Comments You Get When You Dress Vintage

[Rocketblast]

I was in the queue in Sainsbury's the other week behind a glamorous old lady with red lipstick and a lovely set (oh god, that sounds dodgy, HAIR I mean! Ha ha!), and was admiring her curls as per usual... She kept turning to me and commenting "Oh, I'm so naughty!" (for forgetting her bags, for having biscuits, etc.) When I told my other half about her when I got home I think he was worried that one day I will kidnap some mischievous old lady and bring her home to steal her secrets

 

[Tatum]

I was in the queue in Sainsbury's the other week behind a glamorous old lady with red lipstick and a lovely set (oh god, that sounds dodgy, HAIR I mean! Ha ha!), and was admiring her curls as per usual... She kept turning to me and commenting "Oh, I'm so naughty!" (for forgetting her bags, for having biscuits, etc.) When I told my other half about her when I got home I think he was worried that one day I will kidnap some mischievous old lady and bring her home to steal her secrets

Oh, find one to kidnap! They are invaluable

My hubby's aunt is always so supportive of my style, she is my favorite to kidnap when I get the opportunity...

 

[Isis]

When my grandmother (born in 1913) was nearly 90, she scorned the beige overcoats most old ladies seem to wear. She wore a dark red leather coat with a black beret on immaculate white hair.

 

[Juliet]

I don't know if it qualifies as a vintage comment, but today my mother kept looking at me and says: "You're looking unusual today, I just can't put my finger on it... Oh! Your hair is not set!" Isn't she great?

 

[Rocketblast]

I'm sorry that I seem to have hi-jacked this thread with a discussion on old ladies, but there was a very glamorous old lady in the town where I used to work who had hair like the woman from the tea shop in Brief Encounter, although it was bigger and flatter like a giant plate, and exactly the same every day, with lots of make-up, she really stood out, I was fascinated by her.
http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Travel/Pix/pictures/2009/5/13/1242213946616/Brief-Encounter-film-show-001.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2009/may/12/railway-station-cafes-uk-food&usg=__g7XBpWs4sU3sepdp2OvRVToNQMg=&h=276&w=460&sz=29&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=l5dVMNLIx4jW5M:&tbnh=110&tbnw=184&ei=ka2lTbjsL8aytAbu8KGsBw&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbrief%2Bencounter%2Btea%2Bshop%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26biw%3D936%26bih%3D606%26tbm%3Disch&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=473&vpy=90&dur=1250&hovh=174&hovw=290&tx=121&ty=92&oei=ka2lTbjsL8aytAbu8KGsBw&page=1&ndsp=12&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0

 

[Amy Jeanne]

I'm not dressed any differently from how I used to dress (which was every single day!), but it seems people here have forgotten my old vintage self and I am getting compliments left and right! And a few side-eyes lol From my neighbour I got "nice!" From my cubicle neightbour I got "You look nice today!" From a random girl in the bathroom. "I LOVE your vintage style!" From Janet, "I love that wave in your hair!" From Andrea, "You look pretty today!" lol I'm a bit uncomfortable! Seriously -- I used to dress like this to work every single day until we went to "casual" wear, then I went to jeans with the occasional vintage styling. I guess it's been too long since my last vintage dress-up! lol

 

[MissLaurieMarie]

I have never been complimented so much in my life since I started dressing vintage. Sunday my waiter at Ihop told me that I was too pretty to be at Ihop (what does that say about the rest of the customers, I hope they didn't hear him!) and then a cashier told me that she loved my outfit.

So I've been passing on the love! I was walking down the mop & frozen food section when I passed a lady with bumper bangs and couldn't help but stare, so I blurted out "I love your hair!", flashed a big smile, then kept on walking.
I felt like asking "excuse me, but are you of the vintage/retro/rockabilly persuasion?"

 

[Miss Tuppence]

I got ‘oh my God, look at that….Jesus Christ’ giggle, giggle, giggle.
Ah well I can’t have nice compliments all the time, and to be honest coming from those kind of girls their comment carried very little sting!

Btw, Amy Jeanne your hair is fab!

 

[Miss sofia]

I have just spent a week in Budapest visiting family. I got laughed at by two sales ladies in a charity shop, who told my Hungarian sister in law i looked funny. I was pretty much dressed down for sightseeing in Freddies dungarees, saddle shoes and a stripy tee, but i guess compared to most of the women who seem to aspire to looking like Victoria Beckham, i probably stuck out like a sore thumb! They also found the fact i was getting very excited by old lady house dresses rather amusing too. (Seriously though, i bought four vintage floral house dresses with cute black and white flowers on and contrasting piping and big pockets for less than a pound each!!!)

A rather attractive chap in a fedora did doff his hat at me when we passed in the street, so that kind of made up for it. (The only man i saw in a fedora all the time i was there it has to be said).

 

[Drappa]

Well, don't take the negativity to heart ladies, because at the end of the day the people who are negative never look like I want to emulate their style in a million years, so think it's kinda funny that *they* laugh at *us*!

I wasn't really very vintage today, but was wearing a thrifted white wrap dress with a full, calf length skirt and just popped into town. As I was crossing the car park two women stared at me, so I walked past them quickly, but then they told me I looked really lovely and summery and was pretty. It was surprising, because I assumed they were gossiping about how awful I looked, and I was proven wrong.

 

[Lusty Haze]

I went to see Imelda May last month in London, and was sat on the Chalk Farm Road eating a sarnie. An American girl walked past as said 'omg, I love your outfit, it's so cute'. I can't say I've ever had a negative comment about how I look.

