Women’s Vintage Clothing Essentials: All in One Guide

The best and extraordinary thing about vintage is that there are so many different ways to show your personality and love for vintage fashion. The 70s, the shrill 80s, or the cool 90s: all these different decades give you a certain vintage flair. But these days, it's a little hard to get started with all the selection if you haven't really explored it before.

It is important to learn some tips about wearing vintage in advance. On the one hand, you should combine vintage with new clothes, so you don't have to clear out your current clothes in the closet to make room for vintage clothes. See which things you love and would wear again, suitable for combining. 

You should also be relatively indifferent to what other people think of your style, especially if you are in the trial phase. You will experiment a lot at the beginning and also try out many things that you decide against in the end – it's all part of the process. However, you must not forget that this is essential to find your favorite style. It has many advantages like feeling more comfortable and confident, which is excellent because confidence is key. Plus, you won't buy any more things in the future that you wouldn't wear: your wardrobe consists only of wonderful items!

This blog is a guide to vintage clothing and this time for women only.

To get started, you need to look for inspiration because that's where you'll find out which outfits you prefer and which ones you don't.

Sitcoms or social media like Instagram and Pinterest are good places to start. For instance, Rachel's outfit inspirations are shown here, who is a character on the sitcom "Friends."


Vintage Sweatshirts and Hoodies

Vintage sweatshirts can be worn by men and women, both of which look cool. There is never anything wrong with having a comfortable vintage item that suits casual occasions like meeting friends or shopping. Sweatshirts from the 90s are real eye-catchers, and without making a big fuss about how to style your outfit, they will already do their work just with the sweatshirt.

Here's also an example from the sitcom "Friends" from the character Monica. 

       


Vintage T-Shirts

In the picture above, we see Phoebe where she wears a turtleneck top with a t-shirt, This combination springs from the example of mixing modern with vintage. Depending on your taste, you can choose your vintage t-shirt: either women's t-shirts cut smaller or men's t-shirts that are slightly larger. Below are examples that qualify as vintage t-shirts. If you rather want to fade into a darker tone, a rock band t-shirt would certainly be a perfect fit. 

  

T-shirts are actually one of the most popular vintage items. They are always in demand, and there's a simple reason for it: they're cool, and you can always wear them.


Denim

Denim was not only a trend in the 80s but continued into the 90s. This one never really went away because everyone loves to wear denim either as pants or jackets. 

Jackets have gotten smaller from time to time, but there is still a high demand for the typical vintage oversize outerwear. 

Tyra Banks shows exactly how to rock a denim outfit. It used to be common to wear denim from top to bottom, but nowadays, it belongs to the daring outfits because it would be too much for the eyes. 

In my opinion, it all depends on how you wear it. 

A denim piece is a must-have in your closet, regardless of the jeans you already own. Wide vintage mom jeans fit differently than modern ones. It's the same with jackets and shirts

 


Vintage Dresses

There are many different types of dresses, and not all types are sold in a vintage clothing shop. Accordingly, I cannot directly advise you on what dress style you should pursue. Nevertheless, it is essential because it can be worn very often in summer. It not only looks beautiful but is also very often comfortable to wear. Depending on your taste, you can look at what kind of dresses of the different decades you like the most: the 70s prairie dresses, slip or plaid jumper dresses. 

  


Blouses and Shirts

Blouses were always essential as a women's vintage clothing. They were worn anytime – at work, in everyday life, or the evening. They are still necessary items in our wardrobe today, but we wear them differently than back then. Below, there's an outfit example with blouses worn underneath a pullover, which was often worn back then. One of the most famous outfits with blouses is the high school girl look.

Flannel shirts were trendy in the 90s and were worn by both men and women. Flannel shirts give a cool skater look, and if they are combined correctly, they are also real eye-catcher! The best way to choose a color is when it fits your sneakers. 

An example of a perfect vintage outfit would be a turtleneck top with any vintage Flannel Shirt. Accordingly, you can decide which form or cut you like.

This combination gives you elegance, but you can also wear it well in everyday life. 

  

Outerwear

When it's a bit chilly outside, the jacket likes to cover up the whole outfit. That doesn't necessarily mean that your entire outfit is ruined by it. A proper vintage jacket can even jazz it up. It's important to figure out which direction to go: should it be a coat, college/baseball, leather, or denim jacket?

The search can begin immediately as soon as an answer has been found!

Vintage Jackets often seem quite expensive for second-hand goods, but they are worth investing in. The quality used to be a lot better because the craftmanship increased, and they did not mass-produce at that time. Accordingly, your outfit looks more valuable.

   
There were the essentials for women's vintage clothing. As you've probably noticed, you have to bring your taste into some things, which can be overwhelming at first but no risk, no fun. It's better to try it out to find what you like faster or what suits you best. Once the part is done, it will be easier for you to know what you want in the future. The most crucial point is to be decisive. When you're indecisive, you can't make decisions, and you get stuck at one point. Invest a little time thinking about it, and it will pay off in the end. 

However, you have to stay open to new things, even when you've found your style, because sometimes it's frustrating when you can't find anything you're looking for right away. 

If you realize that you like the item, anything that goes in that direction, then get it. There are no specific rules, especially not these days. It's all for you, and these were just examples. If you found some more vintage items you want to wear, add them to your collection. Sometimes, even when we're thrifting, we find new items without seeing them before. 

 

 

 





Meet The Author

Dan Shewan

Originally from the U.K., Dan Shewan is a journalist and web content specialist who now lives and writes in New England. Dan’s work has appeared in a wide range of publications in print and online, including The Guardian, The Daily Beast, Pacific Standard magazine, The Independent, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and many other outlets.

See other posts by Dan Shewan

Deutsch