Taking Vintage Hunting to the Next Level

As you may have seen on my Twitter, whilst down in Bathurst I came across quite the collection of vintage clothing. The boy and I would be driving through town and I'd been spying out vintage boutiques and charity shops from the passenger seat window, like a PI on the lookout for bandits and fugitives. Can you imagine how I must have looked? Aha! That's one vintage boutique. Position noted. The store was closed as it was the long weekend, but we came back after the public holiday. 

All very lovely it was. They had a great collection of items ranging from clothing and accessories to vinyl records and furniture. There was a lot that I wanted to splurge on such as a gorgeous purple 1960's cape and golden Glomesh evening purse in it's original boxing, but I had to restrain myself and think of the plane ride home. We only had carry-on luggage. But me being me, these thoughts were quickly forgotten as soon as I took a walk up stairs to the second level of the store. 

Nothing seemed too interesting at first as I traveled through the racks. I wasn't expecting to find much as a sign declared that all up stairs items of clothing were $5.00 each, a lot cheaper than what was downstairs. However, all of a sudden a burst of yellow was seen out of the corner of my eye. And if you know your vintage you'll know that this kind of yellow ain't the kind of yellow that appears in clothing stores today. I followed my vintage hunting instincts and grabbed the item off the rack, my heart skipping a beat as I realized it was a beautifully conditioned 1960's maxi dress. All buttons and zips intact and with a sweet empire waist line. Mine. This process repeated subsequently with more and more eagerness and urgency as each dress was discovered.

I ended up getting an entire bag overflowing with vintage maxi dresses. At $5.00 each, and considering how beautiful they all were, I didn't care. Coming home that afternoon however, I still was not satisfied. I kept dreaming of dresses that I'd left behind, thinking that they wouldn't fit me. I had to go back again. They needed to come home with me.

And so a couple of days later I did. And again, I went overboard and bought every dress from the era they had in stock, as well a cream 1960's suit (I wore the jacket here), a woolen skirt, a blue 1970's blouse with the most amazing sleeves and collar I've ever seen and a beautiful embroidered tunic. The gentleman who owned the store was disappointed when he found out I wasn't a local. I think he knew just how often I'd buy from there if I was. 

It wasn't until we began packing for the trip home that I realized how impulsive I'd been. We didn't have any space, but being the determined gal I am I achieved the impossible and packed about half of the load that I bought (which also included quite a few other accessories and such that I haven't shared here). Having to catch a plane the next day and with a ridiculous armful of clothing that wouldn't fit in our luggage I raced around the entire town looking for another carry-on bag. I wasn't having any luck and ended up having to buy a canvas grocery bag to bundle them all up in. As a result of this I think I actually lost one of my dresses at the airport; a beautiful cream 1960's mini with an olive green bow and matching covered buttons. I hope it went to a nice home!

Have you ever taken your vintage hunting to the next level, or gone a bit overboard? 

I'd love to hear your stories!