Playhouse Vintage

Vintage Items Just Listed On ETSY!!!!

2010-03-07T01:46:00.000-08:00

There has been a bunch of new items listed this month! Come check out some amazing vintage Etsy.

How to Clean Vintage Clothing

2010-03-06T21:14:00.000-08:00

So you are wondering how to clean your vintage clothing? This can be tough sometimes. Most vintage items do not have fabric tags which keeps us guessing on how to properly care for these gems. When it comes to the unkown it is always best to wash by hand! Unless it is crepe, velvet, taffeta, wool, silk or rayon. These items should be handled by a dry cleaner if you aren't sure how to care for them.

In some cases there are items that are so old and delicate that it is best not to clean them at all. If you are lucky to own one of these museum pieces you should let a specialist conservator take care of your item. The older the item the less likely it will respond to any type of cleaning. This is particularly true of the dry cleaning of old silk. You may not want to remove any of your tags as well because this will devalue your garment.

When you begin your cleaning process it is always good to start with a patch test. If you are prone to doing a horrible job with your new clothes do not attempt to care for your vintage items unless you are planning on taking great care.

There are plenty of sites out there that will help you distinguish the different materials you maybe cleaning. Most linens, cotton and SOME wools can be cleaned. If the wool is mixed with nylon and acrylic it is usually ok to clean. But I suggest not figuring this out on your own and let an expert clean it. Your polyester can be cleaned like a dream if washed in warm water and rinsed in cold.

Rayon is best dry cleaned. Rayons have been known to split and shred in water along with some silks. Make sure you know your fabrics well before you wash silk or wool.

Next you will need to determine the cause of any stains.

Vintage Textile Soak is a proprietary brand that many people now consider superior to Oxyclean. You can use this on a variety of fabrics and get great results. This soap can be bought on the internet but is hard to find locally. http://vintagetextilesoak.com/

Oxyclean can be used on cotton and linen. But you have to make sure you fully dissolve all the oxyclean in warm water before putting your clothes in the mixture. Some items can soak for up to 24 hours if you are ready to take a risk! I only recommend this to you folks that have a lot of experience in handling vintage garments. This product is great on the collars and necklines and is great for many different stains. You can use a fine brush like a tooth brush to clean dingy collars and necklines. I find that if you have an extra durable or thicker textile you can use Soil Love(99 cent store) on it and it gets about everything out of anything. It once removed magig marker off a dress! True story! But you have to really know your fabrics and fabric dyes before attempting this harsher method of cleaning. Zout, Shout and Dryel stain removers can all be used on stains before washing as well.

Things you will need:

1. Mild detergent

2. Towels

3. Stain Remover

4. Rubber Gloves

5. Padded Hangers

6. Drying racks

Preparation of the Clothing

1. Zip up all the zippers

2. Spot check for color- fastness by wetting a hidden corner of fabric with water and detergent

3. Make sure the sink is clean. Use cold water for natural fabrics, like cotton and warm water for synthetic fabrics like polyester

4. Slip on your rubber gloves to protect your pretty hands. Then swish the water and soap until dissolved

5. Some suggest to wash one item at a time but I feel a 2 or 3 is ok depending on how delicate of items you are washing.

6. Add the clothing to the sink and gently move with your hands for a few minutes. If it is cotton or linen let it soak for about 15 to 30 minutes if it needs more than just a freshening wash. Don't over soak it if wool, as that will cause excess shrinkage

7. Drain the water and refill the sink and rinse the soap off your clothes. The secret of a good washing is a good rinsing.

8. If the garment is wool use a plastic tray to slip under the sweater and support the now very heavy weight of it without causing it to stretch. If it's cotton or linen move it into your clean bowl and let residual water drain away. Wrap it carefully in a big bath towel and get rid of that excess water. Use another bath towel if it helps get rid of more water.

9. Repeat if necessary

10. * sometime depending on the fabric I will use a fabric softeners to give your vintage that fresh smell*

Hang the items on a padded hanger or lay over towel or rack.

Tips and Warnings

A. Hang recently worn vintage items inside out for awhile before you wash them to allow any perspiration to dry.

B. Underarm stains from deodorant can be removed by using white vinegar or lemon juice dabbed on a white towel.

C. If you take your clothing to a dry cleaner, make sure that he or she has experience with vintage fabrics.

D. Vintage fabrics are susceptible to fraying, tearing and unraveling during the washing process, so be extra careful.

PlayhouseVintageShop

2010-02-01T15:07:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone... I finally have the store up and running. It is on one of my FAVORITE online shopping sites.. ETSY!!! There are only 18 pieces at the moment but will be listing items daily!!!! Please come by and take a look. I can't wait for everyone to see all the great vintage lingerie I have up! Most of the pics I have up on here are either listed or will be by tonight. Lots more to come tomorrow. Anyhow gotta go! Made my first sale and am off to the post office... Thank you Giselle Dowden for being my first customer.

xoxo, Brandi

P.S Just click PlayhouseVintageShop and it will take you to my etsy store.

How To Shop For Vintage (IN Person)

2010-01-25T22:00:00.000-08:00

Today I am going to teach you how to shop for vintage clothing. This will be a little lesson in what to look for in your future purchases. Mostly, this will be your beginner guide to shopping for vintage. These key factors I’m going to present to you will be things you will look for while shopping for your goodies in person. I know a lot of you shop online for vintage, and that will be another blog about “How to shop for vintage online”.

