Besides helping people develop their own fashion identity through mixing clothing and accessories from the past with more modern designs, vintage garments teach us to appreciate the superior quality of these garments compared to most mass produced items we find today.

The history of fashion is a mirror to the future. Nearly every style has already been done in some form and is reproduced with variations today. Every season we find many of the top fashion and textile designers in the world coming to C. Madeleine’s to shop for inspiration. They spend hours searching for pieces from the past, which are then resurrected when the “new” designs are introduced on fashion runways in New York, Milan and Paris.

The popularity and demand for vintage pieces is growing so quickly because clothing and accessories are great collectibles and also a good investment. Vintage pieces offer high quality and unique style, and when going to events or parties, you won’t look like everyone else. Vintage fashion stands out. 

Reasons to buy vintage clothing include:

• Unique or almost unique: many items were custom-made, and others were manufactured in small quantities only.
• Good quality: they were designed to be worn for years and passed on to other family members, so they were made of robust materials, well-cut and well-made, with generous seam allowances and hems which allow for alterations and custom fit.
• Fine materials: many of the unusual older fabric types are no longer manufactured, or are now prohibitively expensive.
• History: an appreciation of the past, the roles of previous generations and the skills of respected designers.
• Detailing: hand finishing, unusual buttons, hand embroidery, handmade lace, crochet, applique, beading and other techniques.
• Style: vintage clothing has traditionally been the favorite of creative personalities because it offers an enormously wide range of imaginative styles.
• Investment: some people buy to collect rather than to wear, and increasingly, good quality vintage garments especially items by well-known designers are sought after by collectors.
• Union made: many vintage clothes carry a union label, thus avoiding labor practices in third world countries that are regarded as abusive.

Whatever the reason:  personal style, collectible compulsion, or just for fun, we know you will enjoy finding and wearing vintage treasures at cmadeleines.com.