Old is the new, new

Last Sunday I attended my first fashion show. The whole event was based around the idea of sustainability in fashion, making something out of old, or finding more resourceful methods for production. We saw an abundance of beautiful clothes some designed using scrap and waste material, recycled and fashioned into something fabulous or others like designer Elena Garcia who utilises Eco-friendly textiles in her work.

But one design caught my eye by Michelle Low-Holder. For her a/w 10 collection she created an all accessory assembly from the off cuts of previous seasons using historical recreated ribbon art. These sculptural art forms demonstrate how what some would toss as rubbish can be transformed into something as beautiful as the clothes they are cut from.

Michelle Low-Holder a/w

This idea got me thinking about our love of vintage clothes and recycling and how the two are not two different. Re-cycling is everywhere, its on my tellybox right now in a car that uses re-cycled fuel and in my garage in the large blue and white bags. With vintage we buy old clothes instead of new ones. They both make us feel good, yet in different ways.

But why is vintage so desirable? Taking time to separate our paper and plastic gives us a do good warm feeling but we get the bargain buzz from vintage. It is usually cheaper to buy than to purchase new clothes and it is reasuring to know that no one will possess the same. In a world where Primark rules what is cheap and fashionable on the high street it is refreshing to whitness more diverse fashions amongst the mass produced. Think the blank paintent chavtastic bags and simple trainer pumps that still swamp our streets.

I search for my vintage finds in charity shops and more recently at The Real McCoy vintage clothing store in Exeter. I could spend hours in there swamping myself in rich fabrics, old jackets and coats. This time coveted for a very on trend camel duffle coat going back forth in front of the mirror, undoing and doing it up again. But there is one problem. Vintage is rarely the right size and I reluctantly agreed with friends that the coat was too ridiculously big. This is where the high street conquers with its quick and accessible sizing, as I can rapidly loose patients when I can't find what I desire in vintage.

However, I have found a new Narnia-esq section in my wardrobe but this magical place is actually my mother's wardrobe. After a disastrous few attempts to prise together an outfit from my clothes I went and found a couple of gems from mums. A zingy tribal inspired black and orange casual jacket and a simple pair of black high waisted jeans. No, they may not be old enough to be labelled 'vintage' but to me they a way to inject a bit of unusual into my generic, common Topshop garb.

Aside from our love of vintage the idea of recycling can also be applied to our existing clothes. I love recovering an item that was once forgotten and left redundant to find that either the fashions have changed or my idea of what is fashionable has altered. For a more drastic approach to a tired wardrobe I have cut a jacket sleeveless and cropped a full length tee to produce new garments from old that have become less desirable over time. This idea was channeled through the fashion shows workshop but instead painting old items black (the ultimate in fashion chic.)


Perhaps this isn't the most practical answer to recycle our closets but it unleashed a creative way of thinking among the guests, whether they smothered the items in sexy black or opted for reduced vibrant pattens.

But as we recycle fashion, fashion takes its own initiative. Vintage has now evolved instead into vintage inspired clothing. You could argue that hypocritically fashion regards itself as maintaining new and innovative visions even when it continues to look behind. This season designers stepped back into the 50's to create the womanly shape, reigning in the waist while loosening the voluptuous skirts to bring back curves.

Louis Vuitton - And god created women!

My latest vintage vibe comes in the form of my new charity shop find. This season's bags have matured into simple boxy shapes in soft leathery hues. The best place to find these classics is the charity shops rather than the vintage inspired new bags from Topshop. Old is definitely the more elite in this case.


The new bag has the boxy shape in a rich dark leather finished with a simple gold clasp and its long handles allow it to fit comfortably under my arm. All I require now is the gloves and cape to match to make me a proper lady. At a meer £3 I rest my case for vintage.