Vintage Vintage, in winemaking, is the process of picking grapes and creating the finished product—wine (see Harvest (wine)). A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certa ...

clothing is a generic term for

garments Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natural ...

originating from a previous era, as recent as the 1990s. The term can also be applied in reference to second hand

retail outlet Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...

s, e.g. i''n vintage clothing store''. While the concept originated during World War I as a response to textile shortages, vintage dressing encompasses choosing accessories, mixing vintage garments with new, as well as creating an ensemble of various styles and periods. Vintage clothes typically sell at low prices for

high end In economics, a luxury good (or upmarket good) is a good for which demand increases more than what is proportional as income rises, so that expenditures on the good become a greater proportion of overall spending. Luxury goods are in contrast to ...

name brands. Vintage clothing can be found in cities at local boutiques or local charities, or on the internet, e.g.

eBay eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became ...

and Etsy, or through digital second hand shopping websites. Vintage fashion has seen a reemergence in popularity within the 21st century due to increased prevalence of vintage pieces in the media and among celebrities, as well as consumer interests in sustainability and slow fashion.To cite this article: Tracy Diane Cassidy & Hannah Rose Bennett (2012) The Rise of Vintage Fashion and the Vintage Consumer, Fashion Practice, 4:2, 239-261, DOI: 10.2752/175693812X13403765252424 BridalSlip1

Definitions

"Vintage" is a

colloquialism Colloquialism (), also called colloquial language, everyday language or general parlance, is the linguistic style used for casual (informal) communication. It is the most common functional style of speech, the idiom normally employed in conversa ...

commonly used to refer to all old styles of clothing. A generally accepted industry standard is that items made between 20 and 100 years ago are considered "vintage" if they clearly reflect the styles and trends of the era they represent. These clothing items come with a sense of history attached to them and allow the consumer to express sentimental nostalgia for fashions of past eras. Items 100 years old or more are considered

antique An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

Retro Retro style is imitative or consciously derivative of lifestyles, trends, or art forms from history, including in music, modes, fashions, or attitudes. In popular culture, the "nostalgia cycle" is typically for the two decades that begin 20–30 ...

, short for retrospective, or "vintage style," usually refers to clothing that imitates the style of a previous era. Reproduction, or repro, clothing is a newly made copy of an older garment. Clothing produced more recently is usually called ''modern'' or ''contemporary'' fashion.

Deadstock

Deadstock refers to merchandise that was withdrawn from sale and warehoused without having been sold to a customer. This is due to the item no longer being in fashion or otherwise outdated or superseded. Such merchandise might once again be in demand and at such point can be returned to sale. Return to sale of fashion merchandise would make it vintage clothing. However, repurposing of deadstock in new products is one way to improve

sustainability Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...

in the

fashion industry Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashio ...

Sizing

In the United States, due to changes in clothing sizes, vintage sizes are often smaller than the corresponding contemporary size. For example, a garment from the 1970s labeled as Medium (M) might be similar in size to a 2010s Extra Small (XS). Vintage sewing patterns offer an option for those who want a historically accurate garment but cannot find one in their size.

Retail market

Popular places to buy vintage clothing include charity-run second-hand clothing shops, thrift stores, consignment shops, garage sales,

car boot sales Car boot sales or boot fairs are a form of market in which private individuals come together to sell household and garden goods. They are popular in the United Kingdom, where they are often referred to simply as 'car boots'. Some scientific ...

flea markets A flea market (or swap meet) is a type of street market that provides space for vendors to sell previously-owned (second-hand) goods. This type of market is often seasonal. However, in recent years there has been the development of 'formal ...

, antique markets, estate sales,

auctions An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...

, vintage clothing shops and vintage fashion,

textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, different #Fabric, fabric types, etc. At f ...

or collectables fairs. With the rise of the digital world and social media, the consumption of Vintage clothing has rapidly expanded, with e-commerce websites leading to growth in consumer accessibility of vintage pieces.Turunen , L L M , Leipämaa-Leskinen , H & Sihvonen , J 2018 , Restructuring Secondhand Fashion from the Consumption Perspective . in D Ryding , C E Henninger & M Blazquez Cano (eds) , Vintage Luxury Fashion : Exploring the Rise of the Secondhand Clothing Trade . , 2 , Palgrave Advances in Luxury , Palgrave Macmillan , pp. 11-27 . https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71985-6 The internet has drastically increased the availability of specific and hard-to-get items and opened up prospective markets for sellers around the world. In the last 20 years, social media in particular has become the most popular medium for consumers to obtain information about, and interact with vintage fashion. Popular places to acquire garments include online auctions (e.g.

