Does your vintage wardrobe have to match your vintage house?

[Stearmen]

My house was built in 1964 and yes I dress the part. In the winter you can often find me in a sweatshirt, blue jeans and my ankle boots. If you look up Steve McQueen you will see him in similor garb on one of his Triumph's in the mid 60s. I must have been subconsciously dressing like him! I'm going to look at a 1904 house tomorrow, not sure who I will have to dress like if I buy it?

 

[Drappa]

Joel, it wasn't meant to be a criticism of you, and if it came across that way I apologise.
The thing with being completely period accurate is that it can ce a complete pain and take up much of your valuable time, so you have to know why you're doing it. If, as Lizzie says you just love that era completely, then by all means go for it.
To me it sounded a little like you were wanting to do it not *just* because of interest, but out of a desire to achieve some kind of perfection in order to be taken seriously, which isn't necessary. If that wasn't how you feel, again I apologise.
Like others have said, it's much more important to love the house you buy as you may well spent decades in it. If you're still new to the "vintage thing" then you may actually find that your taste changes and you start to prefer different eras or decide different fashions suit you better. Many others have! Don't sweat it, because it's important you feel confident and happy in your clothes and your home, not other people.

 

[Deleted member 16736]

Joel, it wasn't meant to be a criticism of you, and if it came across that way I apologise.
The thing with being completely period accurate is that it can ce a complete pain and take up much of your valuable time, so you have to know why you're doing it. If, as Lizzie says you just love that era completely, then by all means go for it.
To me it sounded a little like you were wanting to do it not *just* because of interest, but out of a desire to achieve some kind of perfection in order to be taken seriously, which isn't necessary. If that wasn't how you feel, again I apologise.
Like others have said, it's much more important to love the house you buy as you may well spent decades in it. If you're still new to the "vintage thing" then you may actually find that your taste changes and you start to prefer different eras or decide different fashions suit you better. Many others have! Don't sweat it, because it's important you feel confident and happy in your clothes and your home, not other people.

Thank you, Drappa. Some posters here have misinterpreted me and thought it was cool to give me a hard time or mock me or insult me frankly for asking a simple question. I don't understand why it's okay to obsess over a zipper, but not give thought to how your house fits into your vintage lifestyle. Anyway, I'm glad to see other posters like you making a positive contribution to this thread. You don't need to apologize at all. I appreciate your contribution. I never bought a house and wouldn't "put the cart the before the horse" by buying a house to suit my wardrobe. Even so, a 30's wardrobe worn in a 50's home would seem peculiar to me (as opposed to a 50's wardrobe in a 30's home which makes perfect sense!). Maybe it's my own fault for starting down this road of dressing/living vintage. Or maybe my mind has a harder time than others processing incongruity.

Thank you for giving me your opinion. I value all sincere opinions. But obviously, I should not discuss this publicly and just make up my own mind about it.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

It depends how "hardcore" vintage you're going to be. I guess if you were that "hardcore" (i.e. folks that live their lives as if it were still 1921 - real life everyday re-enactors) the question wouldn't come up. But then again I suppose that if you're thinking about it, you may be leaning towards that end of the "vintage spectrum".

I would find it very difficult (1873 farm worker's cottage) to get around in clogs and rags, to be honest.

As an example, we just replaced the fireplace in our house, but with the 1903 model rather than the 1860s model that would be "period accurate". I figured that the number of 1860-1880 houses I saw, when looking to buy, with early 1900s fireplaces outnumbered the number with the original model fireplaces. I figure most people upgraded (it would be necessary as cast iron fireplaces are really quite fragile) and thought nothing of it. The early 1900s models are also much more attractive to my eye, and it's certainly an improvement from the horrid 70s electric bars, so we thought nothing of it. I know people who are horrified at our wanton desecration. Different strokes.

bk

 

[Flicka]

I would much rather live in an older building but so would everyone else, so they're much more expensive, so I've compromised. I'm willing to go on doing that to get more space, but I can definitely see why someone would make a different choice. I know my BIL would never live in anything built after 1935.

