Vintage style advice, news, reviews and pictures from the Guardian and Observer
June 2024
Hooked: How crochet became fashion’s hottest trend
The handicraft has shaken off its associations with blankets and tea cosies and is a hit with Love Islanders, Taylor Swift – and retailers
May 2024
Money hacks
How to buy secondhand clothes you’ll love online
Have a bidding strategy and a targeted approach … and train the algorithms
Fraud rife on secondhand marketplaces Depop, Preloved, and Shpock
Survey of 1,300 buyers found 32% scammed on secondhand marketplace in two years, highlighting scale of APP fraud
Speak now: the truth about weddings
Something old: why six brides picked a second-hand wedding dress
A vintage or handed-down dress can be a meaningful, sustainable choice. No wonder pre-loved looks are on the rise
March 2024
Vintage fans in London gear up to recreate 60s mood at festival of mod
Tailor-made suits, live music and – of course – a scooter run are expected at this weekend’s celebration
Wearing a secondhand outfit these days is something to brag about, not whisper
Preloved clothing can be kinder to planet and more affordable – but some worry it will become the next fast fashion craze
Secondhand clothing on track to take 10% of global fashion sales
Closet clinic
‘Let’s give her a relaxing spa day’: how to restore a leather handbag at home
Vintage hunters busy as A-listers look to fashion’s archives for Oscars night
February 2024
Dress to distress: fashion embraces the frayed, torn and deconstructed look
Last year’s trend for ‘quiet luxury’ is already unravelling. Now it’s all about more authentic, thrown-together clothes
January 2024
The latest fashion rules: buy pre-loved labels and just five new items a year
Three new looks, no new clothes – my secondhand styleover
Closet clinic
Australians should cut clothes shopping by 74% for the climate – here are three ways to get started
The Vinted phenomenon: how one woman sold her clothes – and created a billion-dollar company
December 2023
Observer business profile
Beyond Retro’s Steven Bethell: ‘Depop and Vinted aren’t the enemy. Fast fashion is’
His used clothing chain is booming amid the backlash against wasteful consumerism, and now he wants to create new textiles from old
November 2023
‘It’s scarily good’: vintage clothing market is flooded with fakes
Counterfeit clothes have become a profitable industry – and it’s much more difficult for bona fide retailers to stem the tide
September 2023
‘I could see Carrie Johnson wearing this’: tales from my brutal wardrobe detox
Zoe Williams
A friend’s harsh criticisms of my moth-eaten jumpers had me throwing things out faster than she could say: ‘Why don’t you have any normal clothes?’, writes Zoe Williams
August 2023
I bought a secondhand coat I didn’t like for a bargain price. Years later I found out what it was worth
Nova Weetman
I dragged this coat with me from house to house. After Mum died, anything she was a witness to became more valuable to me
July 2023
Craze for vintage Gap comes to the rescue as current sales decline
Australian customer service
Depop says I’m entitled to a refund but Paypal refused my claim. Who is right?
