When it comes to shopping, there's no thrill quite like the hunt for the perfect vintage piece. For true fashion heads like me, raised on the runways—and on a budget—vintage shopping can be a gateway to all the incredible pieces you loved on the catwalk, but never thought you would be able to own yourself. Thanks to a booming secondary market and easy-to-use sites like The Real Real, Vestiaire Collective, and Etsy, shopping for vintage pieces has actually never been easier.
It's also never been better for the planet—or your style. As the fashion industry grows and retailers continue to make similar right-off-the-runway buys, the place to find one-of-a-kind pieces and singular garments is at your local vintage shop and online. Plus, designers like Harris Reed, who designed his entire spring 2022 collectsion by repurposing wedding dresses at the British charity shop Oxfam, and Marine Serre, who used dish towels and old tees for her spring 2022 collectsion, are proving that old stuff can look incredibly new.
So what's the secret? As a lifelong vintage shopper, stamina is key. I start almost every morning with a cursory trawl of The Real Real's app and eBay. Sure, that's addictive, but it also guarantees that no iconic Prada skirt goes unseen! But for those without the time to spend online all day, below are four tips I swear by that I hope will make your shopping—and your wardrobe—a little more fun.
