Where & When do you wear your vintage clothes?

[Gabriel]

So out of curiosity, when are you folks choosing to wear your vintage clothes?

Do you wear the same outfit each day, wear different outfits every other day, or wear the same vintage outfit during special events? If so, does this take place while you are in large cities, rural areas, or anywhere you please?

Note: Do you wash and reuse your outfit (like a suit for example) every day and re wear it the next morning or do you change it up?

 

[Bushman]

I like to wear my vintage looking Eddie Bauer jacket as much as I can, but I don't actually go full vintage (nice hat, suit, cuff links, the works!) unless I'm on a date or going somewhere that I'll need to be really snazzy looking.

 

[MikeKardec]

I no longer have a lot of vintage clothes, I was just too hard to fit. Now I've got a lot of vintage inspired clothing and I mix it into my wardrobe constantly. I rarely want to stick out so much that I wear whole, distinctively "old looking" outfits that feel like a costume but it's probably every day that I have some sort of classic element or general feeling to what I'm wearing.

 

[GHT]

I no longer have a lot of vintage clothes, I was just too hard to fit. Now I've got a lot of vintage inspired clothing and I mix it into my wardrobe constantly.

A 38" waist and a 44" chest means that I could never find originals to fit, then again, I prefer new, never know if some previous owner had bubonic plague. My suits are all made to measure, so are my shoes, shirts and hats.

Here in the UK we have many a vintage event that lasts over a long weekend: Friday evening as well as Saturday & Sunday. Some events are in hotels but many are open air camping. My wife and I attend about one a month. That's when the suits and accessories come out, but I still wear vintage most days. Today, for instance, I wore Hawaiian shirt, high waisted, henley trousers, correspondance shoes, fair-isle socks a black fedora and a repro leather flying jacket.

One place that I love to "dress to the nines," is at classic car shows. That fraternity are mostly car mad. They can tell you the part number of every single nut & bolt, of every model, of every year, but it wouldn't occur to them to look the part. Last car show I went to, I wore the zoot suit. You could have heard a pin drop.

I only have one conventional outfit, and that's a modern suit that I bought to attend my brother-in-law's funeral. It hangs in a dust cover, in my wardrobe either waiting for the next funeral, or for me to be buried in it, although I would be quite disappointed to arrive at the pearly gates and not be attired in full late 30's fashion.

 

[Edward]

Most f my wardrobe is modern production but to a vintage style. In my youth I dressed punk, goth, grunge... I've been on public trsnsport manys a time in full drag. I never much cared whether I fit in. I still don't. Twenty years ago perhaps I dressed to be different; nowadays I just wear what I want to wear and it never much occurs to me to notice whether that fits with the norm or no. [huh]

 

[up196]

One place that I love to "dress to the nines," is at classic car shows. That fraternity are mostly car mad. They can tell you the part number of every single nut & bolt, of every model, of every year, but it wouldn't occur to them to look the part.

I have a 1931 Ford Fordor Sedan that has been frequently rented for movies,, weddings and such. I always dress the part on those occasions.

Once, the wardrobe folks wanted me to turn my clothes in before I left the set.

On another occasion, I was driving for a wedding and was the only driver dressed for the period (most of the others were wearing shorts, athletic shoes and car club vests with club patches). I wouldn't let the two bride's maids bring their mixed drinks in the car. Prohibition, you know! They didn't have a clue.

 

[GHT]

I wouldn't let the two bride's maids bring their mixed drinks in the car. Prohibition, you know! They didn't have a clue.

Love it, love it, love it. When my wife, who always dresses the part:

was asked why she wore her hair in victory rolls, she replied, straight off the cuff: "There is a war on, you know!"

 

[Doc Smith]

Almost all of my suits are 1960s or earlier. I have a self-imposed rule that whenever there's a chance that I'll give a graded test, I wear a suit and tie. In order to keep the class guessing about when pop quizzes will appear, that means I wear a vintage suit (or at least an old tweed jacket and tie) every time I give a lecture.

My inspiration for this was from the Patrick O'Brien's Aubrey/Maturin novels. At one point, Jack Aubrey reproves a midshipman for attending a crewman's punishment without being in full dress. "The fellow's being whipped for our amusement -- the least we can do to show our respect is dress for the occasion!"

Note that I give full credit on pop quizzes for making a reasonable effort, so it's not quite the corporal punishment that my story above might imply.

Anyways, depending on the semester, that means I wear a vintage suit or jacket anywhere from 2 to 4 days a week. It gives me an excuse to keep my collection of dead men's suits in use and away from the moths.

 

[Dennis Young]

Like GHT, I prefer new as well. But I'm still slowly trying to put together a wardrobe. Santa brought me a couple of nice argyle cardigan sweaters that were similar to one a character was wearing I n some old movie I saw. I really like those. But I need to find the proper pants and shirts to go along with my fedora. I wear suspenders from time to time as well.

 

[DonnaP]

I have accumulated a great wardrobe of vintage style dresses that I've sewn for myself from vintage patterns ranging from 1940's-1960's. I work at a staged play theater as house manager and I wear them to work every day. I work in a fairly large city and with the theatre atmosphere, everyone just loves my wardrobe. It's really gratifying, because as a plus size/older lady, I'd really felt I had lost a sense of style and have regained it.

