Fashion Archives - Page 12 of 17

Velvet Party Of One

So far, 2020 has sucked, but that doesn’t mean our outfits have to. Even though I haven’t actually gone out in since March, I couldn’t resist breaking out my favorite velvet suit. Plus, who doesn’t like some 70s-inspired suiting?

Originally, I bought this suit before everything shut down thinking I would be able to wear it around the holidays, but it looks like socializing in 2020 has been cancelled. Still, I couldn’t just let this beautiful golden-olive velvet suit just sit in my closet for a year.

One thing that’s been pretty nice about being stuck inside is that I don’t have to worry about dressing practically anymore. I can wear a ball gown one day and sweatpants the next. I can wear a full suit on a casual Saturday and no one stares at me for being overdressed. I really hope that, once we can all safely go outside again, we’ll stop caring about being “overdressed” and just wear what we love.

I got this velvet suit from Rag & Bone (jacket here, trousers here) as part of a seasonal sale right at end of February. Originally, the suit would have cost around $1100, but I only paid about $150 with shipping. If you’re looking for an affordable way to pick up great designer pieces, I highly suggest skipping Black Friday and shopping seasonal sales instead.

I did pay a little more for my studded western booties from Givenchy, but I still got them on sale. I first became obsessed with them when they first came out a couple of years ago. I didn’t want to buy them for full price, but years later I was still thinking about those boots, and I found them on sale. While it’s pretty hard to find them new anywhere online, I was able to find some secondhand ones in amazing condition here and here.

My strappy tank top is from Scotch & Soda. And my clutch bag was a present for my 21st birthday.

Photos by Maria

PS: Some of the pictures look pretty close up, but the photographer and I were 6+ feet apart the entire time, she wore a mask, and we purposely chose to shoot inside my home where I would be able to keep everything totally sanitized. COVID sucks, but it hasn’t magically disappeared. Wear a mask. Wash your hands. Get tested when you can. Don’t be an asshole.

Buying From Vestiaire Collective

In my search for reliable secondhand luxury sites, I came across Vestiaire Collective. Even though it worked a little differently than The Real Real, the items came authenticated and they had some killer deals so I gave them a try.

Vestiaire Collective is a luxury resale site that offers pre-owned luxury fashion, home decor, and lifestyle goods. This site operates a little more like Poshmark and Depop in that individual sellers list luxury items themselves on the site. Vestiaire Collective does still authenticate their items, but that process doesn’t start until the item is actually purchased.

The Shopping Experience

Shopping on Vestiaire Collective took a little more research than I had used for The Real Real. Because the items are listed by individual sellers, all the photos, descriptions, and prices are also provided by the seller. This means that sometimes you’ll come across an items that looks red in the picture but is actually listed as orange in the description, or a pair of shoes that are listed as a US 7 when they are really a UK 7.

I was originally looking for a pair of kick-ass leather boots, but the sizing inaccuracies were especially bad for footwear. Also, you can’t return a majority of items from Vestiaire Collective, you can just try and resell them back on their site. So I basically gave up on buying shoes off the site.

I ended up buying a graphic tee from Saint Laurent and a printed dress from AllSaints that I had found and loved a few season ago but never pulled the trigger on buying. The tee was originally in the $400 range but I bought it for about $150 in pristine condition with the tags attached. The dress was originally in the high $200 range and I bought it for under $100 in pristine condition.

The Buying Experience

Like The Real Real, Vestiaire Collective offers financing for items through Affirm. However, I would be very careful about what you finance since it can go off the rails really quickly.

The seller for the Saint Laurent tee shipped it to Vestiaire Collective for authentication right away, however, the seller for the AllSaints dress didn’t send it out until 4 days later. According the Vestiaire Collective’s website, the seller has up to 7 days to ship the item to them before they just issue you a refund.

It took a couple of days for Vestiaire Collective to receive the products. Then it took another day for them to authenticate them. After they were shipped to me, they took a while to be delivered since they were coming from France. Overall, the shipping process took a really long time, especially in the age where you can next-day ship most things. They do offer a Direct Buy option where you shop goods that have already been sent to them, but this really narrows down your options. I just feel like they could find a way to streamline the process a little bit more.

Because Vestiaire Collective uses DHL to ship, you do have the option to sign for your package, which is important when you’re buying more expensive items that you don’t want to get “lost” during delivery.

The Products

When I did finally receive my tee and dress, they were both amazing and matched their descriptions exactly.

Overall, buying from Vestiaire Collective was a decent experience. While you definitely have to do a lot more research into what you’re buying and shipping times are way longer than you’re probably used to, they do have a huge selection of items and you can find great deals since the pricing is determined by the individual seller. You could even negotiate the price down if you wanted.

I made a little list of amazing finds that I’ve come across on the site:

Obsessed With Platform Boots

Platform boots, or Bowie boots, are essential to any 70s-inspired wardrobe. While these boots have been worn by tons of rockstars over the years, I first associated them with the glam rock icon, David Bowie.

The great thing about these boots is that you can find a boot to fit anyone’s style. You can find them in basically any color or patter and with literally any kind of embellishments. Are you more punk rock? You can find them with spikes. Goth? There are plenty of options with black leather buckles. Do you really embrace the “glam” in “glam rock”? There are tons of glam patterns out there for you.

Personally, I prefer to choose platform boots in suede or animal prints. Picking boots that are a little more neutral gives you more outfit options. I’m really in love with these secondhand Saint Laurent Candy boots in brown suede that I bought from The Real Real.