Shop NorthStar Vintage

I'm participating in a vintage trunk sale with several other Maine dealers.

As the daughter of an antiques dealer, I have spent a lot of time at antiques shows. Even as a child, I loved it. So I am terribly excited for my first "real life" experience selling vintage. And I am thrilled to meet the people who are buying my clothes. I can't wait to see what people pick out from all my crazy inventory.

I have about 200 pieces ready to go, including dresses, menswear, purses, and accessories, from the 50's through the 90's. So if you're in Southern Maine, please check it out!

Goth Redux

Because I work from home, I don't have much opportunity to dress up. And when I do leave the house for something fancier than the post office or grocery store, I have a uniform - black top, black skirt, black tights, black boots, silver accessories, big black bag.

And all of a sudden, thanks to the Goth Revival, I am in style, even if it's by default, and even if it's because I've just been holding on to the look since the first go round, in the 1980's. And yes, I had a Bauhaus record. Hell, I had the extended dance remix of "Bela Lugosi's Dead."

So this Goth Revival lets me embrace the things I loved in the past - like these red winklepicker skull buckle boots from *capricornvintage* (Identical to those worn by the one goth girl in my big northeast university who had a name that was spelled normally and pronounced abnormally. She had a leather jacket with spikes (!) that caught on angora sweaters, and once went to a sorority rush dressed as a nun).

Click photo for link to auction.

It also makes me want to go shopping for more black things, as I always need more black clothes (click photos for link):

Moschino Black Patent Platform Mary Janes at Zappos

Flower/Skull Pendant from Vivenne Westwood

Marc Jacobs Rolling Rings Dress at Nordstrom.

80's Black Ruched Dress on eBay

Dsquared Plaid/Black Lug Soled Booties on Zappos

Buy Local

While listing this 60's pink silk dress, I did some research on the designer, Mary Sachs. According to this site, she opened her first store in 1918, which blossomed into a small chain of stores in the mid-Pennsylvania area, and she was a generous and influential member of the community.

I see a lot of beautiful vintage clothing, made by "smaller" designers, who had a niche in their region.

Her stores were special - I'm sure the salespeople knew their clients, and that the experience of going shopping as as much of an allure as the clothing themselves.

Now it's anonymity in Marshall's, the warehouse overload of Old Navy, or the constant subtle (but not) sales pressure from fake-friendly 20 somethings at the The Limited. Sadly, there are few places where you know the person who made the clothing, and the sales folks are also your friends.

That's why I try to buy local when I can. My links include lots of people in the Portland area (and some outside) who create beautiful things. And I like to buy from them.

Apparently I'm not the only person who thinks that Portland has a great scene. Design*Sponge agrees!