Auctions - whether Ebay or otherwise - are a pretty common (and oft times inexpensive) way to purchase vintage. Until recently I hadn't been quite brave enough to buy at auction outside of Ebay, but when my friend Cath alerted me to a huge auction of vintage clothes by Lawsons (they are based in Sydney's inner-west with an office in Melbourne too), I had a moment of madness and/or clarity and decided to bid on a few items.
I had absolutely no idea what kind of prices to offer, so I ended up picking amounts that I thought were fair but relatively cheap, and that I wouldn't miss to much if I got the item and I didn't like it. Lo and behold I managed to win one item; this green lace and chiffon 1950s cocktail frock which has joined a couple of my other frocks as decoration for my bedroom. At the moment I'm deciding what to do with it.
The risk of bidding online, of course, is that you can't see up close and personal the quality and size. In my case the dress fits perfectly, but unfortunately the quality is not that great. A few stains can be covered up with a good dye job, and the frayed hem can be fixed pretty easily with a new one, but I'm not quite sure what to do with a small hole in the lace. Any recommendations from the crafty types out there?
Next time they have another auction of vintage clothes, I'll try and find time to pop by for a closer inspection, although at the moment I feel I barely have time to blog, let alone shop (but look out for a post about a couple of new purchases soon ... shopping in 20 minute bursts can sometimes prove very productive).
For some seriously high brow goodies at auction, check out the latest sale over at Kerry Taylor Auctions. She's got some great 60s and 70s British pieces from Zandra Rhodes, Mary Quant and more plus everything from 20s flapper dresses to 90s Versace and everything in between. Sigh.
3 comments:
Oh I've always wanted to bid on some Lawsons items but I always freak out that if I bid on 5 items and by some freakish incidence that I win them all I'd then feel totally ridiculous.
What a lovely piece! I buy and sell online a lot, and get more of my fave clothes that way than brick and mortar stores lately.
Marie @ Lemondrop ViNtAge
Hi Louise,
I also bid on a few frocks in that auction. Sadly I was outbid. As for the hole in the lace of the dress you bought it is quite easy to mend if done very neatly. I've done quite a few mends on vintage lace. Because of the construction of lace it is possible, with patience and the right colour and textured thread , to make the mend look like it is part of the lace. If you aren't in to sewing I'm sure a good mending or alteration store could do the job.
Good luck,
Linda
vintageclothing.com.au
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