The Social Significance of Vintage Sunglasses

$45:https://www.etsy.com/listing/196225917/rare-1960s-vintage-bright-yellow-mint?

Imagine a time before reality TV and social media, when privacy was valuable. A period when your personal life was exactly that, as opposed to splashed across screens large, small and in-between. An era during which a pair of sunglasses was far more than a fashion accessory.

Celebrity magazines were once called scandal sheets—they existed to depict our movie and music idols at their worst, not unlike the tabloids of today. The difference is, stars gone by didn’t tolerate such exposure as the cost of fame, much less openly court it. “I want to be alone,” Greta Garbo intoned—and spent much of her life behind her shades hoping to achieve that goal.

Garbo, incognito

Sunnies were so essential to going incognito, it’s no surprise that the original Mad Men capitalized. “Isn’t that you behind those Foster Grants?” teased the 60s print ads for the popular brand.

Yet privacy wasn't the sole province of the famous. In more buttoned-up times, we held our secrets behind our shades—by no means always a good thing. A pair of dark glasses could keep an abused wife’s black eye from view or hide the pain of someone living in the closet. But we also relied on sunglasses when grieving a loss, bearing an embarrassment, or otherwise enduring a difficulty we didn’t feel necessary to post about, moment-by-moment, with accompanying video.

Over-sized was all important to Jackie O

It may seem to some that I’m biting the hand that feeds me. After all, here I am, blogging. Not to mention employing e-commerce to hawk my vintage wares and openly seeking friends and followers on various social networking sites. 

 

$23 on eBay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/131240688564?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

In fact, I’m simply discovering—for myself and, yes, anyone else who happens by—that a pair of sunglasses from before our tell-all time is uniquely indicative of its era. These pieces stand for something, something perhaps not entirely lost. And now, that duly noted, I’ll unplug and reach for another sort of shades, the ones that draw across my bedroom windows, to revel in a little solitude.

Vintage Style Spotlight: The 70s

 The 70s were hardly my favorite decade for style and design. I could barely abide the era’s fashion while living through it, and was apt to attend school in a nipped-waist jacket Mildred Pierce would envy, or do the town in a silk kimono re-purposed as a dress. It was as if the 70s forced me to develop personal style, leading me away from retail and into thrift shops.

STAR, for groupies in training

       Now I view the 70s differently. I can appreciate how all that polyester and nylon meant liberation, especially for unleashing women from their ironing boards. I can understand how “designer” jeans made luxury accessible to all. Even the winged coifs that made it seem our hair could fly off our heads at any moment evoked freedom. There was a slinkiness, a sexiness, an embraced bralessness (though not to the extent American Hustle had Amy Adams portraying) that wasn’t just for hippie chicks.

Distressed, dysfunctional

The shift from flower child to disco diva coincided with what Tom Wolfe labeled “The Me Decade,” and whether you took that to mean atomized individualism or ugly egocentricity at the time, you'd no doubt cringe over what our culture embraced so heartily—gas-guzzlers, cocaine and wardrobes comprised primarily of Qiana. As to the counterculture style that would be called punk, it back-lashed to basics: denim, leather, fishnets, black eye makeup and scarlet lipstick.

Make mock if you will—the 70s are an easy target. Yet to me, vintage items from the era have their charm. Come autumn I’ll be showcasing some classic 70s button-downs for men and women, one pattern wilder than the next. For now, I’m offering nightwear — the stuff that disco dreams are made of. Enjoy!   

Liberate yourself in this "Freedom Front" nightgown by Olga, $17: https://www.etsy.com/listing/195100547/simply-sexy-tulip-print-70s-era-nylon?

Vintage Wardrobe Essentials: The Summer Skirt

 There’s a challenge inherent to dressing vintage: How to enjoy the quality and design of times gone without looking like you’re headed to a costume party. Yes, you want to flaunt your passion for the past yet must move seamlessly and stylishly through your present day (and night). Easily done, via separates—mixing contemporary pieces with those from other eras. That’s why vintage skirts are absolute wardrobe musts, especially now.

Dita does it right!

 Whatever your decade, fabric and cut of choice, your vintage skirts will pair beautifully with modern tops. Then, accessorize at will and whim—old school purse with brand new shoes, perhaps; a generational melange of jewelry. The result will be uniquely you—classic, quirky, sexy, preppy, etc.—and never anachronistic.

Vintage skirts are even more valuable in summer, when you want to look and feel cool and breezy. The craftsmanship of cotton skirts from way back when is bound to surpass that of what you’ll find at the moment in your local mall. These pieces have survived for a reason; they were well made, no doubt right here in the USA (to be sure, look for the Union Label; go here for a terrific article on the ILGWU: http://vintagefashionguild.org/label-resource/ilgwu/)

Bold graphics, Sixties style! $40, http://www.ebay.com/itm/131221356549?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Rickrack rockabilly, $25: http://www.ebay.com/itm/131222118219?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

 Versatility is yours, and your looks are limited only by your imagination. 
 

• Team a full or A-line Fifties’ skirt with a fitted tee (perfect for running errands with flair).

 

• Put a tailored button-down over a slim Sixties pencil skirt (ideal for the office, with flats or heels). Neutral shades are classic, or do it your way with a jolt of color or pop of pattern. A wide belt shows off your curves to perfection, while a kerchief conceals a bad hair day.

