Vintage is back in Fashion at the Dublin Co-Op
After reading several very well researched studies on how old our world is, I reached the conclusion that there are a lot of people who don’t seem to agree! Scientists and creationists all belief differently and on both sides has come up with their own arguments and proves of their own research, theories and convictions. We humans love delving into the past and we have an insatiable appetite for things that went before. Even fashion reverts back to the past and often returns. The comeback of the 70’s and 80’s fashions are still vintage years that seem endless and eternal. Our museums have managed to collect artefacts that are so old that we find it hard to belief at times that people used to live like that and used those things to function in their daily lives, well I do. So what am I rambling on about? Vintage, vintage, vintage!
Ruby Lane is the biggest marketplace in the world for antiques, vintage collectibles, vintage fashion, fine art and jewellery and explains vintage as: “an item described as ‘vintage’ should speak of the era in which it was produced. Vintage can mean an item is of a certain period of time, as in “vintage 1950’s” but it can also mean (and probably always should) that the item exhibits the best of a certain quality, or qualities, associated with or belonging to that specific era. In other words, for the term vintage to accurately apply to it, an item should be somewhat representational and recognizable as belonging to the era in which it was made.”
Vintage still makes it into many houses in the form of old coffee mugs, old rugs, chairs and cats (the one on the window sill that came with house) and many collectors live for the idea of finding these collectables at fairs and car boot sales. They were once upon a time expensive items and therefore, still holds value and create a richer atmosphere in homes where collectors or fashionistas live, provided they are undamaged goods you have purchased. Sometimes, people get confused when it comes to the difference between vintage, antiques and kitsch, because these terms all refer to something old, something from long ago. Antiques are usually much older and I think of furniture when I hear the word; old grandfather clocks, bookshelves and majestic finely carved desks, that kind of thing. According to Merriam Webster, an antique is “a relic or object of ancient times” or “a work of art, piece of furniture, or decorative object made at an earlier period and according to various customs laws at least 100 years ago.”
Image Credit: thelifeofstuff.com
On the first Sunday of every month, the Dublin Food Co-op has a Pure Vintage and Craft Fair at Newmarket, Dublin 8 and collectors sell their collectibles and crafts at very reasonable prices. I paid the fair a visit over the weekend and saw a few old things that brought back the memories not just of my childhood but of the assembled. There were old vinyls, rubric cubes and dye cast metal toys, and trinkets and porcelain by the buckets full. It is a very nice place to visit when you have nothing to do on a Sunday and I recommend you make a day of it if you are on the hunt for vintage and older items.
I love the little novelties that used to be fashionable, like the tin boxes and string bags – you buy them not sure what you will put into eventually. The dresses, shoes and coats are something I used to wear when I was still into fashion and the 60’s, 70’s or 50’s made it back to the catwalk, but these days I am stuck in my oldest jeans and cover myself in whatever is clean. There were many stalls with vintage garments, shoes, old coats and jackets. There was vinyl in the plenty full and sold at bargain prices.
The Dublin Food Co-op is a market that sells organic, local, Fairtrade and sustainable produce and also has a hall for markets, fairs and food-fairs. It is open on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The Co-op is membership owned and the members pride themselves as democratic food sellers. This market place has a very interesting story to it. It was formed by a group of friends who were involved in a campaign to stop the government building a Nuclear Power Station at Carnsore Point, Co. Wexford. In 1983 they bought in bulk vegetarian whole-foods and other sustainable living products to save money and thus the market was born.
The Co-op operated from St. Andrew’s Resource Centre on Pearse Street until 2007, weekly every Saturday. In 1991 Dublin Food Co-operative Society was formally registered and moved from St. Andrew’s to Newmarket no.12 in July 2007, in order to expand and for a more permanent location. In their own words, “In short, Dublin Food Co-op is a vibrant community that goes far beyond food. True to the co-operative tradition, we offer an alternative to the profit-oriented business model – surplus funds are used wholly to benefit members by reducing prices and improving services and facilities. The Co-op is 100% owned and controlled by its consumer members,” Dublin Food co-op.
That was the trip down memory lane the Pure Vintage Fair took me on. In the times we live in people tend to forget who they once were or where they came from and objects can take you back in time – like a time-travelling machine. Vintage cost less to collect and buy up than antiques though antiques are rare and more costly to keep, but I love them still the same. If you are new to Vintage and unsure if you are about to invest in Vintage then there are very good books and catalogues you can get on sites like Amazon to help you identify your Vintage or Antique items. I’m glad to see that places like the Dublin Food Co-op have markets like these going in Dublin City and will definitely go there again next month for some more bargain hunting.
