My Vintage

Bold colour, pattern and easy-care synthetic fabrics helped transform fashion during the 1960s and 1970s. Polyester has a reputation problem. Mention silk and we think of luxury; cashmere brings softness to mind, while linen conjures summer dresses and that particular sort of elegant crumpling we have somehow agreed is part of its charm. Polyester is rather more likely to inspir...

Open an old jewellery box and there is every chance you will recognise most of what you find. A brooch has its familiar pin, earrings are usually fairly self-explanatory and a necklace does not present much of a mystery. Then, occasionally, something appears with a broad hinged fitting on the back that looks almost like a piece of hardware rather than jewellery. There is a good ...

Few pieces of outerwear make an entrance quite like a cape. Without ordinary sleeves or the familiar structure of a conventional coat, the eye is drawn instead to that wonderful sweep of fabric and the silhouette it creates around the wearer. Even relatively simple vintage examples can have an extraordinary presence, whether they are made from beautifully woven wool, rich velvet...

There is something wonderfully difficult to resist about a novelty brooch. While some jewellery is designed simply to sparkle, these little pieces often have something else in mind. A dog might peer from a lapel, a bunch of cherries might sit on a cardigan, a tiny bicycle could decorate a jacket and an elaborate bird might appear to have landed there entirely of its own accord. ...

Few patterns have travelled through fashion quite as successfully as the humble polka dot. Instantly recognisable yet remarkably versatile, those neat little circles have appeared on everything from elegant dresses and silk scarves to playful blouses, swimwear and statement accessories. They can feel sophisticated or whimsical, understated or wonderfully bold, depending entirely...