If you plan on wearing your vintage finds all the time, make sure you buy sturdy pieces that will not be damaged by normal use. So skip on any of those frail pieces, unless you plan on wearing them a couple times. I myself find those pieces are a waste of time and good money.

CONDITION of your vintage finds are very important. You want to find clothing that is durable and in good repair. I have been known to buy pieces that have needed extensive repair and cleaning. This is only good if you are buying for yourself and not to resale(Unless you got it for dirt cheap and it is worth A LOT more). But most of the time it is another waste of time and money. Rarely will you find antique pieces that are in mint condition. If you do find mint pieces be ready to buy and pay a pretty penny for you find. Here is a checklist for checking the condition of your vintage.

* General wear and tear- You will have to check your item in good light! Make sure the hems are still reinforced, the collars are still connected, the elbows and knees are still strong and not thinning. You will want to check the backside of all of your garments as well. Think about it, if you are sitting or leaning, these are areas that are prone to wear and tear.

*Tears and holes- Tearing in any other area besides the seam is a problem. If there is a tear on the seam you can sew it up and in most cases it can go undetected. Tears in other areas are hard to hide. Holes depending on how big can sometimes be repaired and hidden. Unless you have a giant hole and you decide to be creative and use a patch or if its on the arms or on a long dress that you can cut and recreate your vintage item. If your holes are from moths most of the time they are irreversible. If there is moth damage you are going to want to wash item in hot water immediately. This will prevent moth larve from infesting the rest of your wardrobe.

*Mildew- Do not buy any garments that have mildew damage.

*Odor aka Stinky Smells- If you get your item from the thrift store its is highly likely it hasn’t been washed in a very long time. This kind of odor can be removed. Mildew ordor not so much…

*Stains- Ok this is a big one. I have not bought so many pieces because of stains. Over time you will learn what stains come out and which ones won’t go away no matter what you do. I have once removed a stain from someone writing the person's name in sharpee on the collar of a dress. (I will tell you how to attempt this in another blog). Perspiration and mildew stains will not come out.

*Hardware- Make sure all of the buttons or snaps are attached. If it snaps make sure the snaps work. If a couple buttons are missing you can always put new vintage ones on if you need. Make sure all zippers are in workable condition.

*Details- If your items has embroidery, make sure there are no loose ends and the design isn’t coming apart. Check all beading, appliqués, and sequins. It is good to make sure they are all in tact and are secure. Always make sure if your item is missing belts, ties, or any item that is supposed to accompany your article of clothing.

Now that you got your check list and you are ready to shop, there are a few more things you will want to look for when purchasing vintage goods. You want to check for the last few details.

*Size matters- Make sure you buy items that fit with a bit of ease. You do not want to buy skintight items that you want to squeeze into!!! These are old textiles and you don’t want to tear or damage them. It is better to buy a tad too big and you can get them tailored to fit. Remember vintage clothing measurements are different to today’s measurements. So try it on! If buying online check the measurements.

*Labels- This is a key factor in vintage. It is always good to have a label on your vintage. There are collectors that will not even purchase an item without the label. Labels started in the 1880’s. There will be a bunch of little details to look for besides the labels. Is the item hand sewn? Are the buttons covered? Does it have bound buttonholes? Are there metal or handset zippers? Is there a silk lining? Are the seams piped or are there bound seam allowances? These are all signs of QUALITY CONSTRUCTION of any era.

*Fabric- some fabrics hold shape better than others. Check and make sure the fabric is of quality.

*Prints- different prints are significant of different eras. (Yes this will be the topic of another blog)

Hopefully this was an informative piece for you to take in consideration the next time you go out to find your next vintage treasure!!

XO, Playhouse Vintage

Here is to a new beginning

2010-01-22T20:01:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone! I want to take a moment and introduce myself. My name is Brandi Booth and I am a huge fan of vintage. As of the last week I have begun the process of opening my new online vintage store. I am so excited about this!! Recently due to unfortunate circumstances, I have been forced to remove myself from my previous online vintage collaboration. At first I was kinda bummed because there was so much hard work and love put into that company. But, I have realized that this is one of the best things that could have possibly happened! I finally get to be as creative and as productive as I would like to be without barriers. So, I am starting the store, collecting more vintage, getting facebook and the myspace set up, the domain, the etsy account, and all the things that come with starting a successful online vintage store!! I have been collecting vintage pieces for about 20 years. It has always been a passion of mine. No matter how hard I try to get away from vintage or antique items I just keep coming back for more! I feel like every piece has a story. Even as a young child I have loved and admired old family heirloms. With that said it was only natural that I would grow into a woman that loves vintage everything!

With starting this new store I will be releasing some of my own private pieces that I have been carrying around for a very long time. I figure hey, what a good time to clean out the old and get some new old vintage for myself? hahaha So now my soon to be customers will get to enjoy some pieces I have adored for years. This new venture is going to take some time for me to grow and flourish as well as my old company. But with the new year and the new decade I feel that this is gonna be amazing! Watch for the opening of my online vintage store.. It will be coming soon!!!! So please, if you come across this lil old blog of 1 understand that there will be so much more to come.. I will update this as much as possible and am going to be giving everyone hot tips for finding and caring for vintage pieces. I will also give you some of my favorite spots to find great authentic pieces. Hopefully you will enjoy my blogs and get to use my vast knowledge of vintage to help you in success with your future treasures!! xo,B