Six Six Sick: Vintage a Go Go

One of my favorite hats from the show, shaped like a painter's palette adorned with flowers, from Denyse's Closet

Twice a year, vintage clothing dealers from around the country descend on Metropolitan Pavilion for the Manhattan Vintage Clothing Show. While we have plenty of high-end vintage boutiques in New York, this show is particularly noteworthy as most of the dealers bring out their oldest and most valuable pieces, which are usually kept out of customers' reach. The show organizers were kind enough to give me a press pass to view the show, but unfortunately most vendors don't allow you to take pictures of their clothes. Many of the exhibitors offer rentals for designers, who borrow vintage pieces as "inspiration" for their own collections, and obviously they do not want their pieces to be copied for free. In fact, some of the booths exclusively contained pieces that were too fragile to wear anymore, and meant to be used for design only.

The show is massive, and it helps if you have something in mind that you're looking for beforehand. I was personally on the lookout for vintage hats, which I collect, as well as another 70's era cotton Gunne Sax dress, since I get good wear out of the one I already have. The hat selection was superb, and I ended up leaving with a wide-brimmed wool felt fedora hat, while passing on a top hat, even though I've wanted one for a while. The Gunne Sax dresses however weren't as conspicuous, even though they're incredibly common. Most of the vendors focused on authentic antique and Victorian dresses rather than their less valuable, uber-scratchy "prairie revival" reincarnations.

Anyway, the next show isn't until October, but here's a selection of some of my favorite pieces. A big thank you to the vendors who allowed me to take photographs of their precious collections!