Thursday, July 25, 2013

Budget for a VINTAGE WARDROBE

Here are some pictures from last month before hot weather.

 
So this dress is a recent purchase from EBay.
A classic 50's jersey floral dress...
 
 
A lot of people believe that I'm rich to have such a wardrobe....
 
 
It's true that I have no special budget for my outfits, but I'm not rich...
 
 
We have both a full time job, no children... that's help... but finding vintage bargains are also a part of the pleasure to build a vintage wardrobe!
 
 
I have a personnal rule... not spending more than $100 for a dress!
 
 
This kind of floral dresses are not the most loved by vintage gals, so they are cheap... $25 for this one!
 
 
But those bargains are pretty rare nowadays... I think that vintage clothing prices have increased a lot previous years!
 
 
I can easily remember my first Ebay bids 10 years ago... winning 50s New Look coat for $40... 40s varsity sweater for $30... novelty dresses for $25!!!
 
 
Those kind of atomic wool men jackets were sold for $30, now it's hard to find them under $100!
 
 
Vintage clothes and mainly 50's stuff have become so fashionnable!
 
 
I think that since Etsy appeared, prices raised a lot!
 
 
I have an Etsy story to share with you.... I was following a 50s simple cotton dress on Etsy for many months... price was $160... quite high for a cotton dress... and the dress was still not sold so I choose to contact the seller and proposed what I though a good offer for this kind of dresses: $90+shipping for it.... I received a really nasty answer claiming that I had no respect!
 
 
Asking indecent prices is also a king of no respect, isn't it?
Cannot believe that some hawaiian dresses are proposed for more than $500... and that people buy them at these crazy prices!!!
 
 
My husband think that buying online is too expensive so he prefer to wait and save money for our "vintage trips" to fill out a full suitcase!
 
 
It's not rare that he comes back with more than 30 vintage neckties!!!
 
 
For me it's quite impossible to stop buying online, I'm an Ebay and Etsy addict!
 
 
But I also like to buy cheap stuff from flea markets like this 40's velvet hat for 3 euros!
 
 
If you cannot spend hundreds bucks in a vintage dress chose carefully your accessories... A few stunning ones can makes you look like a queen!
 

 
This birds brooch was purchased in a vintage shop in Paris for 20 euros... not cheap but I can usually spent a bit more in item that I can buy in real life, you can feel the material, check condition and size for clothing!
 

 
If you are looking for vintage inspired stuff like these Miss L Fire shoes, my advice it's to wait for sales as much as possible. Most of my shoes collection was bought on sales with 50% off!
 

 
But what is the best part about having a vintage wardrobe is that you don't loose money... if you are carefull with your clothes they are keeping the same value if you want to sell them!!!
 
 
Do you prefer Etsy or EBay ?
What is your budget when you buy vintage online ?

 

 


23 comments:

  1. What a fabulous post! Both of your outfits are marvelous!

    I rarely buy on-line, but I do prefer Etsy to Ebay, and I think it's an esthetic thing, as well as not wanting to deal with auctions.

    xoxo
    -Janey

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  2. I too am an etsy addict and my rule is not to spend over £100 (about $160) on a dress but I don't usually pay that much anyway. However I am finding that the prices have gone up and as I'm so picky about what I like (and don't like!) I'm finding it increasingly harder to buy dresses that fit my specification and budget.

    I buy most of my vintage online because there are hardly any shops in my area and I only get to go to about 8 fairs a year.

    I know vintage is only going to get pricier as items get older/ more rare so I'm glad that as much as I enjoy my purchases, they are also an investment!

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  3. Thank you for that great post.
    I rarely buy vintage clothing online, I am rather thin and not very tall, so the majority of clothes are too large for me. But the main reason is, that I am scared of liking it. Every now and than I check ebay or etsy for vintage dresses, fall in love with some and have to shut down the computer very quickly to not ruin myself. What I buy are vintage patterns or sewing magazines to make my own repros.
    And only some days ago I bought a Schiaparelli hat on ebay, but this is extremely rare.
    I love shopping on flea markets and second hand shops, for me it's more the search for treasures than buying them. But I do not aim to have a complete vintage wardrobe like you, so I can take as much time as I want and leave finds that are too expensive in my eyes.