), multi-vendor sites (e.g. Etsy), online vintage clothing shops, (eg. TheRealReal, ThredUp), specialist forums, and social media sites (eg. Facebook Marketplace, Depop), where consumers can like, share, and purchase vintage goods from their smartphones. Many vintage clothing shops with physical locations also sell their goods online. Typically in the United States, vintage clothing shops can be found clustered in

college towns A college town or university town is a community (often a separate town or city, but in some cases a town/city neighborhood or a district) that is dominated by its university population. The university may be large, or there may be several smal ...

and artsy neighborhoods of cities. In contrast to thrift stores that sell both vintage and contemporary used clothing, vintage clothing shops are usually for-profit enterprises, with the market mixed between small chains and independent stores. These stores typically range from 200 to 5,000 square feet in size, and will usually have a

fitting room A changing-room, locker-room, (usually in a sports, theater, or staff context) or changeroom (regional use) is a room or area designated for changing one's clothes. Changing-rooms are provided in a semi-public situation to enable people to ch ...

. Vintage clothing stores may obtain clothing from individuals in exchange for cash or store credit.

History

Before the rise of industrial manufacture, construction of most articles of clothing required extensive hand labor. Clothing worn by farmers and laborers was more a matter of practicality than fashion. In order to maximize value, clothing was repaired when worn or damaged, sometimes with layers of patching. Used clothing, in reasonable condition, could be

tailored A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

for a new owner. When too tattered to repair, an article might have been taken down to scraps for use in a

quilt A quilt is a multi-layered textile, traditionally composed of two or more layers of fabric or fiber. Commonly three layers are used with a filler material. These layers traditionally include a woven cloth top, a layer of batting or wadding, ...

or braided rag rug, or used as rags for cleaning or dusting.Palmer, A. (2005). Vintage Whores and Vintage Virgins: Second Hand Fashion in the Twenty-first Century. In A. Palmer & H. Clark (Eds.). ''Old Clothes, New Looks: Second Hand Fashion''(Dress, Body, Culture, pp. 197–214). Oxford: Berg Publishers. Retrieved November 13, 2022, from http://dx.doi.org/10.2752/9781847888815/OCNL0022 During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, the United States launched a conservation campaign, with slogans such as "Make economy fashionable lest it become obligatory". One result was an approximate 10% reduction in wartime trash production. Into the 20th and 21st centuries, vintage clothing has seen increased popularity throughout media and pop culture. The tides of popular

fashion Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fash ...

create demand for ongoing replacement of products with something that is new and fresh. Once known as secondhand clothing, is now seen as vintage clothing. This is due in part to increased visibility through media, film and television, and celebrity influence. In the past 20 years, vintage fashion has been featured in leading fashion and lifestyle magazines, including a 2011 publication of

Marie Claire ''Marie Claire'' is a French international monthly magazine first published in France in 1937, followed by the United Kingdom in 1941. Since then various editions are published in many countries and languages. The feature editions focus on wo ...

. The popularity of

period pieces Period may refer to: Common uses * Era, a length or span of time * Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark Arts, entertainment, and media * Period (music), a concept in musical composition * Periodic sentence (or rhetorical period), a concept ...

within film and television has also contributed to trends of vintage fashion. The authentic portrayal of 1960s fashions in the 2007 award winning series Mad Men sparked a resurgence of glamour in consumer interest. This was reflected in a prevalence of 1950 and 60s fashions in 2010 runways, and increased sales at vintage shops. In the early 2000s, celebrities like Reese Witherspoon and Renee Zellweger brought vintage clothing into the media by wearing vintage pieces to red carpets. In the past decade, vintage clothing has become part of the movement towards

environmental sustainability Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livin ...

and

sustainable fashion Sustainable fashion (also known as eco-fashion) is a term describing products, processes, activities, and actors (policymakers, brands, consumers) aiming to achieve a carbon-neutral fashion industry, built on equality, social justice, animal ...

