My Reasons for Collecting Vintage Clothing

I love collecting and selling period garments for two major reasons:

First, each piece of clothing leads me into a history lesson.  For example, every Victorian gown is a fitting tribute to the British queen who set not only style trends but also a longevity record during her nearly 64 year reign (1837-1901).  In fact, her period of influence was so extensive that experts have identified 3 Victorian stages, naming them Early, Mid, and Late Victorian.  Victorian styles were cherished by their original owners and tend to be valued by the 2^nd, 34d, or 4^th generation admirers.  In fact, one of the gowns I was privileged to posses had been worn during a presentation to Her Royal Highness.

World War II attire tended to be relatively plain.  They used less expensive, tougher materials which were needed to get us through an austere, tense, and hard working period of our national history.  Our military got the top priority when it came to getting materials and money.  Civilians had to go without silk stockings (parachutes) and shorter skirts (uniforms).

The second reason for loving period garments is the story line that I tend to attach to each piece.  I  imagine  how Queen Victoria must have suffered from losing her husband after she bore him nine children.  At that point, she still had all the prestige, power, and fashion image over any woman in the world, yet it must have felt like nothing with her Albert gone.  After his death, the Victorian look (as shown by the Queen) had turned black.  She never wore another color again.

In WWII I would have been Rosie the Riveter.  I think I would have gladly made do with a plain, limited wardrobe so that the boys on the battle front could have a bit more.  Furthermore, rather than spend my salary on fancier clothes, I would have bought war bonds. 

My next blog?  It may be the Flapper Era or the 1960’s.  Or it may be the evolution of men’s fashions from the 1950’s through the Hippie era.  We’ll see.

View my Etsy store for some great vintage clothing. https://www.etsy.com/shop/RosasVintageFinds?ref=shopsection_shophome_leftnav