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  4. You look so lovely, as always! I can't stand it when people assume I'm wealthy (or at least, bad at managing money) just because I have such a vast vintage collection. I don't specifically budget my wardrobe either, but these days I seldom pay more than $20 for a garment (the beauty of living in antique-rich rural New England!) and I often make spending sacrifices in other areas of life to make up for my vintage shopping sprees. I am also becoming more interested in antique and early 20th century garments, which strangely seem to be often more affordable than '40s and '50s garb! Perhaps because they are often so much more delicate. I often buy my clothes in as-is torn or stained condition then fix them up, too; I get lots of good deals that way, and an OxyClean soak later, my bargain dress is in fabulous shape ;)

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  5. I was nodding my head vigirously in agreement with you throughout this whole post, my dear. I adore buying vintage, but I'm not rich and I actually have quite a modest budget for things like my wardrobe, so I'm constantly on the prowl for good (or great!) deals, sales, and underpriced items. I do the bulk of my shopping online, because there are no vintage clothing stores in my town, the local thrift stores rarely get in any pre-60s vintage any more, and yard sales (as much as I love them) cannot be counted on for vintage pieces. I have certain price points for almost every item of clothing or accessory out there, which I rarely cross unless a piece is ultra special, rare, etc, and just like yourself dresses cap out at $100, though that's usually much more than I can spend in a given month on a dress, so I try hard to find frocks that are closer to the $50 range. Vintage prices really have skyrocketed in recent years though, as you said, and this is getting harder and harder - but thankfully not quite impossible some days.

    I truly love your ensemble here - that purse is, no word of a lie, one of my favourite vintage handbags of all time. My region of British Columbia is famous for its vineyards and world class wines. There's a wine festival here every year, and even though I don't drink (or more accurately, can't due to medical reasons), I enjoy attending and so wish I had a grape adorned vintage purse like that to bring along.

    ♥ Jessica

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  6. Wow, that bag is super incredible. Where did you pick up this gem? I love it, if you ever decide to put it in one of your sales, please let me know:) I don't think it's rude to ask what you think is reasonable. It is more rude to respond horribly to a potential customer! I just bought three pairs of Miss L Fire on sale. I haven't been having much luck with vintage dresses buying online. It's difficult as I don't have a vast selection of vintage shops were I live. You just have some very amazing accessories. I give you a lot of credit for putting it all together, people may think it is easy but it is not:)) Love that matched your umbrella to a dress...way to go:))

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  7. I'm more into buying vintage sewing and knitting patterns/books.

    But I always try to go for great deals. I have to say the money I have to spend on my own is mostly dedicated to my hobbies. We live cheap, we don't go out that much and don't have any kids. It's just making priorities.

    And like you said: Your collection is not build up in one week or month. It takes time to build up a collection whether it is a vintage clothing or something else.

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  8. Some etsy shops have really crazy prices...I marked those on my "black list" and don´t visit their shops, so I don´t even see an overpriced piece that I would admire. I`m also not rich, sometimes I buy clothes in as-is condition and my friend OxyClean soaks out stains. Good example is my latest Swirl dress, it had some light stains, but now it looks like new.
    I also like ebay, but sometimes bidders get so crazy over there and pay hundreds of dollars for a simple dress...

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  9. Your handbag is sooooo lovely! What a unique style - great find! I agree - I don't spend over $100 either - although, I usually spend a lot less. I think part of the fun is getting a good deal!

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  10. love the tie bar
    I'm always looking for tie bars`; you see what I mean on my blog
    http://atomic58.blogspot.be

    greets James Little

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  11. C'est clair que depuis quelques temps les prix ne cessent d'augmenter, devenant carrément indécents ! Une simple robe 40's en rayonne devient dure à dénicher en dessous de 80 E... alors que mes premières achetées sur etsy ou ebay ne m'avaient coûté que 30 ou 40 E...
    J'essaye de rester raisonnable, je ne dépense que rarement plus que 80-90 E pour une robe, les plus chères étant envoyées à mes parents ou mon mari comme "idée cadeau" pour mon anniv ou Noêl ! C'est ce qui m'a permis d'en acquérir quelques unes vraiment très belles...sans quoi, je ne pourrais pas me les offrir !
    Oh comme je regrette le temps où on faisait de belles affaires sur ebay ! Mais c'est inévitable : on en a trop parler, le phénomène vintage prend de l'ampleur, et chacun veut maintenant sa part du gâteau...dommage pour nous, passionnées !

