Blink-and-miss-them: Sales at the best Curated Vintage Shops
Arcade's ends tonight- get on it!
Quick housekeeping: None of the links below are affiliate links (I make no money if you click and buy). I have no personal associations with any of these shops; I follow them out of love for what they do.
Arcade Los Angeles’ HUGE Sale ends Sept 3rd PST. My wishlist at Arcade is probably >50 pieces long. The sale includes SO MANY serious, one-of-a-kind collectibles and designer pieces. Here are some highlights:
Roughly clock-wise from the pants at 11 (top left), then swinging into the middle at the end.
One-of-a-kind jaw-dropping 1950s hand-painted cotton pants. Strawberries and Leeks, oh my!
Abstract patterned 1980s Valentino silk sequin top.
This Leonard Paris jersey wrap dress is so well-priced at $166. These dresses are incredibly flattering, comfortable, and timeless.
High-waited or low-waisted, you decide! These super cool orange denim wide-leg pants by Jean Paul Gaultier have a zip-away belt along the top. They are the best pair of jeans I have seen in a long time, and I am very tempted to get them myself. Orange is such an under-worn color.
Don’t waste your time with trendy jewelry that falls apart after a single season. Save your money and invest in insane pieces that instantly make every fit memorable, like this fringed smiley mouth pendant. Look at that guy’s face! He looks like Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and revelry.
Vintage Moschino is the best for unique and campy pieces that are still wearable. This 1990s Moschino washed cotton denim tube dress has three pop-art oranges along the top, making it both super fun and super sexy.
Another one-of-a-kind hand-painted piece, this time on silk chiffon from the 1970s. It even has a matching scarf that can be worn along the waist or the neck— Come on!
Thriftwares is offering 20% off its entire website until Sept. 7th. Thriftwares might be the online curated vintage shop with the largest selection, so narrowing things down into a handful of highlights feels like a gargantuan task… but here we go (roughly clock-wise from necklace at top-middle):
Hand-blown Venetian glass bird necklace. Thriftwares carries multiple beautiful Venetian glass necklaces, like this one with lemons and oranges (not pictured), but I particularly like this one with doves and red accents.
I have been obsessed with this Norma Kamali set for ages. The off-shoulder top paired with the full ruffled skirt is to die for. Thriftwares is also selling a collared button-down top in this fabric (not pictured)
While on the subject of Norma Kamali sets, this top and pant combo is so good.
Another pant and top set that haunts my dreams is this 1970s Betsey Johnson Alley cat set. It might be the most rare Betsey Johnson piece I’ve ever seen. If you love a good Betsey Johnson, there are so many on this site, like these not-pictured 1990s flora mini dress, punk-label knitted button-down dress, and velvet and lace skirt in such a unique color (all not pictured)
Thriftwares is also great for more everyday, laid-back items. I got my go-to cotton Donna Karen striped button-down from here. There are so many more great button-down tops, like this colorful cotton one, this floral Christian Dior one in silk (not pictured) this gorgeous Jean Paul Gaultier one in silk, and this trippy one from the 1950s/60s (not pictured). *Tip: When searching, use the word ‘chemise’.
Another great piece that I wear all the time is a classic silver chain. If I were going to another silver piece, I might go for this star & moon chocker, this puffy heart necklace (not pictured), or this really cute cat bracelet (in the middle).
I really recommend following Thriftwares on Instagram. They post new stuff to their stories before it reaches the website. That is where I scored my Donna Karen top and silver chain.
*Another tip for Thriftwares: do not wait to the very last second if you want to get something before the sale ends. The website sometimes gets flooded and becomes a bit glitchy.
Last but not least! Omnia-annex- for great items at flea-market prices.
Omnia annex is the bargain little sister to Omnia Vintage. More of the pieces in my closet have come from Omnia Vintage than any other curated vintage store.
The Omnia annex is only on Instagram and new pieces are posted to stories before making it to the main page. Prices are LOW LOW LOW, think $5 - $100. The reason to head over right now is that Naomi, who runs both Omnia vintage and the annex, just moved over a bunch of items from her main store to the annex and is accepting offers!
I think the best grabs from above are the knit long sleeve dress (top-middle), 1980s leather jacket (left middle), the dropped waist striped romper (middle-middle), and the 1980s long sleeve blouse and skirt set (left-bottom).
While you are on the page, you can go to the highlights to see everything that is available from the last drops. Naomi will also bundle shipping, both within the annex and across the annex and her main shop.
Okay, that is all the blink-and-miss-them vintage sale items I can highlight right now. If you managed to find Substack and nap one of these incredible pieces, or anything else from these sales, please let me know in the comments.
I’m glad you’re here and thanks for reading!
Cheers,
~ aha
