You will be introduced to a different Team member in each new post. Please check out our Team Gallery page here.
Today's featured seller is Maggie Wilds and you can visit her shop denisebrain here.
1. When did you first get interested in vintage fashion & why?
I have worn vintage clothing since I raided my mother's closet as a young teenager. I grew up around some older stashes of clothing and supplemented my handmade clothes with items from the 30s-50s. I frequented the 2nd hand and vintage stores near my high school in Seattle, ca. 1975-78 — a great time and place for vintage.
2. Do you regularly wear vintage?
Every day, but not a full head-to-toe look. I usually mix in a piece or two because much of my wardrobe is vintage.
3. Do you have a Holy Grail?
Let's see… Poiret, an original Dior New Look item, an item from any designer working in Paris during WWII, anything by Charles James. I always joke that I want Peace on Earth, because anything by Charles James is much farther out of reach!
4. If you could visit the atelier of any fashion designer (dead or alive), who would it be?
Claire McCardell. I would love to have visited France with her while she ignored Paris fashions in the 40s, then accompany her home to New York and see her capture the spirit of 20s Vionnet (whom she studied at Parsons in the late 20s) in her breathtakingly modern way. To me, this seems like a great amalgam of knowledge, empathy (with what women would want to wear), means and creativity. I would just like to watch her work.
5. What do you see as the future of vintage?
That's a great question. I am terribly concerned with everyday clothing at present because so much of it is not worth preserving for future use. Designer, top-of-the-line clothing is often well made and beautifully designed, but what middle class people wear is often inadequate.
I go back to Claire McCardell because she dealt so well with constraints, and flourished almost more because of them. I don't know why we can't have solid style and decently paid garment manufacturers creating items worth maintaining and preserving.
6. What is your favorite item in your shop?
You are asking a mother to choose her favorite child! :) I guess I'd have to say it is this dramatic 30s gown that had me at hello and then I found out its label is Jean Carol, designed by the great Peggy Hunt. No wonder it is unusually interesting and beautiful.
Here are a few more items from Maggie's shop:
50s Illusion, Lace, Rhinestones & Rayon Sheath Dress - Gorgeous Neckline M
50s Pink Cotton Game Novelty Print Skirt Masterpiece Prints 1953 Original Artists Design Pastimes S
Early 30s Black Silk Coat w/ Beautiful Silk Moire Taffeta Ties