    Vous êtes superbes, comme toujours !
    J'adore ton chapeau, ce ton, ces détails...

    A bientôt Biz

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  12. I wholeheartedly agree! I have a budget of no more than $50 for a dress or item unless I know it will be a key staple in my wardrobe. Whether it is actual vintage or vintage inspired. And vintage inspired pieces are just about the same price as vintage now. Mainly because they know the demand for such items has increased.

    I'm in the process of another life change and like you said it takes time to build this lifestyle. I can't expect it to happen over night.

    The Fictionista
    {sean-mackenzie.blogspot.com}

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  13. It sounds like we're pretty much all on a budget as far as buying clothing goes! I can't believe that seller was so rude to you about you making an offer... I think a lot of people are pretty reasonable about having offers made to them, and as long as you offer a sensible and fair price, why not!?

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  14. And your umbrella matches the dress, perfection! :) I would like to see Sylvain's tie collection one day. I completely agree with every word in your post.

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  15. This was such a great post idea. I actually stay away from online shopping simply because living in Canada means that shipping to Canada is expensive! I can't justify paying the same amount to ship as the item. My budget is around the 25$ mark simply because I do not like to repeat dresses often.
    My clothing usually comes from thrifting including many 70/80s reproduction and modern clothes too. I wish vintage stores weren't so expensive but I rather get more than quality.

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  16. Great advise, I love my vintage accessories as I don't have a budget for lots of vintage clothes- I love to accessorise. Your bag is divine :)

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  17. Your bag is to dream of... i prefer ebay, you can still find more bargains there and we are dink's too, but my "not more than 50 € for a dress rule" is still a good shooping guideline

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  18. I know exactly what you mean! I have a lot of people say to me "Oh I don't have the money to dress that way" but I really do not spend much on my clothing. I'm like you, always trying to fine a sale. I frequent the Nashville flea market almost every month and shop a lot at thrift stores. So sad that that etsy seller was so rude. I'm always nervous about messaging them for that very reason. I love your dress and how you've accessorized it, just darling!

    xo,
    Em

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  19. Completely with you on this one (actually, we have the same limit! Not that I haven't broken it a few times, but rarely. haha). I tend to be like your husband, I like to buy things in real life for the most part. It's partially a matter of being able to try something on & see how it was made. But I'm also lucky enough to live in a city where vintage can be found awesomely inexpensively, so the internet is WAAAY more expensive than I'm used to.

    I sometimes wonder how people perceive me based on my wardrobe (which, granted, is insane). Do people think I'm rich? Or that I spend a bunch of money on clothes? No no, I work retail, and at a dive bar.... soooo, no.

    Thanks for posting this! You look awesome, as always! Those bird brooches are to die for. And the hat! Accessories always "make the outfit";)

    xo Sara

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  20. I think you are so right about the appearance Etsy and increased prices for vintage as a result of it. They do charge insane amounts for vintage there. Sometimes you see dresses in rather poor condition and they still want you to pay around $200.00 for it! After all and all -- it is still used clothing and really is old no matter how beautiful it might be, and if one spends $200 on a dress in poor condition and it falls apart soon...I am not ready to spend that kind of money.

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  21. I am absolutely thrilled to have found your blog! You two are simply marvelous and I can't wait to keep reading and seeing all of your lovely outfits and musings. Your green bird brooch is an especial love in this post for me!
    -Jamie
    ChatterBlossom

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  22. hi :) i discovered your blog just right know and i really love it! you said that you often buy on etsy. there is another platform like etsy but located in europe http://en.dawanda.com (also available in french) ignore me if you already know this plattform ;)

    i really love your style and also from your husband. male outfit posts are so rare!

    lovely regards
    kathrin

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  23. Very well said! Sometimes it is amazing to find that special item that may be a bit pricey but if you love it, I believe you should buy it if you can afford it. I love to find bargains & often appreciate those items more!! Lovely post as usual. Big fan of both you & your husbands style. No matter what money you spend! Love VV xxx

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