The Secret to Styling the Perfect Vintage Outfit

Thinking about a vintage-inspired get-up for your next occasion? Here are some tips to help you find the perfect vintage outfit.

Remember when movies in the past would make people from the future look like they were humans dressed as robots?

We all thought that we would turn out to be like that when we become adults, but the reality is quite different from how we imagined it. The old days are making a huge comeback, and as the saying goes, old truly is gold.

Vintage fashion is a very popular trend nowadays. In my opinion, Peaky Blinders hitting the screens probably amplified the hype surrounding it, and needless to say, I’m here for it.

Of course, if you’re interested in hopping on to the trend, you must execute your looks with style. In the case of vintage goods, that gets a little tricky. Not to worry, this guide is here to walk you through the process!

Finding a Reliable Shop

Searching for vintage items or garments can prove to be difficult, especially when you have a certain look in mind.

Many people will be quick to head over to websites like Amazon or Aliexpress mostly because they can easily find what they’re looking for.

What they end up with is an “expectation versus reality” situation: The item they receive is cheap and only good enough to serve as a Halloween costume.

When shopping for vintage goods online, there are a number of easy-to-spot red flags you can look for.

• If the product listed is offered in different sizes (small, medium, or large) then it’s likely a knockoff.
• Vintage products are not inexpensive. If something is priced lower than normal, then you should probably hold off.

Other indicators lie in the product itself. If the labels are modern, the fabric is lightweight (vintage fabric is much heavier and of higher quality), or if the buttons and cuts are off, then what you received is a replica.

If you want to avoid such an outcome, you can check out Postroad Vintage, a website dedicated to selling authentic, hard-to-find vintage items!

The next best option is to pay a visit to your local thrift store (in case you prefer to shop for clothes physically or if you don’t find what you’re looking for online).

Certainly, used clothes aren’t the same as brand new ones, but you can always clean and restore them to look as good as new ones!

If you can’t find the exact piece of clothing, then you can always consider having it custom-made. Luckily, there are a lot of tailors who can make a fit that’s perfect for you!

Combining Styles

Having contrasting pieces in your overall outfit will make for a stylish and elegant look. To do this, you can mix and match items belonging to different eras.

Pairing contemporary and vintage separates is a great place to start. For example, wearing a black vintage coat with a nice spread-collar white shirt would look classy.

The trick is to create a look that’s less formal, something that fits perfectly into the present day.

If you want your outfit to be purely vintage, then try combining clothes from different eras of the 1900s. Your blouse can be a piece from the 1980s and your skirt can be from the 1990s.

Imagine paring all this with a cute purse from the 1960s! However, it’s very easy to mess up the pairings, so before you dive in, find images of similar things to help serve as a reference when you’re getting dressed.

Accessorising

It can’t be a vintage look if you don’t have the correct accessories, right? As I said above, carrying a vintage purse, hat or brooch can add an extra layer of detail to your outfit.

Vintage accessories are easier to come by than clothes, so you will never fall short of options.

Now, just because you were lucky enough to find a bunch of stuff that goes perfectly with the look you envisioned doesn’t mean you can pile it all on and expect it to look good.

This is where the cumulative accessory effect comes into play. What that basically means is that more is not necessarily more.

Say, for example, if you wore a Fedora, a scarf, gloves, and sunglasses, you would end up looking ridiculously overdressed. Accessories are meant to complement other pieces of garment, not overpower them.

Accessories can also help add a vintage vibe to your non-vintage clothes! To do this, you can simply wear a pair of gloves and a nice Derby hat.

To accentuate the look even further, you can carry around a cane. If you have a beautiful flower print sundress, do your hair and makeup contemporary style. Then to tie this vintage-inspired look in, wear a pearl necklace.

Proper Dress Code

You don’t want people giving you strange looks when you set foot at a party. Say you are to attend a formal wedding.

In this scenario, a stroller suit might make you look amazing, but if you were to wear this elsewhere, you’d look rather out of place.

Vintage doesn’t directly translate to formal. Always remember the dress code when you’re deciding on an outfit.

Looking for Good Inspirations

A lot of people will try to replicate the looks of their vintage icons without realizing that they might not suit them or their personality entirely.

I’m sure anyone who’s a fan of Thomas Shelby has wanted to dress like him, but in reality, a cabbie hat and an undercut doesn’t look flattering on everyone.

With that being said, you may have noticed that throughout this article, I mentioned the word ‘inspired.’ That’s because creating looks inspired by the old days are definitely better than duplicating a certain outfit.

Vintage fashion has always had a classic and aristocratic feel to it. We want to apply that ‘feel’ into our own fashion routines. You can take inspiration from movies, series, and of course my favorite (something I always recommend), Pinterest!

Conclusion

So to wrap up, we’re going to summarize everything we have said up until now.

• Find a reliable seller, both online and offline. Don’t settle for cheap vintage-looking costumes.
• If you can’t buy it, have it custom-made.
• Mix and match items from different eras.
• Accessorize to tie the whole look together, but don’t overdo it!
• Follow the dress code.
• Look at different pictures, movies, or magazines to get inspiration for your desired look.
• Don’t duplicate, recreate!

The whole point of creating a vintage look is to mix and match and have fun with it until you find something that works for you. I hope this proved to be helpful. Good luck!