Primarily, to be vintage an item of clothing must be old. However, you can achieve a vintage look by wearing vintage inspired clothing and accessories too if you know how to make it look the part. Some key elements can help make your look seem vintage even if the clothing isn’t.

First you must pick your era. Each era had different signature details, cuts, icons and accessories which defined it.

High waisted

Throughout history high-waited men’s trousers were often worn with braces, although this also looks fab on women for an androgynous look. Between the 1940s and the 1960s women usually sported a high-waisted skirt or dress, although the length and cut varied depending on the decade. During the 1970s high-waisted wide-legged or flared trousers were popular with men and women.

Drop waist

If  the 1920s and 1930s is the era for you be sure to go for the tell-tale ‘flapper’ style drop waistline.  In the 1920s waistlines were very low on thr hip and hems always below the knee.

Cardigans

Cardigans were one of the most iconic items of the 1950s and were much more elaborate than today’s counterpart. If you want to add a vintage touch to your outfit this is the way to go, in the 1950s dresses and tops were often short sleeved so cardigans were a must-have. Avoid anything baggy as cardigans were shaped to flatter the curves and often had detailed knits including lace knits, patterns, bead-work and ornate buttons.

Twin Sets

You’ve heard of ‘twinset and pearls’ right? But what is a twinset exactly? A twinset is a close-fitting sleeveless knitted sweater (jumper to us English folk) with a matching cardigan. You may have seen images of these being worn by 1950s housewives and will certainly remeber one worn by Olivia Newton John in Grease.

Accessorise your head!

Prior to the 1960s head-gear was matter of fact. Men usually wore or carried a hat be it bowler, tweed cap, triby or other. Women’s hear-wear changed more dramatically over the decades but they usually wore a head accessory of some kind, even when swimming!

In 1920s it was the cloche hat and the head-band (the kind that goes around your forehead not an Alice band) that defined the era, in the 1940s and 1950s it was all about hats to compliment elaborate hairstyles, although in the 50s they were slightly smaller. The 1950s also saw the rise of the headscarf as worn by Audry Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, followed by the Pillbox hat in the 1960s remembered most notably for being work lots by Jackie Onassis, the extra-wide headband (*Alice band) was also big news.

Brand new from ZukieStyle is this fun kiss lock frame bag which looks like a giant purse! Many of the details on this kooky bag show that this bag was inspired by 1940s fashion from the nude beige of 1940s military girls uniforms to the giant kiss lock fastening, an exaggerated take on the vintage style fastening. There is even a tiny handmade  pin-up girl sitting on the handmade button on the front…

This is your bag if you like pin-ups, polka-dots or bows.

Queeni-B Boutique have been invited by Land of Pash to ‘Pop-Up’ a shop at their debut Vintage and Retro Fashion Fair at Bermondsey’s Biscuit Factory on London’s Southbank. We are very excited to be amongst a selection of inspiring retro traders and passionate vintage fashionistas where we will be showcasing our collection of retro & vintage inspired clothing at accessories from independent designers and cherry-picked vintage pieces alike.  If you pop down you will have the opportunity to try things on before you buy and will be giving special gifts to customers who make purchases on the day. We will be giving out a free entry visa for the event to all our Facebook fans, blog readers & newsletter subscribers a little to closer to the time. There is also rumored celebrity attendance but as it’s all a bit hush-hush we’ll just have to wait and see!

Subscribe to Boutique Secrets Newsletter or become a fan on facebook for updates on the event and to bag yourself free entry thus saving yourself 4 quid (or £2 if you are a student).

Ever wanted the perfect Pin-up coiffure?  I found this fantastic victory rolls tutorial for anyone yearning for 1940’s hair and who hasn’t quite mastered it yet and all you need is spongy rollers, a few bobby pins and some hairspray. I have tried and tested the methods given in this tutorial and it’s definitely worth a watch.

The 1940’s are being inspirational for mainstream fashion once again  as this week the Telegraph supplement Stella Magazine celebrates 40’s outerwear with their ’40s for the Noughties’ 1940’s  fashion inspired photo spread. The shoot features both designer and high-street garments including lots of thick woolen winter coats and a gorgeous tweed pencil-skirt by Next which resembles one I picked up in Asda a few years back. This suggests we might all have a little something deeply buried in our wardrobe or even in the nearest charity shop which we can revive for this seasons hottest look; the 40’s winter ensemble.