���I love you in that dress!��� my best friend declared as we embraced and air kissed our way into an old school mate���s 30th birthday party.���Aw, thanks, love��� I smiled, ���but I���m afraid this might be it���s last night out ��� it���s gone from awesome to totally flawsome. See the run? I caught my bracelet on my sleeve!��� I was in a state. One sleeve was now sadly decorated with a fraying ladder. Damn that bracelet. And damn my favourite dress for breaking up with me.���Hey, I know, why don���t we rip the sleeves off ��� then it will be totally awesome again!��� A solution for every catastrophe ��� that���s why she���s my bestie.Throw it out? Buy something new? Oh yes, that���s definitely an option. Hey I am female and I do love to shop��� ���My name is Audrey, and I���m a shopaholic���. Admission complete.But how can I part with such a beautiful dress? It���s developed it���s own personality over the years, a bit like Kylie���s bum. Unconditionally loyal, it has seen me through boyfriends and breakups, tequila slammers and the porcelain bus. Cheers and tears ��� the works. I love me in this dress too and I���m never letting it go.Here���s a thought. I came across this Melbournian bred idea called ���buy nothing new���. Tricky and intriguing. Melbourne is often referred to as the fashion capital of the southern hemisphere. Buy nothing new? Outrageous. Impossible. With fashionistas and fabulousness oozing from boutiques across the city? No way. This is why, however, that I, a self-confessed shopping addict, really like the idea: Anyone who knows anything about fashion, appreciates everything about a beautifully tailored, lovingly made, exquisitely embellished item of clothing. And anyone who loves wearing clothes, would surely rather not wear anything mass produced and common. Enter ���vintage���. A word that now not only comes before the word ���cars���. A word now on many girls lips. A ���must do��� now on many girls��� wish lists. A trend taking off across the globe because girls care about and respect clothes that have withstood the test of time. Gossip Girl girls wear vintage. Kate Middleton wears vintage. Mandy Moore wears vintage. Beyonc�� wears vintage (ok it���s Chanel and we can���t all afford that). Loads of celebs are mixing it up ��� it���s the way to do it now if you want to express who you are and wear something totally original.The challenge of buying nothing new, even for just one month is one of the most exciting and creative adventures a girl can embark on for her wardrobe. Challenging because you have to go on a treasure hunt and it takes time (remember time?). It���s not the fifteen minute trip you take to your fave designer store on your lunch break. It���s not the five minute click frenzy when the boss isn���t looking and you order something gorgeous. It���s an actual process ��� an excursion for your often underused imagination. It may involve specific alterations and a trip to the dry cleaner, but there is no doubting the freedom and originality a vintage treasure hunt will inspire in a girl who loves her clothes.If you haven���t tried vintage clothing and you haven���t had that ���I love you in that dress��� moment, then try it. Your wallet will thank you, your sense of adventure will thank you, your ego will thank you, the planet will thank you (for recycling) and your friends will admire you. Here���s a quiz. Pick your favourite statement:���Oh, I love that dress, I saw it advertised������I love that dress, is it Scanlon?��� *���I love that dress, I almost bought it yesterday������I love that dress, where on earth did you get it, you look amazing and hot and original and I can tell you have real imagination!���The latter is my favourite response. A response often reserved for somebody wearing a vintage stunner. (And, honestly, as a lover of fashion and shopping, I can cope with any of the above compliments, you���ve got to take what you can get, right?)Check out sugarandash.com.au for clothes that have withstood the test of time.Deluxe vintage made lovingly decades ago.* ���Dear Scanlon, we LOVE Scanlon!���
All sorts of Unique, Fabulous and Fun vintage finds plus giveaways!