Review: Vintage Menswear

For Christmas this year, I received the book Vintage Menswear, a comprehensive source to rare suits, military uniforms, and classic sportswear.

The book is beautiful on its own.  It has a nice cover with a texture to it and hundreds of pages of glossy prints of clothing you would normally only see in a museum.

The clothing is detailed, highlighting the tears in the fabric, the tags of the designers, and the beauty of the garment, accompanied with a blurb of when the piece is from and its use.

Full page pictures, half page details, and close up shots occupy the pages as you flip through, leaving your eyes darting back and forth and pausing to take it all in.

Most of the garments are work-related, meaning uniform or military, so every day clothing like shirts and trousers aren't highlighted, which I would say is the biggest downfall of the book, but I have a fascination with military uniforms, so I loved the book nonetheless.

Also, there's some pretty great leather jackets featured, which is another one of my favorite things, and overall the book is stock full of gorgeous images you'll love, but if you're looking for what people wore to church or a party, it's not what you're looking for.

All images are scans from the book itself.  Buy it here!

Shopping for Vintage by Funmi Odulate

A few years ago for Christmas, I received the book, Shopping for Vintage by Funmi Odulate, and I quickly devoured it.  The book is full of illustrations and blurbs on designers and fashion trends.

For starters, the book gives a very good overview of each era and designers that defined the era with their signature looks.  It has beautiful watercolour illustrations of popular dresses and designs by each designer, as well as what each was known for and how they made a mark on the decade.

The next section of the book deals with jewelry and how each artist signed their pieces, as well as how the company may have changed throughout the years.  Also, the book highlights signature jewelry designs and outlays what pieces would be most valuable for a collector.

There are then brief sections on handbags and shoes that really don't give a specific, detail-oriented view, just a generalized description of the era.

The book closes out by highlighting various vintage stores thoughout the world that one can visit, giving some a brief description on what one can expect when visiting.

Overall, I felt the book was very good in what it describes.  The illustrations alone make the book worthwhile, and, of the whole, the first section of designers is really what makes the book worth buying.

The sections after, while full of information, seem a little tacked on to give a fuller description to the book and make sure the author coversa ll areas.

I thought the weakest part of the book was when the author actually described what to look for when buying vintage.  Though she gave helpful tips on what to look for and how to tell a reproduction from an original, the book is more geared towards buying to collect more than buying to wear or resell.  With that in mind, the book does cater more to higher-end designers versus basic frocks most of us come across in our vintage hunts.  However, these tips can be applied on a smaller scale for what to look for when buying for your own shop.

Overall, I would give the book 3 out of 5.  Highly recommended for the illustrations and descriptions of designers, but not so much for the overall "buying" guide, as it is out of touch with most day-to-day experiences.

Alligators, Old Mink, and New Money

It always happens, you're shopping for something on Amazon, and you're literally $3 away from getting free shipping.  Every.  Single.  Time.

It's very frustrating.

In one of these trips, I was looking for something, and I decided to type in the word, "vintage," into the search bar for books.

I came up with Alligators, Old Mink, and New Money by Alison Houtte.  It was only 6 bucks, so I thought, "What the heck."

At the time, I was standing in as the concierge at the Hilton DeSoto and spent my downtime (which, being the off-season, was a lot), reading the book and basically devoured it in a few days time.

I read it at just the right time, too, to really appreciate a lot of the words Houtte wrote.  She talks about how she transformed from her days of modeling into opening and running a successful vintage shop in New York.

Though I wasn't going from being a model to a vintage shop owner, I was going from a 9-5 to being an independent business owner, so I really enjoyed her life anecdotes within the covers.

She covers vintage clothing -- finding it, evaluating it, and cleaning it -- as well as shares stories of devoted customers and crazy encounters.  There's a great one in there about a woman wanting a vintage alligator head bag that made me laugh, though I hope I never have to go through the same scenario.  Plus, she throws in personal stories and writes about her family and how they eventually influenced, though some-what grudgingly, her love of vintage.

So, if you're ever in the same bind I was in or are simply looking for a good read, look up the book and add it to your cart, you won't regret it!

And, if you're ever in the Park Slope area, check out the Hootie Couture Store!  (I've never been, but it's on the list)
321 Flatbrush Ave
New York, NY 11217