, and is an aspect of slow fashion, a concept coined in 2007 by Kate Fletcher. Vintage fashion appeals to consumer interests of ethical clothing as it falls under categories of reusing, recycling and repairing items rather than throwing them away. Vintage shopping trends have also seen a transition to E-commerce, with the emergence of sites such as Depop, founded in 2011
ThredUp
founded in 2009, and TheRealReal, founded in 2011. Historically based sub-cultural groups like

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and b ...

and

swing dancing Swing dance is a group of social dances that developed with the swing style of jazz music in the 1920s–1940s, with the origins of each dance predating the popular " swing era". Hundreds of styles of swing dancing were developed; those that ha ...

played a part in the increased interest in vintage clothes. In Finland the vintage scene resulted in a registered

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

called Fintage, from common interest in the preservation of

material culture Material culture is the aspect of social reality grounded in the objects and architecture that surround people. It includes the usage, consumption, creation, and trade of objects as well as the behaviors, norms, and rituals that the objects crea ...

and the environment.

"Vintage inspired" and "Vintage style"

Vintage clothing retains and increases in value due to the fact that it is genuinely from a past era. and allows the buyers to choose different styles from second-hand clothing. In addition, authentic garments are made one at a time, with enough attention to detail to create an item that has long lasting value. Vintage fashion can be understood as a response to fast fashion, in which garments are mass produced. Vintage shopping allow consumers to find unique pieces and create a sense of individuality.Tracy Diane Cassidy & Hannah Rose Bennett (2012) The Rise of Vintage Fashion and the Vintage Consumer, Fashion Practice, 4:2, 239-261, DOI: 10.2752/175693812X13403765252424 However, vintage clothing is often inaccessible and hard to find. Garments closely resembling original vintage (retro or antique) clothing are mass-produced to meet the demand of consumers for vintage clothing. An example of this are slip dresses that emerged in the early 1990s, a style that resembles a 1930s design, but upon examination will show that it only superficially resembles the real thing. These styles are generally referred to as "vintage style", "vintage inspired" or "modern vintage". They serve as a convenient alternative to those who admire an old style but prefer a modern interpretation or for those who cannot have access to vintage clothing. Sellers claim consumer advantage in that, unlike the original garments, they are usually available in a range of sizes and perhaps, colours and/or fabrics, and can be sold much cheaper.

Environmental Sustainability

Vintage fashion is part of a larger movement of

, and falls under the category of

slow fashion Slow fashion is an aspect of sustainable fashion and a concept describing the opposite to fast fashion, part of the " slow movement" advocating for clothing and apparel manufacturing in respect to people, environment and animals. As such, contrary ...

, which is direct response to increasing awareness of the environmental impacts of the fast fashion industry. Within the past 10 years, increased media coverage of environmental issues has led to increasing consumer interest in ethical clothing consumption, and vintage fashion specifically. The fashion industry ranks as the second most polluting industry in the world after the oil industry. Consequently, a trend in becoming more conscious and sustainable shoppers has emerged through the years. The interest and demand in vintage shopping has grown significantly. In 2020, the term “vintage fashion” was researched 35,000 times on Lyst. One way of reducing waste and limiting the negative impact of fashion on the environment is the reuse and recycling of clothes. Vintage stores make fashion more sustainable. One used item purchased as opposed to one new one reduces CO2 emissions by 25% on average per use.{https://www.thredup.com/ Sometimes vintage items are upcycled via changing the hemline or other features for a more contemporary look. Vintage items in poor condition are also salvaged for reuse as components in new garments. Throughout the world, used apparel is reclaimed and put to new uses.The

textile recycling Textile recycling is the process of recovering fiber, yarn, or fabric and reprocessing the material into new, useful products. Textile waste is split into pre-consumer and post-consumer waste and is sorted into five different categories derived fr ...

industry is able to process over ninety percent of the waste without the production of any new hazardous waste or harmful by product.

Bibliography

* Bamford, Trudie (2003). ''Viva Vintage: Find it, Wear it, Love it''. Carroll & Brown. {{ISBN, 1-903258-73-1 * Tolkien, Tracy (2000). ''Vintage: the Art of Dressing up''. Pavilion. {{ISBN, 1-86205-305-7

References

{{Reflist History of clothing Fashion design Reuse