Loving 'vintage' makes us authentic white people

'Stuff White People Like' is a marvellously satirical look at the middle class and our penchant for being (or thinking we are) cooler than every other social class.

#49 - Vintage

To Wit, To Woo

It may be widely assumed that owls represent wisdom, but I find them compelling for the sense of vulnerability that hangs about them.  They call to mind faded childhoods spent girlishly skipping around Brown Owl in crisp linen uniforms, yet those sorrowful eyes hint at grown-up secrets.  

On the bus home this evening, I picked up a copy of Stylist magazine, and Hannah Turner's cheeky winking owl reminded me of my very own owl that sits atop my bookshelves.

Mine was purchased on the cheap from a charity shop, of course, and has the rather odd feature of a wobbly removable head.  Just look at those eyes!

 

And here's the proof that I'm not the only one feeling the owl love...

Found at: North London Hospice, Crouch End
Price: £3.00
Usability Factor: 5/5
Accessorise with: This owl needs friends to stay awake with him at night.  I'll try Etsy for more.

My Favourite Kind of Junk Shop

I stumbled upon this unnamed junk shop in East London this week, while I was on a mission to track down and photograph public libraries for work.  I couldn't resist going in, although I did manage to refrain from walking out again laden down by purchases!


While charity shops like Oxfam and Cancer Research are conveniently located and have a carefully edited selection of clothes and crockery, there's nothing quite like the buzz of getting off the well-worn high street and tracking down something special buried beneath the junk!  

1980s Preppy Wool Blazer

How very learned I feel wearing this blazer!  So learned in fact, that when I was asked to be photographed for the Time's feature on the London trend for 'brainy chic', this item immediately sprung to mind.

With its blue and navy check and little breast pocket, I feel like the private school girl I never was but secretly longed to be, if only for those prim pleated tweed skirts and chunky brown lace-ups.

The jaunty sling of the jacket over my shoulder does not show it to best effect but my arm was in a cast on this day (note the puffy face from the painkillers!) and we did our best to disguise it with a pile of philosophy books on my lap.  Scatter a few more books on the floor, add one 1950s school chair, and the result is pure geek chic.

Found at: Crouch End charity shop
Price: £10.00
Wearability Factor: 5/5
Accessorise with: aforementioned philosophy books, old school chair, modern drainpipe trousers for a fresh look.

Ethical Fashion from Old Clothes-stuffs

The Evening Standard reports tonight that ethical fashion label From Somewhere goes to F&F at Tesco today.  Jersey off-cuts that would otherwise have gone to waste are creatively refashioned into body-con dresses. 

The on-trend styling will appear to a younger market (Peaches Geldof is reportedly a fan), but the pieces lack the longevity of classic vintage items that one lovingly wears over the years.  I fear these 'fashionable' clothes will be unfashionable within the year, if the cheap fabrics don't fade beforehand and tarnish their appeal. 

This collection is one that has simply slowed the transit of cast-off fabrics to their final resting place, rather than completely re-routing them away from land-fill.  For more lasting pieces, From Somewhere's regular range is a joy to explore.