My Mother's Style

I've heard it said that vintage lovers tend to love the decade best that their mothers wore. My mother was a teenager in the 1950s and a young woman during the 1960s, when my sisters and I were born. I certainly have always loved the small-waisted, big-skirted styles that bridged that period and the make-up (before eye shadow grew bright) and hair styles that spoke to a casual elegance that has, for the most part, gone missing.

When I was a little girl, I remember my mother visiting my school. It was usually to deliver cupcakes for a special event. Through the years, I became used to my classmates commenting on how pretty my mother was. And she was. My mother was actually beautiful; something I didn't, of course, fully realize until much later. At the time she was just my mom. What I knew then was that she had three daughters in less than five years and yet always looked lovely and put together. She would breeze in with hair pinned up, deep lipstick and a lovely dress. She was my first style influence.

In the 1960s and 1970s, my parents dressed to go out. Whether they were headed to their favorite restaurant, the Spanish Tavern, or to a house party, my mother paid careful attention to her outfit. I would sit on her bed and spread her jewelry out around me. I remember bold, beautiful brooches, delicate necklaces and clip-on earrings. I thought she was the most beautiful and the most stylish woman I'd ever seen and I could not wait to grow up and dress as she did.

Alas, by the time I became a young woman and wife, the 1980s had arrived. Maybe it's because of my complete disappointment that I never had the chance to dress for dinner and house parties, I detest most of the extreme fashions that dominated my 20s.

I do not think I was born too late; having the life I have had would have been extremely difficult had I been born in my mother's time. Yet, when I dress for a benefit next week, I will pull a silk dress with a tight waist and full skirt from my closet. I can only wonder who wore it in the late 1950s; I can only be glad I can wear it now.

On Mother's Day, I have many more important reasons to acknowledge my mother than her fashion influence on me. But this is, after all, a vintage fashion blog--so what better time to acknowledge just that.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom--you're still my biggest influence.

Defining Vintage

When I tell people that I love antiques, no one asks me to define ‘antique’; yet when I say I love vintage, I am often asked “what exactly IS vintage?”

At a wedding in the vintage dress my grandmother wore
to my mother's wedding, with my daughter Lindsay.

This is actually a very good question with many good answers. Most of the answers are somewhat subjective as even vintage collectors and sellers don’t always agree on what vintage is. Most sellers of vintage say that anything at least 20 years old qualifies; sometimes (though less and less often) I hear 15. But to me, vintage is more than that. It’s about style and craftsmanship. It’s sometimes timeless and other times firmly anchored to one moment in fashion history. In my ‘vintage closet’ is the dress my grandmother wore to my mother’s wedding. It has a peach lace bodice and a skirt made of tiers of lace in deepening hues. I wore it to a few special weddings and events. In that same closet is the Gunne Sax dress that I wore to my high school graduation. One is timeless, the other immediately reminiscent of the 1970s when feminine dressing seemed to combine Victorian romanticism with hippie chic. (In case you’re wondering, I no longer wear either of these dresses but my daughters borrow them on occasion!)

Because vintage is a fashion term and I am a stickler for language, I believe that vintage should be fashionable. That doesn’t necessarily mean ‘in fashion,’ but rather a fashion statement—ideally about both the period that the item dates from and, when talking clothing, the wearer.

Think about fashion over the past 10 years. It’s pretty much anything goes. There are long maxi skirts and pencil skirts, bubble skirts and baby doll dresses. How can you make a fashion statement in any of these when everyone else is wearing the same? Vintage! Celebrities know this, that’s why they’re proudly touting vintage designers on the red carpet. Fashion publications often include vintage pieces in their pages; many tell you where to shop for items as well.

In my blog, I will talk about vintage style, vintage clothing and vintage shopping. I’ll also share with you items from both my etsy shop,    http://www.etsy.com/shop/storiedvintage2  and my personal vintage closet. I hope you will read along!