Vintage - the new Vogue?

There was a time not so long ago, where high street shops and mass produced clothing lines were the height of fashion. However, lately, there has been a massive increase in people shopping in vintage clothing and second hand shops. With that in mind, I went to investigate. 

Vintage does not always mean cheap, in some cases, it is quite the opposite, some famous vintage shops in London sometimes cost more than designers. But, as the recession is still at the back of everyones minds, paying extortionate prices for clothing is not at

 the list of anyones priorities. 

With that in mind, I have researched some of the most well known vintage stores in the capital to try and find some great deals in troubled times.

Camden is well known for it's clothing shops, it has everything from vintage to goth/grunge in a busy environment. The best place to find cheap but classy clothes in Camden is a little place called 'Cloud Cuckoo Land'. A great attribute to this particular shop is the vast

 range of accessories that are on sale. Usually, in vintage shops it is hard to find good, cheap accessories. But, in 'Cloud Cuckoo Land' there are lots available from floral print to big chunky necklaces. All in fashion for reasonable prices. 

There are many Marie Curie charity shops all over Britain, all raising money for cancer. The good thing about these types of shops is that when buying clothes off of them, you have the added bonus that a lot of this money is going to charity. If you have any old vintage clothing that you do not wear anymore, it would be a great idea to take it in to shops like this one. One of my personal favourite Marie Curie stores is situated in Highbury. This is a very large store, where you can purchase a vast range of high street labels, as well as other items such as ball gowns and wedding dresses. The turnover at this particular shop is very fast, as it is well known in the whole of Highbury, so get in there first if you want to bag an excellently priced item. 

'Beyond Retro' situation in Liverpool street is loved by fashion students, stylists and indie kids. Their unique selling point explains 'we sell dead peoples clothes to meet the sartorial challenges of east London's beautiful people' This is not wrong, this is a large warehouse, packed with an estimated 10,000 items all for extremely reasonable prices. As long as you enjoy bright colors and mix matching your clothes, there is no reason that you wouldn't love to buy items from a shop such as this. On the busiest day of the week - Saturday, the owners of this well known shop put a band on, to keep to entertained whilst you shop. This weekend, Kasms (youtube link at the bottom of the page) will be playing from 3pm, be sure to go and check them out.

With these stores, and many more you will never need to go to mass produced shops again and fear wearing the same clothes as many others. Be sure to check out www.timeout.com to find the latest vintage shops with the best clothing available. 

Heres the Kasm's video - they will be playing at beyond Retro this week.