But are you asking more about vintage style in general, or actual vintage clothing, and the wear and tear that takes place from wearing it for general use. Because when I was younger I had some early 1900's and 1920's clothing that I would just wear for general clothing, and I did ruin it by wearing it that way. If I had actual 1940's clothing, I'd probably be more discriminating as to when I wore it, because even things like deodorant can break down fabric

 

[LizzieMaine]

I have accumulated a great wardrobe of vintage style dresses that I've sewn for myself from vintage patterns ranging from 1940's-1960's. I work at a staged play theater as house manager and I wear them to work every day. I work in a fairly large city and with the theatre atmosphere, everyone just loves my wardrobe. It's really gratifying, because as a plus size/older lady, I'd really felt I had lost a sense of style and have regained it.

I'm also a house manager, among other things, and have a series of pat answers I give to patrons who ask about my clothes. The one I use most often is "They found me in the attic when they were renovating the place." If they keep asking, I tell them I follow the traditional ways of my people.

I run into the same situations as you for sizing, and have been making my own stuff for years. I have several original 1940s suits I wear for dressy occasions, but don't use them as often as I used to because of advancing middle age spread. More often I just wear the jackets over one of my regular cotton dresses.

My usual work clothes are one of those cotton dresses, low-heeled housewife oxfords, and a headrag over my hair. Cardigan sweaters and cotton stockings are worn in cold weather, and in the summer I break out the socks and saddle shoes. When I have filthy work to do, like crawling under drainpipes to fix something, or going up ladders, I keep a suit of denim mechanic's overalls within reach.

I don't wash the dresses until its absolutely necessary. It wasn't the custom in the Era to wash clothes after every wearing, because the washing machines could be tough on the textiles, and since I own and use a wringer washer and hang my washing on an outdoor clothesline, I observe this precaution.

When I make a dress I'm very careful to keep the scraps. After three years or so, the fabric will give out under the sleeves and when that happens I cut out the worn place and sew in a gusset made from leftover scrap. If you tend to sweat a lot, dress shields can help extend the lifespan of clothes, but I don't bother with them.

 

[DCMark]

I spent 20 years in a uniform - US Navy, which was in itself a "vintage" style (at least when I had to dress-up) and was in a uniform for my civilian job until a couple of weeks ago. So now I get to wear my vintage suits. I wore one that was dated 1949, and a double-breasted pinstripe that was undated but I would guess was from the Thirties. Both got rave reviews from people I passed in the halls of the hospital I work at. I have to admit that I was a little worried that my boss would get on me for wearing a "costume" but he seemed to like them. I think I'll save my stroller for after-hours, though.

 

[Tiki Tom]

I'm also a house manager, among other things, and have a series of pat answers I give to patrons who ask about my clothes. The one I use most often is "They found me in the attic when they were renovating the place." If they keep asking, I tell them I follow the traditional ways of my people.

Mind if I use some of those lines?

I usually just wear a few vintage touches. It’s rare that I go “full vintage”. I have two daughters to tell me when I’m over-doing it!

 

[Old Mariner]

So out of curiosity, when are you folks choosing to wear your vintage clothes?

Do you wear the same outfit each day, wear different outfits every other day, or wear the same vintage outfit during special events? If so, does this take place while you are in large cities, rural areas, or anywhere you please?

Note: Do you wash and reuse your outfit (like a suit for example) every day and re wear it the next morning or do you change it up?

I don't really have a lot of vintage clothing, but my style is "vintage inspired" or could fall under "classic". As I live in a rural area, I stand out like a sore thumb, so in my case, it's a balance between me, my environment, and what is most practical. I don't like to confine myself strictly to a specific era, but rather draw from eras, and combine them to make my own style. I am a very creative type of person and not in the 2 dimensional sense (like painting or drawing), but more so in a 3rd dimensional sense, so by doing things this way, it allows for expression of said creative streak. I also consider it an expression and aspect of my spirituality. A few months ago I came across an article that had a very resonant quote in it that relates to this, but I cannot find the site anymore. This link does help kind of give insight though into what I am getting at.

As for care - I try to limit how often I wash (like wearing pants or shirts and then hanging up after use) just to spare wear on the fabric. The exceptions though are if they inadvertently happen to get dirty or if I wind up sweating. I air dry my shirts by hanging them up and it makes it easier to iron them.

Certain things - like ties and ascots, I am only just starting to get into, but these will only be worn when I would happen to go out for a nice time (which is why I am only getting specific ones).

For color - I limit my colors to most neutrals, shades of blues and greys, some red and some green. These are the colors that suit my skin the best and with my wardrobe centered on these, it is highly interchangeable.

 

[Edward]

Almost all of my suits are 1960s or earlier. I have a self-imposed rule that whenever there's a chance that I'll give a graded test, I wear a suit and tie. In order to keep the class guessing about when pop quizzes will appear, that means I wear a vintage suit (or at least an old tweed jacket and tie) every time I give a lecture.

When I was a baby academic fresh out of my masters degree, I woul wear a suit on teaching days to reinforce myself as an authority figure. I was only 24 myself at the time, and teaching mainly postgrads for the first few years, half the class were older than me... Nowadays, I do it becasue it's just me. Students seem to really like it - they appreciate that I make an effort. One of my Chinese students oncesaid, with characteristic Chinese directness, "You're not like the other lecturers. You care what you look like." Which I took as a compliment!