 

[Vampyre Master]

Hi all i love my period home, decor and dress but when I rise in the morning its good to have a boiler going and if I need to message here I have the PC.
regards
just enjoying life , it too short for hassle
VM

 

[kamikat]

For most people, a house is the biggest purchase they'll ever make in their lives. There are many factors that go into choosing a house. When my husband and I were looking, era that it was built was only one factor in a long list. You have to make compromises. We wanted a house near a subway station, had a decent sized yard for our dog, was in a good school disctrict for our kids, was in a low crime area, was in our price range, in addition to being mid-century. The house we bought had everything except being built before 1965. In the end, the year it was built wasn't as important as the other factors. Most people don't find the perfect house. If you have time to wait and wait, and look and look, go for it. If your lease runs out in 6 months or you're getting transferred to a new city and need a house NOW, compromise.

 

[ButteMT61]

I've got 15 chickens in the backyard. They're all dressed vintage today.

 

[MissMittens]

I'm not sure on this one...........I would say that I picked a random era based on my love of all things deco, and just ran with it. The house I'm in currently is far older than that period, so there would have at least been items from that era at the house during the actual period. That being said, would I dress to match the decor? Only for events, certainly not for everyday wear.

 

[Flat Foot Floey]

Just to answer this for myself: No I don't do that. I am far too lazy and too stingy. I spend all my money on clothes and books. I am less interested in furniture...or cars and motorcycles for that matter. [huh] I Thought about buying shellack records but even that is too much hassle for me. CDs or even MP3 are fine. Some people would disagree! And I now some who would!

Maybe one day I will feel the need for "total immersion" but till then I am just a modern guy with some nice vintage clothes and great books on the bookshelve. Good enough for me.

 

[Chasseur]

Maybe one day I will feel the need for "total immersion" but till then I am just a modern guy with some nice vintage clothes and great books on the bookshelve. Good enough for me.

This about sums me up. When I have more time and money (hahahahahah! yeah right!) I'd like to get more period art deco etc stuff for the house and maybe, just maybe a Citroen Traction Avant... but otherwise I'm good with vintage style clothing and accessories. In college I attempted to do near-total immersion for mid-18th century so I'm not eager to do all that again even for the 1930s.

 

[deco_droid]

Well, someday I would love to own a vintage 30s Tudor style home, but the only ones we could afford barely had 1600 sq.ft., so we ended up in a newer home with vintage furniture and clothing.

 

[St. Louis]

Well, that was my problem exactly -- I moved to St. Louis a few years ago for my current job, and discovered good news and bad news. The good: I was actually able to afford a 1929 bungalow on my tiny salary. The bad: the house matches my salary -- about 1000 square feet. To get back to the original poster's question, though, I recently acquired a late 1930s couch and matching chair on Craig's list, which inspired me to begin redecorating the house to that era. I've always favored a slightly earlier look -- late 19th to early 20th century. I thought it was time to match the house to my clothing, which tends to be more 1930s and 1940s. My real goal is to be able to throw a mid-to-late 1930s party here in September, so I've been slowly changing and tweaking a few things. Fortunately, I can sew, so the curtains and couch pillows were easy. I've found vintage switch plates and electrical outlet covers, and I traded a friend of mine some Chinese food in exchange for rewiring lamps and vintage fans with rayon-covered cord and repro plugs.

The adventure continues ... I agree with an earlier poster that it could be hard to justify Arts & Crafts era furniture in a depression-era bungalow, but I decided that I had "inherited" it from an earlier generation.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Well, that was my problem exactly -- I moved to St. Louis a few years ago for my current job, and discovered good news and bad news. The good: I was actually able to afford a 1929 bungalow on my tiny salary. The bad: the house matches my salary -- about 1000 square feet.

I feel your pain. I've been living for over twelve years now in a 953 square foot house, and living in such condensed circumstances means being realistic about what you can fit into it, and in carrying a tape measure whenever one is shopping for furniture. People tend to forget that the people of the Era tended to have, generally speaking, fewer possessions than the average modern person, and their houses tended to be built to reflect that. And the furnishings they did have tended to actually be smaller than the modern equivalents. So if one has a king-size bed, for example, one would be advised to measure the stairway and the doorframes very carefully before buying a Golden Era house.

