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March 19, 2005
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This Lanvin vintage dress is part of Chris Jacovides's collection to be auctioned.
Photo: Edwina Pickles
Vintage clothes are in vogue - even Crown Princess Mary wears them - and there's a lot more to the genuine article than meets the eye, discovers Lenny Ann Low.
For those passionate about vintage fashion, it is often the innards, rather than the outer, of a classic piece that gets the heart racing. Seasoned collectors say the thrill of finding a special "preloved" garment is quickly followed by close scrutiny of its construction.
"We get so excited by the beautiful sewing and fabric," says Alex Elliott-Howery, part owner of the Camperdown boutique Pigeon Ground Public. "And when you find things in immaculate condition it's amazing because a lot of stuff, especially from the older eras, is very damaged, and damaged in a way that can't be repaired."
Her business partner, Agatha Gothe-Snape, adds: "We have a passion for the past - a romanticised notion of the times when things were custom-made and not dominated by mass production."
At a time when fashion chain-stores - up-market and down - are clogged with cheaply made vintage-style designs and the catwalks and sidewalks of the world's fashion capitals continue to feature vintage-inspired clothing and accessories, the time is ripe to invest in the often very affordable real thing. Even Crown Princess Mary of Denmark opted for secondhand, albeit with a very fat wallet, recently, wearing a vintage Oscar de la Renta frilled skirt for the Australian Red Cross Charity Ball in Sydney earlier this month.
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Advertisement"Vintage fashion has become international currency," says Chris Jacovides, a fashion designer and collector who ran a couture salon in Sydney for 39 years. "It's prohibitive to produce a garment like that, cost-wise, now, which is why couture garments in Paris, Italy and New York are $20,000 for a simple nothing."
Apart from his own "absolute passion" for the clothing, Jacovides says his main reason for acquiring vintage couture was to help future students of fashion. "They can see how to roll a hem properly instead of just putting it under the Singer sewing machine and saying, 'Well, that's the look now.' Or not lining it and expecting a girl to go out with red undies to match her red chiffon.
"With every one of these pieces there is much more work going on inside the garment than the actual look of it on the outside. It's the inside that makes them what they are. That lets them remain with us and become vintage."
More than 30 items from Jacovides's collection - including rare pieces by 20th-century couturiers such as Christian Dior, Lanvin, Pierre Balmain, Jean Patou and Schiaparelli - will be auctioned by Shapiro Auctioneers in Camperdown on Sunday. (It is the second selection of collected vintage clothing Jacovides has let go in recent years. In 1991, more than 100 items were acquired by the Powerhouse Museum after he originally sold them to the National Trust in 1976.)
"Vintage pieces like the ones on auction are important because nowadays there is not the time to make them, the wages are high and the knowledge isn't there," he says.
The popularity of vintage fashion is making it harder and harder to find a bargain in the traditional hunting grounds of markets and charity stores.
At Pigeon Ground Public, Elliott-Howery concedes that sourcing vintage wear for commercial reasons is an increasingly competitive, and secretive, business, but says she is primarily keen on enjoying the hunt.
"It's really the thrill of going out and finding things," she says. "Along with the fact that it lets us rescue beautiful or quirky stuff we wouldn't ordinarily buy for ourselves."
Elliott-Howery says running Pigeon Ground Public (named after the primary school the pair attended) has inspired her to take greater note of different fashion eras and labels and collect items more seriously.
Inside the tiny shop, on a busy intersection blanketed by the roar of passing planes, trucks and cars, Gothe-Snape's passion for "preloved" non-era-specific clothing is evident in the careful and artful arrangement of colourful woollens, funky ties, elegant shoes, myriad jewellery and delicate felt hats displayed on various custom-made shelves or inside secondhand suitcases and wooden desk drawers. Racks featuring 1940s, '50s and '70s silk, cotton, wool and satin dresses face off tweed skirts, men's cotton shirts and women's woollen jackets. Prices for items range from about $8 to $300.
"I'm not entirely sure why we opened this shop," says Elliott-Howery, laughing. "Agatha and I have known each other since we were five, so have a very like-minded sensibility. We began the shop on a bit of a whim, as a side project, but it's just really taken off."
The pair plan to celebrate the shop's one-year anniversary with a fashion parade in a nearby alley.
At the Vintage Clothing Shop, a vintage apparel institution in the city, Lorraine Foster is also fascinated by the care given to creating vintage clothing, but says her greatest love stems from the fabric each vintage piece is made from.
"Textiles," Foster says. "I love textiles. The very first vintage thing I bought was a piece of fabric."
Foster, a prominent commercial authority on vintage fashion who documented the Banana Room, Sophie van Rood's important collection of more than 7500 antique and vintage fashion items dating from 1850 to 1980, for a Lawson-Menzies auction last year, is also adamant about the long-term hardiness of vintage.
"They look fragile but they're not," says Foster, pointing to the shop's racks and shelves, which feature vintage dresses, cardigans, suits, shirts, purses, hats and skirts ranging from the turn of the 20th century to the 1970s.
"They're fragile if you are really rough with them. But the great thing about the fabrics and the sewing is that they're just as good as they were when they were made."
Such is her love for each piece, Foster gives advice to customers about caring for vintage clothing.
"Never put an iron on it if it's crepe, and don't even walk past a washing machine if it's chiffon," she says. "But, I tell you, people are always absolutely amazed when you say it would be better to wash something with water than dry-clean it. A good wash can actually improve certain things."
Vintage finds
* Pigeon Ground Public, 102 Salisbury Rd, Camperdown, 9557 6364
* The Vintage Clothing Shop, shop 5, 147 Castlereagh St, city, 9267 7135.
* The Corner Shop, 43 William St, Paddington, 9380 9828.
* The Diva's Closet (Mon-Fri, by appointment), 10/11 Young St, Paddington, 9361 6659.
* Zoo Emporium, 332 Crown St, Surry Hills, 9380 5990.
* Mister Stinky, 482-484 Cleveland St, Surry Hills, 9310 7005.
* Grandma Takes a Trip, 263 Crown St, Surry Hills, 9356 3322.
* Bulb, 10 Transvaal Ave, Double Bay, 9328 5900.
* Broadway Betty, 259 Broadway, city, 9571 9422.
March 19, 2005
Page Tools
Email to a friend Printer format
This Lanvin vintage dress is part of Chris Jacovides's collection to be auctioned.
Photo: Edwina Pickles
Vintage clothes are in vogue - even Crown Princess Mary wears them - and there's a lot more to the genuine article than meets the eye, discovers Lenny Ann Low.
For those passionate about vintage fashion, it is often the innards, rather than the outer, of a classic piece that gets the heart racing. Seasoned collectors say the thrill of finding a special "preloved" garment is quickly followed by close scrutiny of its construction.
"We get so excited by the beautiful sewing and fabric," says Alex Elliott-Howery, part owner of the Camperdown boutique Pigeon Ground Public. "And when you find things in immaculate condition it's amazing because a lot of stuff, especially from the older eras, is very damaged, and damaged in a way that can't be repaired."
Her business partner, Agatha Gothe-Snape, adds: "We have a passion for the past - a romanticised notion of the times when things were custom-made and not dominated by mass production."
At a time when fashion chain-stores - up-market and down - are clogged with cheaply made vintage-style designs and the catwalks and sidewalks of the world's fashion capitals continue to feature vintage-inspired clothing and accessories, the time is ripe to invest in the often very affordable real thing. Even Crown Princess Mary of Denmark opted for secondhand, albeit with a very fat wallet, recently, wearing a vintage Oscar de la Renta frilled skirt for the Australian Red Cross Charity Ball in Sydney earlier this month.
Advertisement
Advertisement"Vintage fashion has become international currency," says Chris Jacovides, a fashion designer and collector who ran a couture salon in Sydney for 39 years. "It's prohibitive to produce a garment like that, cost-wise, now, which is why couture garments in Paris, Italy and New York are $20,000 for a simple nothing."
Apart from his own "absolute passion" for the clothing, Jacovides says his main reason for acquiring vintage couture was to help future students of fashion. "They can see how to roll a hem properly instead of just putting it under the Singer sewing machine and saying, 'Well, that's the look now.' Or not lining it and expecting a girl to go out with red undies to match her red chiffon.