 

[Tempora et mores]

I cannot be everyone's cup of tea, but thankfully I am yet to receive a negative comment, and I seem to get much more compliments when I do not seamlessly blend into the cityscape than when I dress more conventionally. I find it especially sweet (not to mention encouraging) that positive comments come from all ages and both genders (and people with various degrees of soberness).
Mostly it is nothing special - "Where did you buy it?" or "Are you going to a themed party?" and "You look like a doll". Often I am told that I look "European" and especially "French", but I still cannot figure out why or what that really means. Sometimes the timing is a bit off - I have been told that "not many people around here dress in Victorian clothing" while wearing a 50s dress. (Well, I have my weak areas of knowledge too.) And then there was a recent "You look like Jackie O". The most memorable and unusual comment I received was "You look like you cold be anywhere between 17 and 35. You wear all those nice vintage clothes, it is impossible to tell your age."
The only thing I am really afraid of (terrified, in fact) is that I can seem pretentious - and being shy and intimidated around the people I do not know well does not help either. If so, hopefully I quickly erase that impression. Hopefully.

 

[Odile]

Its so great to read the experiences of other people who dress vintage, thank you all for sharing!
I am interning at a vintage store and yesterday a lovely woman and her mother came in looking for a wedding dress. The mother had been smiling at me without saying a word for about 10 minutes when she finally said "I just love your dress! And the necklace is perfect! Thank you so much for sharing with me this....what do you call masterpiece...chef d'oeuvre!" I was wearing a 1950s Hawaiian dress with matching bolero and a trifari parure. She really made my day, I usually just get strange stares when I take the metro in the morning, and my landlord who tells me every morning how magnifique I look and then proceeds to carry on entire conversations while looking directly at my chest. Its so nice when someone who clearly appreciates vintage style compliments you.

I also had an experience with an older woman while visiting my grandfather in Ohio, and I will never forget what she said. I was wearing a simple 50s cotton housedress and my usual red lipstick and she turned to her granddaughter and said "what a lovely dress she has on, its a shame young women don't wear dresses anymore." Her granddaughter asked me where I got it and I told her it was from the 50s. When she passed this on to her grandmother she smiled and said, "that was a great time." Its definitely a great feeling to get a compliment from someone who experienced the styles the first time around.

 

[Tuesday_Next]

I also had an experience with an older woman while visiting my grandfather in Ohio, and I will never forget what she said. I was wearing a simple 50s cotton housedress and my usual red lipstick and she turned to her granddaughter and said "what a lovely dress she has on, its a shame young women don't wear dresses anymore." Her granddaughter asked me where I got it and I told her it was from the 50s. When she passed this on to her grandmother she smiled and said, "that was a great time." Its definitely a great feeling to get a compliment from someone who experienced the styles the first time around.

I think this is my favorite response to dressing vintage, "its a shame more people don't dresss like this anymore". I just think that the care and quality of vintage fashion is so much nicer.

I do get a lot of "oh, she's that vintage girl" comments when someone is trying to identify me. I wouldn't mind that but the tone in which its said often sounds a bit derogatory like "oh, she's that girl who's gone a little funny in the head" and THAT really bothers me. I just have to wonder why dressing like the latest issue of Cosmo or wearing sweats and ratty t-shirts is completely acceptable but curling your hair and wearing a skirt past the knee makes me a little daft?

 

[Amy Jeanne]

Btw, Amy Jeanne your hair is fab!

Oh, thanks! It was fingerwaved (can't really see it in the pic!)

No comments now that I have worn jeans for the rest of the week lol

 

[Juliet]

I have just spent a week in Budapest visiting family. I got laughed at by two sales ladies in a charity shop, who told my Hungarian sister in law i looked funny. I was pretty much dressed down for sightseeing in Freddies dungarees, saddle shoes and a stripy tee, but i guess compared to most of the women who seem to aspire to looking like Victoria Beckham, i probably stuck out like a sore thumb! They also found the fact i was getting very excited by old lady house dresses rather amusing too. (Seriously though, i bought four vintage floral house dresses with cute black and white flowers on and contrasting piping and big pockets for less than a pound each!!!)

A rather attractive chap in a fedora did doff his hat at me when we passed in the street, so that kind of made up for it. (The only man i saw in a fedora all the time i was there it has to be said).

Miss sofia,
it's not surprising at all - unfortunately the culture of manners is one not welcome in Hungary - which always leads to my mother listening to my rants about it (but agreeing! )
And you're fab!

Amy Jeanne
Love the waves, but didn't you want to dye your hair blue? And here I was, dying to see how it turned out!

 

[Amy Jeanne]

I have blue hair dye -- not sure if I want to do it

I did it red RED instead. Maybe when this washes out. lol

 

[LizzieMaine]

There's plenty of time for blue hair when you're 80.

 

[Juliet]

But if you'll do it again, take a picture! I just know it'll be great on you!

 

[MikeBravo]

Miss sofia,
it's not surprising at all - unfortunately the culture of manners is one not welcome in Hungary - which always leads to my mother listening to my rants about it (but agreeing! )

That's an interesting comment. I was in Budapest in 1989 and found the locals to be very friendly and polite. On one occasion I asked a young fellow for directions who didn't speak English. He gestured for me to follow him, we got on a tram, rode it for three blocks, got off and walked another city block, then he pointed at the building I was looking for. I thanked him, he then proceeded to get back on the tram back the way we came and go on about his business.

Now that's good manners in my book! Now, maybe it's changed since Communism ended, but I would have thought it would have gotten better if anything. :shrug: