I’m Torn: Vintage Shopping

By Brithny

I love shopping. Period. I love the exhilarating feeling of finding something that looks great and feels great at the same time, and makes people turn their heads in the street and let their eyes linger over my fabulous outfit for a second longer. I love picking up new things and pairing them with the stuff I’ve already got to make a beautiful outfit even better. And sales? Don’t even get me started on the high of sale shopping.

Let’s just put it this way: if shopping were a sport, I would be a Michael-Phelps-style Olympic gold medalist. Thus in my vast experience of “competing,” whether it be at D&G or at Target, I’ve definitely run into some vintage stores every now and then and I’m not sure how I feel.

I’m Torn.

Love it
I used to hate dressing for gym class because everyone had to wear the same old, boring gray shirt and blue shorts. And you know it’s a major fashion crisis when you walk in somewhere and there is another girl wearing the  same exact top (BRB – must run home and change pronto). But that doesn’t happen with vintage clothes. It’s pretty much guaranteed that when you find something in there, no one else is going to have it. And it’s gonna be cool and unique and different and awesome.

Vintage stores are also great for their versatility. Not only can you find something in every kind of style (from 80′s prom dresses to flowery blouses), but you can go there for every occasion. Sometimes I go to vintage stores to buy outrageous stuff for highlighter parties or tailgating, or just any time I want to have a little more fun with my outfit. (Vintage stores are gold mines for accessories!) On lazy summer afternoons I love sifting through the shelves and racks of clothes you can’t find anywhere else and, with the right store, cheaper than anywhere else.

Loathe it
There’s a reason why some people deem vintage stores as “thrifty,” “flea and tick,” or just plain “junk.” Lots (and, many times, most) of the stuff in vintage stores is actually junk; I mean, it’s there for a reason, right? There’s only so many cool, raggedy old Beatles t-shirts out there. And what’s with the smell? It’s like faded leather mixed with cat litter plus a hint of deteriorating…something. (Cat?) It might be the clothes, but it might also be the store owner who is always kind of strange and seems like someone who wouldn’t bathe all that often.

And it’s not like you can hold your breath while you run in. It usually takes awhile to find that special garment you’re looking for, what with all the heaps and bundles of clothing you have to go through. And don’t even get me started on the over-stuffed racks that are so full you can’t even move the hangers apart to browse. You pretty much have to know what you want and come prepared: with patience, with coffee and with a SARs mask. That is, of course, if you can find a store, because many of them are hidden along the twists and turns of the city that even Google Maps hasn’t discovered yet.

Oh, and being that “vintage” is so in right now, lots of these smelly little shops are charging serious cashola for their goods. $65 for a shirt someone’s smelly grandma wore? For real?

What do you think?