  

  Khan-do!

  
  

• For easy evening glamour, try a skin-baring camisole with a long, flowing haute hippie number. 

• Indulge your imagination! Sport a thigh-high vintage tennis skirt or golf skort to a club, concert, gallery—anywhere but the country club.  

Talk about fashion fore-ward! Textured pink and white skort, $32, is not for the golf course only: http://www.ebay.com/itm/131229164426?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Enjoy the celebrity inspiration here to see how vintage skirts  — plus items you already own — add up to style that suits real life, right now, with your unparalleled individual charm. 

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/131221370284?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

 Adorable and reversible, this Sixties era patchwork wrap, above, $30, is two skirts in one, while the purple prairie skirt, below, $35, has romance and ruffles in pure, breezy cotton.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/131222106277?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Have a look at my Pinterest page for more summer skirt ideas: http://www.pinterest.com/ninamalkin9/stylish-vintage-skirts-for-summer/

My Prized Possession

a few of my favorite things

 We who fancy the lovelies of eras past do not have a wardrobe — we have a collection, a mini museum. We are not slaves to fashion but curators of style. Whether we pursue vintage for business, pleasure or both, there is no doubt one piece with which we’d be never part. I know I have my own — and having reached out to other vintage aficionados I’ve found them to be in agreement. Read on for our prize possessions — and please do comment back with a treasure and photo of your own!

Write about a favorite piece? That's like admitting you favor one child over another! A paragraph could easily turn into a memoir. Yet two aspects I truly adore about vintage clothes are print and color. I was never an "all black" kind of girl—I express my style with crazy colors and bold prints—so vintage became my partner for life.

That’s why I choose this bright orange sweater as my prized possession. Mother of pearl buttons and massive collar; no tag and clearly handmade; year unknown but I’m leaning towards the Sixties.  I got it at a Salvation Army for $4! Paired with this Fifties I Love Lucy print dress, it’s a one-two combo that knocks out any style from today. All hail vintage! — Bridgett Artise, author of Born Again Vintage: 25 Ways to Deconstruct, Reinvent, and Recycle Your Wardrobe and proprietress of Born Again Vintage “The Collective” in Montclair, NJ

Everyone in my family says I got my style and love of fashion from my glamorous Grandma Ann. She would work hard and save her money and as a reward buy herself a special piece of clothing. Sadly, not a lot of her things remain, but she did give me the gown she wore to walk down the aisle in 1937.

How lucky am I that neither of my sisters have the vintage gene! It’s long sleeved and made of cut velvet, simple yet very fitted—pretty sexy for the time. I couldn’t possibly wear it (Grandma Ann was tiny!) and she’d tossed it into a crate in her attic; she didn’t have much of an attachment to it, maybe because it was the first of three wedding dresses she’d wear. But it will almost be one of my most precious treasures — Maria Demme, stylist, Los Angeles

A collector of vintage clothing and jewelry for many years, I have several pieces I would prefer never to part with. Yet what comes to mind as my prize possession was a gift from my Grandma Anna when I was 14. Grandma Anna had style, glamorous to be sure, so imagine my delight when she presented me with this beautiful 1940’s parure (that’s French for a set of matching jewelry). The wonderful red paste and rhinestone necklace and earrings turn anything I wear into something special—be it a little black dress or jeans and a blouse, I am well done. Whenever I put them on, I imagine Grandma dancing at the Cotton Club or flying to a casino in Cuba, her energy and enthusiasm, her signature joi de vivre filling me. I can almost see her right by my side, sipping an Old Fashioned! — Bambi DeVille Engeran, actress, author of WWII Bakelite Jewelry: Love and Victory and proprietor of The Bakelite Lady/Bambi Deville's Vintage Clothing New Orleans

Though I have several vintage furs, I will always carefully preserve and treasure my Canadian marten. Technically, the marten is a weasel, closely related to the sable, but I call it my honey. The cream blond and tan pelts are streaked with smoky black and feels so incredibly soft. Incredibly warm as well—I break it out in the fall and have been known to wear it into May. Hey, I don’t like to be chilly. And in my job I don’t get to doll up, so when I’m off the clock you might see me and my marten with the addition of a fat white fox collar and a rabbit fur hat with a large, sparkly rhinestone brooch pinned on the front. I feel elegant and cozy, and while some may find the look ostentatious, my motto is, “Go big or go home!” — Rosemary Stolzenberg, special education teacher, Harlem

As for me (who also had a Grandma Ann!), my prize possession is a jersey dress by the Emilio Pucci, the designer favored by countless icons of style, including two who had a profound influence on me: Marilyn Monroe (who was buried in Pucci) and Agnes Moorehead (best known as Endora in Bewitched).  

My Pucci is blue, floor length with a scoop neck, one of those unmistakable, unparalleled prints, with Emilio in tiny script worked into the pattern. Judging by the label, it’s Seventies vintage. I found it at a yard sale in Los Angeles 20 years ago, and it still fits me perfectly. Not that I wear it, of course (it's stored away, practically entombed). I haven't got a photo, and while searching online for something similar I had to be careful—I don’t want to know what it’s “worth” because I’d never sell such a beautiful, authentic piece of fashion history. To me, it's priceless! 

How about you? Share your prized possession and make us all chartreuse with envy!