I've had some great interaction with many of you where you've kindly shared your own op shopping tips and styles. And so I jfigured I just have to share them with the rest of you. The first guest post is by Shay who is an avid op shopper and model with a passion for vintage and vintage creations. And she's going to share some of her thrifty hightlights and advice with you here.
Remember, if you’re keen to share your op shopping highlights with the rest of us, feel free to email me your contribution to yougotthatatanopshop@live.com with a couple of pics! It is my pleasure to bring you a post with a difference, the first guest post for 2013. Enjoy!
Hi! I’m Shay and I’m a twenty-one year old chicky from the little state of WA. When I’m not working I’m often scouring the op shops and markets for one of a kind pieces, sewing my own creations, cuddling up on the couch with a good book or flogging myself silly in the gym. There’s often some bad dancing and singing in there as well. I can’t remember when I first became interested in vintage, but it wasn’t until my eighteenth year that I really started to discover my own style….
When you’re out op shopping they say it’s best to go out with an idea in mind. I say bollocks to that! If you’re looking for something in particular you might miss that amazing find. Now I’m not suggesting you head out with a wad of cash and just buy buy buy, as wonderful as that may sound. What I’m saying is that you must be open to whatever it is that’s out there. You might not even know that you love that style until you see it.
One of my best pick-ups was when I wasn’t even looking. I’m a vintage lover, especially the 60’s-70’s so you can imagine my lusting over a pair of gogo boots. When I found a pair in a second hand book and knick knacks store (Booksabilia) for $20, well I’m pretty sure I let out an audible squeal. Real leather white gogo boots, oh I had found heaven. Now I knew I had mod dresses at home, so this was no hassle to me, I picked up those boots then and there.
Discretion is needed, I practice the rule of, if it doesn’t grab me and I don’t love it, then I don’t buy it. If you don’t love it in the store, you’ll never wear it when you get it home. Don’t just buy that skirt because it’s amazing; think about what you’ll wear with it. If it doesn’t match anything in the store or anything you have at home then it’s just going to gather dust. Styling matters!
Now… let’s talk styling. I’m not going to be the kind to tell you that short people should wear vertical stripes or the larger girls shouldn’t wear horizontal stripes, no. Wear what you want to wear, what you feel comfortable in and what makes you confident. That is all part of style. These feelings will be reflected out to the world. If you think you look good, you probably do.
I take my styling tips from the fashion of yesteryears. A friend of mine passed onto me this gorgeous little cream dress she’d picked up in an Armadale op shop. The dress had Forever New tagging and whilst it was incredibly cute, it was missing something. I work in Perth city and often stick my head into shops on my walk to the bus station in the afternoons.
One afternoon I strolled into the Salvos and saw a rack of denim jackets. I do love denim. It’s durable, comfortable and works with just about anything. Denim jackets are a little harder to style, but I knew I had a few more dresses at home that would benefit from the addition. I tried on three or four jackets and it was down to two. A long sleeved cropped number and a short sleeved vest kind. I weighed the two and decided to go with the short sleeved one as I would most probably be wearing it in the summer months only. Now you might be wondering what this has to do with the fashion of yesteryears. Well, team that dress with that jacket, throw on a pair of Mary Jane’s and load up on some cheap chunky jewelry and suddenly I’m emulating Robyn Sparkles.
Dive into those racks, don’t be afraid of all those bright colours and flounces in strange places. Are you a Lolita fan? Whilst it’s highly unlikely you’ll find a full dress you can find bits and pieces to create one. If you can’t find the perfect skirt, modify one. Add some tiers of lace or fabric, add a petticoat, make it work for you. For the top half? Any old top will actually do! The picture above was taken by a friend of mine, Mr Rejis Chibanda, of one of the Lolita style outfits I’ve salvaged.
My advice as far as the vintage look goes is that you don’t need to actually buy vintage to create that vintage look. Buying vintage can be expensive, but it needn’t be. You can appear vintage without actually being so. If you do actually want vintage though, there are specialty op shops you can go to, but be prepared to pay a little more. Try local markets and small independently run second hand stalls as well, they’re often goldmines. I do suggest finding your favourite spots, become friendly with the staff and donate back to them.
And remember, retro is making a comeback ladies! The picture above is the Robyn Sparkles creation; that dress is carrying a Forever New tag, that jacket is originally from Jay Jays and all that jewellery comes from Lovisa and Dotti. All up, purchasing through an op shop, the outfit probably cost me close to $30.
For any style you like it is possible to find it in an op shop! It’s just a matter of putting it all together.
To see more of Shay’s adventures, you can head over to her facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/AshaylaWebster.model