Determining the Age of Vintage Treasures (Part 3)

And so I have imparted all the knowledge I have of vintage clothing labels to you. (If you've missed my previous posts, you may click here to catch up.) When you are shopping vintage or even browsing your local thrift shop, I encourage you to utilize these methods. It's like playing detective. It makes the experience that much more rewarding! Aside from reading clothing lables to determine a garment's age, there are some other tricks...



1. If the label does not have a RN or distinctive mark, Google the name on the garment's label. Etsy is also a great place to search lable names. You can normally get a good idea of how old something is based on what the consensus is. This label is from a dress of mine from the 1950s.

(source)

2. Watch old movies or period movies. Familiarizing yourself with the way a certain era looks allows you to eye a garment and quickly get an idea of how old it is.

(source)

3. Study old photographs; it works the same way.

(source)

4. Familiarize yourself with previous trends in fashion. But you have to be careful with this one since fashion is so cyclical. For instance, in the 1950s, women wore full skirts that usually fell mid-calf. In the 1980s, women wore similar skirts. It's tricky. The pattern above is from the 1980s.

(source)

5. Talk to your relatives! I have learned so much by talking with mine. If I'm not sure on a date for a piece of clothing, I can always consult my mom or chat with my grandma. It makes me feel closer to them, talking about what their favorite outfits were when they were younger.

Looking for more advice?
Well, I hope you aren't opposed to good old-fashioned books. I've learned so much from these:
Dressed for the Occasion by Brandon Marie Miller  
This book is full of gorgeous photos and fashion trends dating as far back as the 1600s.
Fashions of a Decade series (1920s-1990s) 
This one has beautiful color photos as well as written descriptions of fashion trends of each decade.

Happy researching! Be sure to let me know if you make any exciting discoveries :)

Determining the Age of Vintage Treasures (Part 2)

I'm glad you all enjoyed my recent post about determining the age of a vintage garment!
So last week, I explained that the easiest way to estimate the age of a garment is to look at its label. That truth extends here. But now we're looking at a very specific sort of label. It is the mark of the International Ladies Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU), which was formed in 1900.

Their emblem has changed over their years of operation, so it's possible to look at the labels and correlate them to their years. This first photo is of the label inside a petticoat of mine that was made in the 1950s. Unfortunately that is the earliest label I have, but you can find more photos here.

This is a dainty little blouse of mine that was made in the 1970s. Note that this label also includes the RN. (Click here to catch up on what an RN is.) Handy, isn't it?

And this label belongs to a wool skirt made in the 1980s.

Though you won't find this sort of label in all vintage clothing, at least now you can recognize it when you come across it.

Also, I would like to clarify that the things I have been discussing really only relate to US garments. I'm not very familiar with vintage from other countries. If you know anything about those, I'd be thrilled if you would do a guest post! Send me an email: rachelmarie@thequirkypoet.com

To see more photos and read more about the history of the ILGWU click here.
If you didn't catch last week's post, click here.
And be sure to come back next week for the final(?) installment.

Determining the Age of Vintage Treasures

You've probably noticed that I'm obsessed with vintage. Not only do I love vintage for its uniqueness, but also because clothing holds history in the fibers of its fabric. Current events always influence the appearance of our clothing, so by looking at vintage we can learn about our history. 

When I buy vintage, part of the thrill is to be able to research the garment and find out when it came into existence. There isn't much information on the internet about determining the age of a vintage garment, so I thought I'd share with you what knowledge I've gleaned from my researching. It's not very much, and I'm always learning new things, but I'll still break it into three posts. Because this is a blog and not a novel.

(This Brunny sweater vest was made in the 1960s.)

One of the fastest ways to estimate the age of a garment is to look at its label. Garments made after 1959 usually have assigned numbers printed on their labels. The very first number in the sequence is 13670, and these numbers are called registration numbers (RN's).When a clothing company is birthed, it is assigned one of these numbers. 

(This Judy's circle skirt was made in the 1980s.)

Because the numbers are assigned only when the company is created, it does not determine the exact manufacture date of a garment. But it does give a good reference point. For instance, if you think an article of clothing was made in the 1930s, but it has an RN, you know right away that your first assumption was incorrect. So while it doesn't give a definitive answer, it does point you in the right direction. More research should be done once you know the RN and its issue date.

(This Charlotte Russe jean skirt was made in the late 2000s.)

To learn more about RNs and the formula for calculating an RN's approximate issue date click here.

And be sure to come back next week for part two!