"With every one of these pieces there is much more work going on inside the garment than the actual look of it on the outside. It's the inside that makes them what they are. That lets them remain with us and become vintage."
More than 30 items from Jacovides's collection - including rare pieces by 20th-century couturiers such as Christian Dior, Lanvin, Pierre Balmain, Jean Patou and Schiaparelli - will be auctioned by Shapiro Auctioneers in Camperdown on Sunday. (It is the second selection of collected vintage clothing Jacovides has let go in recent years. In 1991, more than 100 items were acquired by the Powerhouse Museum after he originally sold them to the National Trust in 1976.)
"Vintage pieces like the ones on auction are important because nowadays there is not the time to make them, the wages are high and the knowledge isn't there," he says.
The popularity of vintage fashion is making it harder and harder to find a bargain in the traditional hunting grounds of markets and charity stores.
At Pigeon Ground Public, Elliott-Howery concedes that sourcing vintage wear for commercial reasons is an increasingly competitive, and secretive, business, but says she is primarily keen on enjoying the hunt.
"It's really the thrill of going out and finding things," she says. "Along with the fact that it lets us rescue beautiful or quirky stuff we wouldn't ordinarily buy for ourselves."
Elliott-Howery says running Pigeon Ground Public (named after the primary school the pair attended) has inspired her to take greater note of different fashion eras and labels and collect items more seriously.
Inside the tiny shop, on a busy intersection blanketed by the roar of passing planes, trucks and cars, Gothe-Snape's passion for "preloved" non-era-specific clothing is evident in the careful and artful arrangement of colourful woollens, funky ties, elegant shoes, myriad jewellery and delicate felt hats displayed on various custom-made shelves or inside secondhand suitcases and wooden desk drawers. Racks featuring 1940s, '50s and '70s silk, cotton, wool and satin dresses face off tweed skirts, men's cotton shirts and women's woollen jackets. Prices for items range from about $8 to $300.
"I'm not entirely sure why we opened this shop," says Elliott-Howery, laughing. "Agatha and I have known each other since we were five, so have a very like-minded sensibility. We began the shop on a bit of a whim, as a side project, but it's just really taken off."
The pair plan to celebrate the shop's one-year anniversary with a fashion parade in a nearby alley.
At the Vintage Clothing Shop, a vintage apparel institution in the city, Lorraine Foster is also fascinated by the care given to creating vintage clothing, but says her greatest love stems from the fabric each vintage piece is made from.
"Textiles," Foster says. "I love textiles. The very first vintage thing I bought was a piece of fabric."
Foster, a prominent commercial authority on vintage fashion who documented the Banana Room, Sophie van Rood's important collection of more than 7500 antique and vintage fashion items dating from 1850 to 1980, for a Lawson-Menzies auction last year, is also adamant about the long-term hardiness of vintage.
"They look fragile but they're not," says Foster, pointing to the shop's racks and shelves, which feature vintage dresses, cardigans, suits, shirts, purses, hats and skirts ranging from the turn of the 20th century to the 1970s.
"They're fragile if you are really rough with them. But the great thing about the fabrics and the sewing is that they're just as good as they were when they were made."
Such is her love for each piece, Foster gives advice to customers about caring for vintage clothing.
"Never put an iron on it if it's crepe, and don't even walk past a washing machine if it's chiffon," she says. "But, I tell you, people are always absolutely amazed when you say it would be better to wash something with water than dry-clean it. A good wash can actually improve certain things."
Vintage finds
* Pigeon Ground Public, 102 Salisbury Rd, Camperdown, 9557 6364
* The Vintage Clothing Shop, shop 5, 147 Castlereagh St, city, 9267 7135.
* The Corner Shop, 43 William St, Paddington, 9380 9828.
* The Diva's Closet (Mon-Fri, by appointment), 10/11 Young St, Paddington, 9361 6659.
* Zoo Emporium, 332 Crown St, Surry Hills, 9380 5990.
* Mister Stinky, 482-484 Cleveland St, Surry Hills, 9310 7005.
* Grandma Takes a Trip, 263 Crown St, Surry Hills, 9356 3322.
* Bulb, 10 Transvaal Ave, Double Bay, 9328 5900.
* Broadway Betty, 259 Broadway, city, 9571 9422.
