For as long as I can remember, I have had a love, attraction and good eye for All Things 20th Century Vintage. As a young girl my grandmother’s furs fascinated me with their faint smell of violet essence perfume. I would climb into the wardrobe & slip inside of them imagining being a movie star. She would take me to see old black & white movies where I sat in a trance over the glamorous sequinned & bead encrusted square shouldered gowns of femme fatales such as Joan Crawford, Rita Hayworth & Katherine Hepburn. I adored watching Fred lead Ginger across the screen as she twirled & danced in her feminine voluminous evening gowns. Wonderful costumes by Adrian, Edith Head & Irene together with the music of George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Rogers & Hart and Irving Berlin transported me to heaven!
Collecting Beautifully Designed & Sewn Vintage Clothing, Textiles & other fabulous things from yesteryear has been my addiction, passion & career for over 35 years. I adore dresses which have a distinct or unusual cut & are made of exquisite fabrics which are a not only a delight to look at but also fabulous to touch and wear!
The collecting bug first bit me in the early 1970's when I would buy 20's, 30's & 40's beaded dresses & hand embroidered lingerie from local church jumble sales at a time when no one was interested in 'old' clothes (pre the term 'Vintage') & most garments were only a few cents. It was then that I also began collecting Vintage Sewing Patterns & Textiles.
In 1980 I realised my dream & opened my first Vintage Clothing shop in Adelaide, South Australia, 'KOOL KITSCH' - 'Vintage Fashions & Fads from Yesteryear' (yes, I still use that catchphrase 28 years later!). My business specialised in pre 1960's Vintage Clothing, Accessories, Vintage Textiles, Sewing Patterns & bright funky 'Kitsch' edgy and Art Deco Home Wares when most antique shops were selling ornate, cumbersome Victoriana.
In the mid 1980's I qualified in Fashion Design & created Original Wearable Art Fashion under my Labels 'CAFE OLE' & 'JENNY R' using a mix of my collected Vintage Textiles & natural fabrics which I hand painted and screenprinted. Then came a 15 year stint as a Freelance Costumier for theatre, film & television. My current work is as a Lecturer of Costume for Performance which includes History of Fashion, Art Finishing (breaking down/dyeing/embelishing fabrics), Pattern Drafting, & Historical Period Costume Construction. My students' work is exhibited each August during the SALA Festival (South Australian Living Artists' Festival) in the Adelaide Arcade.
So, in regards to All Things Vintage, especially Fashion, Accessories & Textiles feel confident that I know my stuff! Being a compulsive collector with a VERY discerning and fastidious eye, I am always finding new treasures (more often than not they find me!) & my home has only so much room (I swear it's beginning to sink!).
eBay has become my No.1 hobby and is the perfect way for me to share my overflowing Vintage Collection with appreciative Vintage Lovers the world over!
From Adelaide, South Australia, I post worldwide & love to combine postage to save you $. Visit my eBay Store to browse and bid on all my Vintage items!
You may just find exactly what you have been looking for or be tempted by something new!
Bid with confidence knowing that your Vintage purchase will be authentic of the era listed, of the highest quality, posted speedily & will arrive in your hands well packed for interstate or overseas transit.
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Authentic 20th Century Frocks, Vintage & Retro Clothing, Accessories, Sewing Patterns, Fabrics, Doyleys, Religious, Books, Swanky Swigs, Homewares, Pictures, Toys & more. I post worldwide from Adelaide, South Australia.
Combine postage & save $!
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