 

[ButteMT61]

...The adventure continues ... I agree with an earlier poster that it could be hard to justify Arts & Crafts era furniture in a depression-era bungalow, but I decided that I had "inherited" it from an earlier generation.

Yeah, trying to fill a house with Stickley or Tiffany can strain one's depression-era (2012) budget lol

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

One feature of many Golden Era houses that I love are built in book shelves. Books were one thing people seemed to have more of back then than the average person today.

 

[John in Covina]

Everything for me is piece meal I don't have the funds or the time to do it the way i'd like too.

 

[Undertow]

I think two of Lizzie's points are quite important.

1. Purchase a structure you feel is sound and meets your requirements in relation to a new home. Don't purchase based on a build date.
2. Consider that older homes get "smaller and smaller" relative to your possessions.

A build date means nothing more than the year it was built. People of the era would have purchased homes, sold homes, torn homes down, remodeled, etc. so a specific build date would not have been as important as structural integrity and functionality. Personally, my lady and I specifically looked for apartments built in the 10's and 20's because they offered built-ins, interesting layouts and beautiful brickwork. We're pleased to be in our new residence that is 102 years old!

By the way, I don't think it's silly to consider these details at all. I see nothing wrong with full immersion if that's truly the person you are. Just think it through though - remember, people alive in 1930 were people; just people. They dealt with the technology available, the innovations of their era, the popular ideas of the time, etc.

Personally, what fascinates me is just how awesome some of the products were, or how beautiful the architecture was, or how humbling life was, or how wonderful entertainment was. So that mindset is reflected in the facets of my life. For instance, I made toast this morning in a 1930's toaster - and it was WAY better than the toast I used to make in my 2005 Hamilton Beach toaster. Why? I have no clue, but it was crispier, more thoroughly cooked, less "dry" so to speak. It was like I put the toast in an oven. So would I recommend a 1930's toaster over a modern one? Only if you liked baked toast, I guess.

 

[ButteMT61]

...By the way, I don't think it's silly to consider these details at all. I see nothing wrong with full immersion if that's truly the person you are. Just think it through though - remember, people alive in 1930 were people; just people. They dealt with the technology available, the innovations of their era, the popular ideas of the time, etc.

That begs the question: how far will one be willing to take it? No TV? Washer/dryer? AC?Until 5 years ago, my 1906 had no HVAC and still only has one bathroom. We raised three kids that way - using the fireplace for heat in the winter and open windows for the summers. I finally caved and got us HVAC - mostly for the AC as we all love the fireplace (wood) and cooler temps. Even though my clothing doesn't match the era of the home's birthday, we do live pretty simply...

 

[Bluebird Marsha]

I do see where you're coming from. But what is the housing stock like where you live? If you're near my mom in Florida, the options would be somewhat slim. It's pretty much all 1970s or later. But if you lived in Nashville, the options are 1800s farmhouses, 1920s bungalows, and 40s and 50s and plenty of it. You could spend 80,000 on a complete fixer upper, or 300,000 on a house that has been updated in a period appropriate style (and a lot of bungalows updated with steel appliances, granite counter tops, and hotel style bathrooms-blech!).

Forgive me if I'm making assumptions, but your wardrobe reflects a vision of how you see yourself. The house is the "frame" in which you place that self. I do think you'd be happier with an older house, simply because newer houses just don't have the right "feel". I do look at my vanity table, my hats, and my books- and when I think of the home they and I belong in, new just doesn't cut it. But you do need to know what your tolerance is for lacking some amenities. If you have the budget, the structural elements (roof, electrical, plumbing, heating/ac) can be upgraded in a way that fits the house and you. But unless you have an unlimited budget, somethings gotta give. Do you have to have a dishwasher? Would it be all right if the washer/dryer were in the unattached garage or basement? How much bedroom space do you need? I'm single. So closet size in an old house doesn't bother me. I'm going to turn an extra bedroom into my closet. HA!

If you haven't already looked, I'd recommend you take a look at Retro Renovation http://retrorenovation.com/ . There's a bunch of information on house styles and furnishings, from the 1900's through the 1970s. But the 20's-50s are highly represented. I think you can accomplish the look and feel of what you want, but it will take some searching.