5 questions to guide your vintage menswear purchases
With recent years having seen a boom in the popularity of ‘vintage’ fashion, here at RETRuly, we thought you might appreciate a few pointers as to how you can get your look right when shopping for vintage menswear such as vintage denim jackets, whether through our own online marketplace or elsewhere.
Which era are you targeting?
One thing that marks out a genuinely great fashion era is that distinctive, unmistakable style that differs from the eras before or after it. One of the first things that you will therefore need to consider is what era of vintage menswear you generally want to focus on.
Bear in mind that if you want to mix your vintage pieces with more contemporary elements, items from the later 20th century are probably best. However, there are also smarter styles from earlier in the century that could still prove versatile in this regard.
What condition should the clothing be in?
If you are serious about actually wearing your vintage denim jackets and other vintage menswear, you should really be seeking out items in a near-mint or excellent condition. By that, we mean items that have been worn on a few occasions but are otherwise clearly well-preserved.
Unfortunately, there are few pre-owned vintage clothes out there that are in a genuinely mint state – you are almost certainly going to see some level of wear or ageing.
Are you shopping in the right place?
There are few pleasures in life quite like sifting through the racks of charity shops for vintage gems, although if you’ve got a very specific style or type of item in mind, the experience can quickly become frustrating. eBay is an obvious alternative place to look, but you can’t always guarantee that the items you receive will actually be vintage.
This is where we’ve shaken things up here at RETRuly, with our fast-growing dedicated vintage marketplace. We even remove items from our sellers’ stores that are not genuine vintage items, to assist you as a buyer in your efforts to achieve the perfect look.
How will different items of yours work together?
There are certain items that can be relied upon to complement each other really well – the white T-shirt, denim jeans and leather jacket look, for example, has been proved to work time and time again over the years, in the hands of such legends as Marlon Brando and James Dean.
How will you achieve a distinctive look of your own?
Yes, you may be investing in such items as vintage denim jackets in the first place because you were inspired by a certain movie or TV star’s use of them, but you probably won’t want to look like you’re completely frozen in a previous age. A few contemporary touches can be great for bringing your look into the present day without surrendering the best things about the vintage aesthetic.
Remember that not every element of your costume needs to be vintage. As much as you may love that vintage polo shirt or classic Oxford shirt, for example, it may actually look fresher or more interesting when you wear it with some skinny jeans rather than something obviously ‘vintage’.
Click through to learn more about RETRuly and why our sellers should be your focal point when you are seeking to assemble the perfect vintage wardrobe. Remember that you can also find great items across many other classic categories with us – we’re about so much more than vintage denim jackets!