can you dig it?

Another great site I recently discovered: FashionDig.com. I don't even know where to start with explaining how awesome this site is. Part store, part blog, part gallery, part search engine, and so much more, FashionDig displays the best and most vintage looks you will find on the internet.

Some great features: a store locator that brings up local vintage and consignment shops when you enter your zip code; style galleries with archival fashion images from certain eras; and my favorite, the shopping department, which is organized by decade, department, designer, and store.

The decade section is extremely handy for those looking for an item from a specific time frame, and inspires a certain amount of nostalgia. This section not only includes every decade from the 1920s to the 1990s, but also recent vintage-inspired looks and turn of the (19th) century items. Prices vary, although more coveted/specialized clothes and accessories will cost you a pretty penny. (Those on a budget, however, can narrow their search by dollar amount within each decade.)

One of my favorite finds is this belted plaid coat from the 1930s:

I've been browsing through the site for almost an hour now, which proves that it's very easy to get lost in time when looking through all these items.

Another funky find: this abstract floral dress from the 1960s:

I could go on forever. Basically, if you have even a small interest in vintage clothing, check out this site. You won't be sorry (unless you have any work to get done).

indie lovers of the world (wide web), unite

I came across this site in my internet wanderings and had to pass it along. Indie Quarter features independent designers as well as a whole host of other design/fashion/craft goodies. They have a blog, podcasts, galleries, and many links to other fashion sites. In short, it's a buzzing hub that holds a lot under its umbrella.

IQ also is a great source for vintage and retro design. They have featured label Under the Root, which crafts custom, hand-made, retro-inspired lingerie from vintage fabrics, as well as regional crafters who use vintage items in their products.

The only downside is that the site is based in Manchester, England, so many of the events they discuss cannot readily be attended by US readers. But references to the pound and spellings like "favourite" help ease the blow and add to the site's charm.

ooh la la...

A classmate recently introduced me to the site Trend de la Crème, and, like its tagline, "It's Addictive," suggests, I am completely hooked. The site tracks fashion and pop culture trends, and is heavy on photos that back up the writer's assertions that certain items have been popping up more and more on runways and in everyday life. (Their recent post on animal heads was both inspired and hilarious; you cannot believe what some people will do for fashion....)

An example of retro inspirations making waves came in a March 11 post detailing how Basso & Brooke's Fall 2009 line was directly influenced by Russian-born Cubo-Futurist artist Wladimir Baranoff-Rossiné. The connections that the author makes between the clothes and Baranoff-Rossiné's paintings from the early 1900s are incredible, and completely spot-on. From shapes to the color palette, the resemblance is uncanny:

I'm a huge fan of cubo-futurism (and a lot of other -isms, too), and I love that these designers chose such a unique, visually stimulating inspiration for their line. Not only does it promote a great artist, but it shows that great art can be used to create even more art. Love it.

retro gone wrong: and just when it was going so well...

It figures, as soon as I anoint ModCloth as the chosen one, it has to go and post this in its one-of-a-kind section:

I'll give you one good guess as to why this hasn't sold yet: it's ugly as sin. Seriously, guys. Let's try to avoid missteps such as this in the future, okay? I love you too much to see you hurting like this.

a little tip, because i care

As I mentioned before, I'm a huge fan of ModCloth, and while their vintage section usually sells out faster than you can blink, there's one item still kicking around that deserves notice:

Called the "Day at the Beach" scarf, this 1980s piece is the perfect companion to that little red number I posted about last week. Scoop it up before someone else does!

beach blanket bingo

As I eagerly anticipate my spring break that will be spent in balmy upstate New York, I can't help but fantacize about what it would be like were I one of the lucky girls who could afford to jet down to Cancun for the week. And with that wishful thinking in mind, I'd like to post this awesome retro-inspired swimsuit, found on ModCloth.com:



Unfortunately, all of ModCloth's suits in this style are currently sold out (I know, I know, I'm such a tease), but the site is really great about restocking in-demand items, so be sure to click the "Notify Me" link on the page if you'd like an email when they get more in.

ModCloth is one of my favorite sites, since it features lots of funky indie and one-of-a-kind vintage clothes, so you'll be seeing me link a lot to them in the coming weeks. Be prepared to have your fashion world ROCKED, kids.

The "Post" of "Tedious" Fashion Connection

One of my favorite blogs, The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks, has started to gain some notoriety -- mostly because it's hilarious and awesome, but also because so many other sites have linked to it in recent months. With the birth of my very own blog, I couldn't help but jump on the linking bandwagon.

I was prepared to scour the archives to find something, anything, having to do with vintage clothes or thrift stores (or really, fashion of any sort) so I could write a post, only to find this on the front page:

The humor of this site comes not only from the images' fairly self-explanatory grimace-inducing abuse of quotes, but from blogger Bethany Keeley's musings about the "true" intentions of those who so blatantly "disregard" grammar "rules" and make such truly egregious "errors." (That just hurt my head a bit.)

For more evidence of the blog's brilliance, check out the Greatest Hits section on the right-hand side of the page, or just scroll through the archives. If punctuation -- or really, any basic language rule -- is one of your pet peeves, get ready to laugh.

Uh, this concludes today's edition of shameless blog-sharing. As you were, fashionistas.