Baubles, Rouge & Tulle: Holiday Vintage Sale

Photo by Tate Carlson

By Stephani

Meghan McAndrews and Rae Danneman are at it again! The lovely ladies from High Plains Thrifter and Bourbon & Lace (respectively) are preparing for the second installment of the Mighty Swell Vintage Sale.

Where: Tarnish & Gold, 1511 NE Marshall St., Mpls.
When: Dec. 11, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., Dec. 12, noon – 5 p.m.

Here’s what’s up: Meghan and Rae are both bloggers and vintage lovers from Minneapolis who wanted to sell their vintage finds on Etsy. But with full-time jobs they found out that they had plenty of stuff to sell, but not enough time to photograph, measure and list it all.

Meghan read up on pop-up sales and decided she wanted to try to put one together. She and Rae met over happy hour and they decided to take on this new venture, and the Mighty Swell Vintage Sale was born! The first-ever Mighty Swell Vintage Sale was in October at Umber Studios.

Here are some of the things we found at the last MSVS

• Kolina got an adorable checked blazer and a floral print dress that was tailored for her while she shopped.
• I got a camel-colored fall coat for just $12 and an oversized sweater that I have been living in this winter.
• Guest writer, Kristen, snagged some oxford heels, a red button-up cardigan and a braided brown belt.

And that was just the tip of the iceberg! The team greeted early birds with coffee and donuts and could magically take credit cards using their iphones (there’s an app for that?).

As I mentioned earlier, tailoring is done on-site (Saturday) starting at just $5. That means you get to take your goodies home and they already fit perfectly!

The last sale was to-die-for so I suggest you don’t miss this one – it’s going to be even bigger and better. Plus, there will be Christmas cookies and holiday music. How can you compete with that?! I spoke with Meghan to get the lowdown on the latest pop-up of Mighty Swell and more about vintage. Here’s the scoop:

Vendors: Bourbon & Lace, High Plains Thrifter, two birds, Geisha Pearl Vintage, Salvaged Strawberry, Tulabaru, Teacup Vintage and new this time around: Top Drawer Vintage, Atty’s Vintage, Saving Latin and Minnehappiness.

What to look for: Gift items that are one size fits all (handbags, wallets, purses, belts), holiday dresses, housewares, home decor, winter coats, rings made from clip-on earrings, hair pieces, fur-trimmed collars, sweaters and skirts. Everything is listed at a very affordable price point. Seriously though: dresses start at $12; jackets and coats at $15; bottoms, skirts, accessories and blouses start at $5.

Photo by Kate N.G. Sommers

Q: What do you love about vintage?

A: I think I definitely fell in love with it when I found out vintage clothes fit me so much better. I think it’s discouraging to ladies who have a certain body type to shop at mainstream stores. I realized how comfortable I felt. It’s affordable and there’s more quality in the construction and the fit. I feel at home in things that were made a long time ago. It has a lot more character, particularly in housewares and décor.

Q: How can someone who doesn’t wear vintage (yet!) incorporate it into their wardrobe?

A: A lot of people think it’s costume-y. It’s more just about making it your own and using things that you are comfortable in. You don’t have to go head to toe, mix vintage in with what you’re comfortable wearing. Accentuate with a belt, it adds so much to what you’re wearing. I just try to buy things that I love. I’m not trying to be Joan on Mad Men and I’m not trying to look like I stepped out of a certain era. Wear things you like and you’re comfortable in. Think creatively. Think about how you could belt a big blouse, how you could wear an ugly ’80s sweater with leggings and heels to make it work.

Q: What do you hope will come of the Mighty Swell Vintage Sale?

A: I think Rae and I both hope that it will continue to grow and be an event that people get excited about and look forward to. We want it to be a continual event that generates excitement. We would love to continue to grow and establish better relationships with venues and try new ideas.

Your turn vintage-lovers! Do you have a favorite store in the TC where you find great vintage pieces? Were any of you at the last Mighty Swell sale? Leave some love in the comments or write to me at [email protected].