The Men's Guide To Wearing Vintage Fashion

Few words in any language demand as much awe and respect in the fashion world as the term 'vintage.' Pulling off vintage pieces requires a certain level of taste, fashion sense and bargain-hunting skills that any style-conscious guy would kill to get. As hard and complicated as it might look, the path to true vintage ascendancy starts with a few simple steps that you should try practicing.

Learn What to Look For
Not everything in fashion looks cool once they've been worn and torn by someone else. At the same time, there's an acceptable level of vintage-ness that you can wear. A very fine line exists between fashionably worn and tattered beyond any hope of repair, so you have to find that line as well.

One good rule of thumb to remember is that the less personal an item is, the easier it'll be to wear as a vintage piece. At one end of the spectrum are things like undershirts, which should never be purchased vintage at all; on the other are accessories like beads, watches, shoes and bags, which have little to no direct contact with your body.

A corollary of this is that accessories are always the easiest to find, restore and wear as vintage pieces. Neckties, watches, cuffs and necklaces are all cornerstones of any vintage wardrobe, and are the best places to start for any neophyte. They can be found at practically every vintage store and Salvation Army outlet in existence.

When you're shopping for vintage fashion, you'll want to look for items that are slightly faded, worn or scuffed. It's those little imperfections that give extra character to your outfit. What you don't want to pick are items that are torn and ripped up, because then they'd just look sloppy and dilapidated. Slightly frayed jeans and faded graphic tees are good fashion finds; hole-at-the-knee pants and shredded shorts aren't.

How to Do Vintage
There are two ways that vintage fashion could go. You could use one or two vintage pieces to add some flair to a plain old look. Alternatively, you could also create one whole outfit entirely out of vintage pieces; a challenging option that's also much more rewarding.

Going the accent route almost always means that the vintage item will stand out from the rest of the outfit. For example, a suit, tie and jacket ensemble will have a different vibe when you don a faded graphic tee and distressed boots instead of the typical shirt and wingtips. The trick is to begin with a classic look and then swap out two or three pieces with vintage finds.

And then there's the all-vintage path. There are no formal rules for doing this kind of look, and relies heavily on your knowledge of men's fashion and good style. To keep it interesting, though, you may want to avoid being too matchy-matchy. That is, don't pair faded with faded, and steer away from combining three or more pieces from the same fashion era, else it's more a retro Halloween costume than stylish outfit.

Set Your Sources
On the more practical side of the vintage equation will be your sources of the pieces themselves. Sure, Salvation Army stores and garage sales will always be options. You'll find vintage a lot more manageable, though,if you stick to just two or three places you check regularly, compared to constantly being on the run from one flea market to the next.

Vintage items make a much stronger fashion statement that brand new clothes from the department store often can't match. It's all a matter of knowing how to pick out good pieces and then working with each one effectively.