Fab fashion finds can be found at South Florida vintage clothing stores
In the heat of the summer, here’s a cool way to shop.
Try vintage, where everything old is new again.
Understand, we’re not talking about just old clothes here — the stuff you generally find at consignment and thrift shops. We’re not even talking about a humdrum blouse from the ’60s.
For purists, vintage needs that something special to make it stand out. Or it’s so evocative of the era — think mod A-lines from the ’60s — that women want to wear it.
“It has to be appealing,” says Angelina Machado, who owns a Boca Raton vintage shop with her sister. “Just because it’s old doesn’t mean it’s appealing.”
The auction site eBay, which does a brisk vintage business, is even more specific. It defines vintage as garments from the Victorian era and earlier, up through the 1960s. Anything from the past 15 years is considered contemporary. Some purists insist that anything after the ’60s is retro, not vintage. Shop owners are looser in their definition.
Whether you’re a purist or a casual shopper, vintage shops are about more than clothes. They’re a delightful mix of history lesson, nostalgia tour and fashion disaster alert. “Ohmigod, I wore that?!”
To get you started, here’s a sampling of South Florida vintage shops. With businesses multiplying at a rapid pace, more are out there to explore.
Understand that for most owners vintage is a passion, not just paycheck. Some are small operations with limited staff. So call for days and hours of operation.
PALM BEACH COUNTY
Vintage ‘n Vogue
1870 NW Boca Raton Blvd., Boca Raton; 561-750-5535
In search of something different, Florida Atlantic University students head to Robert Mejia’s family-owned shop. They scoop up ’70s disco shirts ($18-$24) and polyester knit tops ($10-$24). Also, hats galore. Western, pillbox, netted. Love Me Two Times!
Love Me Two Times
141 NW 20th St., Suite B7A, Boca Raton; 561-620-1998
Within these bright pink walls, sisters Angelina Machado and Lola Dolly have amassed a wardrobe with pieces from the 1900s to the ’80s. For an evening out: an ’80s black suede halter-top cocktail dress with a gold-beaded bib ($190). For a hot summer day, a ’50s white cotton eyelet halter ($58), or a ’50s sweater with glass-beaded palm trees ($55).
One item from the fashion house of What Were We Thinking? Green leather clogs with a 6-inch heel. Not to be missed.
House of Vintage
123 S. Swinton Ave., Delray Beach; 561-276-7477
Vintage house, vintage clothes. Three years ago, Michelle Parparian combined both when she took a 1920s house and turned it into a vintage clothing shop. Lingerie from the ’20s to the ’50s is displayed in the bathroom, which doubles as a dressing room.
Pretty and popular: nightgowns and lingerie worn as dresses or skirts, half-slips ($12 to $17). A ’40s peach chenille bathrobe ($92).
The kitchen is stocked with vintage candy, including candy cigarettes and Sugar Daddies. Don’t miss the ’50s-style cookies frosted in turquoise and pink icing. A real blast from the past.
Miami Beach Vintage
704 Lake Ave., Lake Worth; 561-493-5200
Clothes, shoes, hats, purses: Owner Alena Naron stocks them all, but purses are her private passion. Among her 1,000 or so offerings: a beaded Victorian drawstring ($275), Mandalian mesh purses from the early 1900s ($175 to $350), ’40s and ’50s alligator bags ($295 to $495), ’60s wicker: $48 to $88.
Naron stocks men’s clothing, too. Polyester and Polo shirts from the ’70s. Hawaiian shirts from the ’50s.
Vintage Etc.
519 E. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach; 561-243-3366
For a new twist on the old, shop owner Mary Lou Schillinger looks for aging fabrics, then fashions them into contemporary pieces. Bed linens and tablecloths from the ’50s and ’60s resurface as stylish skirts, sporting original crochet and hand embroidery ($40 to $175). She also searches for classic clothes in desirable fabrics — Indian silk, vintage cotton — and updates the look.
Glam! Vintage 6108 S. Dixie Highway, Suite 3, West Palm Beach
561-533-7557
Pounds of pearls. Twinkling ’50s rhinestones. An abundance of beads.
Along with clothes from the ’30s to the ’80s, Julie Pinello’s shop offers jewelry galore. Everything from a few dollars for baubles to a mother of pearl Art Nouveau pin ($100) and a ’20s beaded purse necklace ($145).
For bargain hunters: A clearance rack is stocked with $5 and $10 items.
BROWARD
Jezebel
1980 E. Sunrise Blvd., Fort Lauderdale; 954-761-7881
Around for 16 years, Jezebel is an old lady among South Florida’s vintage shops. Its terrazzo floor sets a ’50s mood. Then there’s the clothes: a coral-colored ’70s jumpsuit and a screaming bright print that shouts ’60s.
The hot ticket: clothes from the ’60s and ’70s, says owner Mary Ptak. Prices: $18 to $75.
And worth noting: hats from the Victorian era to the ’50s, priced from $50 to $500.
Vintage a Go Go
831-A N. Federal Highway, Fort Lauderdale; 954-767-6441 NO WEB SITE The store looks like a bowling alley, about 9 feet wide and 60 feet long.
Owner Jeannie Matamoros has stocked her shop with things she loves. From the ’40s, sheer blouses ($30 to $40). The ’50s, that I Love Lucy look, including belted dresses with full skirts ($20 to $50). From the ’40s and ’50s, bathing suits with bullet bras and modest shorts-styled bottoms ($20 to $40). From the ’50s and ’60s, purses, included including beaded and patent leather ($18 to $40).
Vintage Diversity
236 W. Prospect Road, Oakland Park; 954-566-7678
This is a hot spot for renting a certain look, with 2,500 pieces set aside for the costume business. Especially popular: leisure suits, QianaÖ fabrics and disco shirts from the ’70s. Lace, balloon dresses, Miami Vice-like T-shirts and linen pants from the ’80s.
A head-to-toe costume rental, including shoes and accessories, runs $85.
Owner Melanie Garbo-Byrnes stocks items from the ’50s to the ’80s that you can buy, too, including clothes, shoes and purses. A sales rack features $5 and $10 items.
MIAMI-DADE
C. Madeleine’s
13702 Biscayne Blvd., North Miami Beach; 305-945-7770
This is the grande dame of vintage shops: 10,000 square feet of fashion fantasyland.
Cited in magazines from Vogue to Variety, C. Madeleine’s attracts the Hollywood set. The occasional celeb — Lenny Kravitz, Naomi Campbell — and A-list stylists shop here, including Patricia Field (Sex and the City, The Devil Wears Prada).
Owner Madeleine Kirsh arranges her staggering inventory in themed vignettes so shoppers aren’t overwhelmed. Victorian jewelry pieces here, wedding gowns there, bohemian styles nearby.
Lots of couture under one roof: Pucci, Oscar de la Renta, Chanel
Prices run the gamut: from $35 for a ’60s sundress to a $10,000 Valentino cashmere coat with sable collar.
By Liz Doup
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
