The last Manhattan Vintage Fashion Trends Show of 2022 will take place this weekend; see you on February 3–4, 2023! drew a line of extravagantly dressed people that extended down the block and out the door of the Metropolitan Pavilion. The three-time-yearly resale event, which boasts 90 of the nation’s leading vintage dealers, attracts everyone from trend-spotters and designers to collectors and enthusiasts of vintage clothing.
The owner and producer of Manhattan Vintage Fashion Trends, Amy Abrams, remarks, “I think the show-goers have a true sense of fashion that’s fresh and original. They are so bold.” They have great perspective, and they are dressed in full antique! I’m always motivated by what I observe, which is quite thrilling!
Manhattan Vintage Fashion Trends Show is the season’s must-go-to shopping event, but it’s more than simply the amazing street style. Instead, what draws people in each year is the amazing collection of vintage apparel, jewelry, and accessories. Items that include the bamboo-handled Gucci bags, the exquisitely worn-in overalls with hand-embroidered patchwork, and the three-piece sparkling Halston suit set (perfect for Studio 54!).
Since antique apparel is now more in style than ever, some fashion trends, including corsets and striking coats, naturally spread from booth to booth. Nevertheless, every merchant stressed the need of purchasing for one’s own style as opposed to following trends on TikTok’s #ArchiveFashion.
Greg Urra of Vintage Fashion Trends Black Label adds, “If you look at the community here at the Manhattan Vintage Show, you’ll see people selling all decades and styles, and everyone is thriving in their particular niche.”
Here are nine current trends that shoppers are drawn to, according to sellers at the Manhattan Vintage Show, if you’re not sure where to begin your vintage buying journey.
Victorian Era
Victorian clothing, which dates from the 1830s to 1900, has gained popularity recently, according to David Moses of Winning & Losing. Examples of such clothing are calico dresses and paisley shawls. Corsets, in particular, have been popular with his customers: “Everything is cyclical in fashion, but sometimes you have to go back a long way to get truly inspired!”
Owner of D Matt Smith Vintage Fashion Trends and co-founder of Newburgh Vintage Emporium, Matt Smith, concurs. “This piece is about 120 years old, but definitely wearable today,” he remarked, displaying a long white Victorian lawn dress with eyelets and lace decoration throughout.
Nightgowns Vintage Fashion Trends
The stars were bias-cut gowns, silks, and evening wear in Toots Vintage Fashion Trends cotton candy-colored paradise of girlie, flirtatious, frilly clothes. The proprietor of the store, Michael Phillips, is particularly aware of the trend and says, “That’s what I always want to have wherever I go.” Nightgowns from the 1930s and 1940s are on vogue.
Due to the trend of “that period being so hot… Think: Courtney Love and other grunge-style girls wearing elements of lingerie as eveningwear,” the store has started adding similar items from the 1990s and early 2000s.
‘90s Casual
According to Sisters Vintage’s Danielle Coleman, vintage trends follow a 30-year cycle similar to that of runway fashion, which helps to explain the current craze for ’90s fashions.
“My mom was shocked that I was wearing those sailor bell bottoms, which she used to wear to school every day, when I was a teenager and I was pulling from the ’70s,” the woman recalls. “At nearly 14, my eldest daughter is dressed in a Vintage Fashion Trends Nirvana T-shirt, torn jeans, and Converse high-top sneakers; these are the current “in vintage” looks for her, and I remember wearing similar items in the 1990s.”
2000s Designers
Smith claims that Y2K designers are extremely popular on the other end of the spectrum. His clients are especially demanding Comme des Garçons and John Galliano from the 2000s. Smith states, “This is no longer how things are made.” Even with contemporary designer pieces, the level of craftsmanship and fabrication found in items from the 2000s is still unmatched; these pieces are constructed entirely of silks, cottons, wools, and other luxurious materials.
Regarding silhouettes, he claims that consumers are drawn to the second-skin clothing, corsets, and halter tops, or the boxy shapes that typified the era’s fashion.
Sheer Fashion
Alessandra Canario of Ally Bird Vintage Fashion Trends, who has been a regular at Manhattan Vintage since she was twelve, adds that the biggest trend she has seen lately is individuals “having fun with layering sheer of all kinds” and sheer garments.
Almost any see-through item may be used to create the effect, such as 1950s nylon blouses and Victorian-era gossamer dresses, which Alessandra claims are quite popular in her store. Additionally, she has observed sheer layering on 1930s and 1940s chiffon dresses, 1970s and 1980s mesh shirts, and 1930s nightgowns and peignoirs.
Chain Belts
The proprietor of Vintage Fashion Trends Black Label, Greg Urra, is well-known for his costume jewelry, which includes clip-on earrings from the 1970s and 1980s. He claims that chain belts are the must-have item for any vintage wardrobe because they can be worn in a variety of ways, including “layered as necklaces, chains, or belts, and they can all hang and drape in many ways.”
Furthermore, they can be adjusted to fit any body type, he says. Depending on your preferred fit and style, you can wear them around your hips or your waist.
Menswear-Inspired Silhouettes
According to Sheryl Roberts of Indigo Style Vintage Fashion Trends, a lot of oversized items have been purchased this season, particularly blazers with male influences that are worn over printed midi dresses, loafers, brogues, and socks—a la the most current Gucci or Miu Miu collection: “They’ve turned that style into a fad, even though it’s just an old trick.”
Additionally, Roberts has observed that her clientele seems to choose “dad jeans.” She remarks, “They’re really cinching it in with a belt, and they’re wearing the jeans like they have a paper bag waist.”
Statement Coats
According to Lexie Griffith of Lexie Butterfly Vintage Fashion Trends, a company that specialized in collectibles from the 1960s and 1970s, tapestry coats are currently in style. She claims that buyers particularly like the “Penny Lane style,” which includes fur at the collars, hems, and cuffs. According to Lexie, “I think people are realizing that the coat really makes the outfit,” so it makes sense to have a big statement-making coat because that’s what everyone will be seeing.
In light of this, Lexie decided to offer a gorgeous purple-and-black floral tapestry coat from the 1960s Country Pacer line that had vibrant purple fur at the cuffs and hem as well as a bold belt buckle. She said, “It seems to be the coat of the moment.”
Leather Jackets
Owner of Allegra Vintij Michelle Radow reports that she has seen a significant increase in demand for leather coats, particularly in the ’80s bomber silhouette and the ’60s/’70s blazer-like fashions with belted waists and lapels. “Any color is amazing,” the woman continues, whether it be white, orange, red, green, tan, brown, or black.
Deals on Designers’ Mariya Korotko and Paige Wilkins concur that patent leather is really popular at the moment.
