The time has come for another year’s renewal. Ottawa Vintage-goers kicked it off with high style at the Ottawa Vintage Clothing Show this past Sunday April 13th. Personally I’ve always had a love for vintage since way back in my high school Annie Hall days with wide leg tweed pants, checkered skirts and ties. I always identified with days gone by, a previous era and shrugged off the rock t-shirts and hoodies of my peers, not that there’s anything wrong with that.
Monica & Jessica. Photo by Isabella Morgan.
Sunday I got to relive the thrill of the hunt and browsed every rack, every table at the spacious room in the Ottawa Convention Centre. I was struck by the fresh colours on offer at every booth, from daffodil yellow, to baby blues, summer whites and a vast and glorious array of greens. After such a long and merciless winter, these were appropriately hopeful colours and you could just close your eyes and imagine a lovely garden party in the country, not that anyone really does that any more, but a girl can daydream.
This spring edition brought fresh young faces to a scene of nostalgia for a time they’ve never experienced except though iconic representation. So I decided to ask these young ladies what their thoughts were on the event. Friends Monica and Jessica say the event is “a great opportunity to see a variety of older clothes and they’re all reasonably priced.” Monica elaborates, “I like the silhouette of fifties vintage dresses. I’m a sucker for that, especially in black, my colour of choice.” Jessica tells me “I just love the different colours, everything is so bright and colourful. I’m looking for shoes and pants and coats. Reds have really stood out for me.”
Ashley Thorvaldson. Photo by Isabella Morgan.
Vintage enthusiast and long time vintage shopper Ashley Thorvaldson says, “I think you get a lot of creative pieces here. You get things here you can’t get anywhere else, you get people here you can’t get anywhere else. The glamour that’s been lost in today’s world is all here. I’m aware of the sustainable fashion movement and want to support it. You wouldn’t think that things hanging around in someone’s attic would be that appealing for spring, which is new and fresh, but they have beautiful silk dresses, they have a lot of pastels, some great trench coats, a lot of pearls, cute gloves. I got a 1960’s Kitten brand cape in perfect Easter rose, it’s like a dusty rose. You would have little white gloves to go with your cape holding a wicker purse. You can get classic pieces here too for a third of the price of new.”
Finnish ex-pats and friends Ani and Hanna “We came just to look around and see what’s on offer today. It’s very nice, there aren’t that many vintage shops in Ottawa so it’s a great opportunity. My favourite era is the twenties/thirties, the Charleston flapper stuff. I like the loose fit, not so much the little waists that were in in the fifties. I like the headbands and the tassels and frills. ” says Ani. “It’s my first time at a vintage fair. I actually really like antique boutiques, but I never go and don’t know why. I haven’t got that much vintage stuff actually, so it’s really nice to get into that. I found quite a few things, so I guess I really like it. It’s my new thing. I got a fur coat, a blazer, gloves, sunglasses, a bag and jewellery.” laughs Hanna.
Ani & Hanna. Photo by Esmeralda Smith Romero.
All in all it was a fabulous day spent hearing stories, imagining those behind each piece and foreseeing the new stories to be made with each colourful broche and each spring dress. As for me, I walked away from the jewel of the show, a one of a kind vintage Christian Dior for Holt Renfrew seal skin military jacket. However, I picked up a couple things perfect to complete my summer wardrobe.
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