitely worth keeping hold of these beauties!!

Thrifting, Vintage and Style-Hints and Tips

Oh, where to start!! Well, I wanted to share my love of thrifting and vintage with you all, not just by "This is what I thrifted today" but more along the lines of tips, hints and generally anything to do with vintage fashion!!

Firstly, if you like to thrift, I would suggest the best places to go are going to be jumble sales, church or school fetes, charity shops, boot sales, markets, online shopping and ebay. I do appreciate that a lot of people do not have access to charity shops or boot sales on a regular basis-but don't forget to check out new places if you go on vacations, business trips or days out to different towns or cities. Don't forget more closer to home-check out mums or grans wardrobes too-you may be pleasantly surprised!! Also check out my list of favourite websites-I have links to a few good vintage websites!!

Secondly, what to expect? Well, the best tips I can give are:

"Expect the unexpected"
I've often gone thrifting for specific items or a lot of the time a general browse and came home with something that wasn't even on my radar.

"What is a good buy?"
A good buy whilst thrifting is only worth buying if it fits you (or you can get a garment altered), it is a wardrobe basic, it is an original, good condition vintage piece, a one of a kind and most importantly, is within your budget. Ultimately, you do have to love the item too!! I'd rather come home empty handed than with something just for the sake of it! If you can, always try an item on, unless you are totally convinced you don't need to, for whatever reason!!

"If in doubt whilst thrifting-BUY IT"
My most treasured piece of advice I can pass on is this. A vintage piece is unique and one of a kind, so it won't be there tomorrow, like at H&M or Zara. Generally, if you are buying from a charity shop, the price will be low anyway and if you don't like it after all, you are doing a double whammy of buying from the charity shop in the first place and then donating it back again!!

"Quality, not quantity"
I know we all love a full wardrobe, but if an item is totally bang on trend and of low quality, chances are you won't be wearing it again in six to nine months time, let alone a decades time! Thrifting is also an excellent way of bagging a designer name at rock bottom prices-quality is generally assured too. This is the timeless appeal of thrifting for vintage, as it never goes out of fashion and the quality of a garment is generally so much better than high street buys nowadays. If you do go for trends, try to purchase an item that adopts a timeless, chic attitude about it- scarves, blazers, floral dresses, belts, handbags and costume jewellery are great buys which never seem to be out of fashion or style. Will you be in lace or tartan in 9 to 12 months time? Maybe you will or you won't, but try and source an item that will stand the test of time and quality and can be seen again when its next back in trend.

"Check out Ebay"
Ebay is the one stop shop for specific items- 'a black lace vintage dress', 'wide legged jeans', 'navy velvet blazer'-you get my drift!! plus, if you are a label fanatic, then 'Yves Saint Laurent', 'Ossie Clark', 'Chanel' or 'Pucci' are only fingertips away!!! Plus, I've noticed with my own buys that the summer months tend to be the best time to win or buy items at very reasonable prices-maybe because a lot of people are away on vacation and also people tend to sell their things in summer for holiday spends!!

"Have fun by creating your own style(s)"
The great thing about thrifting is you can recreate many different styles-I personally don't have one look, I like to dress in floral vintage one day, modern jeans and top the next, 80s combo the day after!! I think this only leads to building your self confidence as you are not dressing in 'whats in fashion today'-you are showing your individuality, creativeness and developing your own sense of style-for example, Agyness Deyn may not be your cup of tea, but she doesn't follow trends and totally works her own unique, crazy way of dressing!!!

"Be your own Person"
I could ultimately go on to say, look out for lace, tartan, pencil skirts, polka dot dresses, etc-yes, they are all timeless trends that come in and out of fashion, but half the fun is experimenting for yourself and seeing what you come up with! The fun of vintage and thrifting is you never know whats round the corner-try it and see!!

Dress for the day- plus, making do

Although not sunny, it is very humid today, so I thought I'd wear my vintage sundress with my new red Primark belt-I didn't even need a cardi or jacket!

While Christopher was in the dentist with his dad and brother, I went thrifting and still didn't turn up any tartan/plaid for Autumn... I'm not too fussed, as until I find something really worth buying (if anything), I shall think of wearing my Vintage Yves Saint Laurent silk plaid top in Autumn under a cardi or leather jacket, with jeans or trousers.

Updated denim jeans for Autumn

Whether you're looking to recreate a 70s wide legged look, an 80s acid wash look, carry on with your skinnys or dig out the bootcuts, here are a selection of jeans to whet your appetite-all images courtesy of Elle magazine :-)

Topshop, Sedition skinny jeans, £45



J Brand, Marrakesh wide legged jeans, £170

Acne, Tube Jeans, £150

18th Amendment, Colbert wide legged jeans, £175

Lou Doillon for Lee Cooper jeans, £108

Uniqlo skinny jeans, £24.99