Dummy’s guide to vintage shopping: In the world of fashion, old is new again
vintage watches. Delhi-based fashion consultant and writer Varun Rana has snagged two timeless timekeepers from him. His most prized possession, however, is a 1988 HMT Varun. His hunting grounds are watch repair shops which, he is sad to note, are fast disappearing.
Be it watches, jewellery, accessories, or clothes, what is old is new, thanks to a focus on fashion’s wasteful ways. The retro is relevant. It’s often said that a vintage shopper rarely divulges their sources. But ET spoke to second-hand shoppers and specialists to reveal the secrets of vintage shopping.
WHAT IS VINTAGE?
“Vintage” is widely used in fashion to mean pre-loved, says fashion journalist and author Sujata Assomull: “Vintage clothing are pieces from the 1990s or before, and signify something about the time it lived in. Like an ’80s YSL jacket at the time of power dressing. Or a ’90s Abu and Sandeep piece that was about decadence. You buy a vintage piece because of its symbolism.” Stylist Rin Jajo says, “Now, the ’90s are the most distinguishable from our current time and anything from then and before can be considered vintage.”
Vintage usually refers to items that are at least 20-100 years old.
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CALL OF NOSTALGIA
Ritwik Khanna, founder of Rkive City, a design house that works with vintage and deadstock textiles, is himself a vintage hunter. He says, “Vintage is central to how I engage with clothing. I look for pieces that carry a sense of history: archival military surplus, workwear and garments that showcase a particular era’s