Get schooled on vintage and thrift stores

Déjà Vu Vintage

Credit: Instagram/deja_vu_vintage

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For 10 years, this vintage store pioneer has been delighting shoppers at Millenia Walk with its vintage jewellery, clothing and accessories, some from designer labels like Pucci and Chanel.

Founder Kelly Yeo says: “We find that customers are more eco-aware and shop vintage for its style and uniqueness – with the plus point of contributing less to environmental damage.”

Stocks are replenished weekly or, as Kelly puts it, “whenever space frees up on the racks”. Which means you can pop in any day and find something new (in a vintage way, of course).

Be prepared to fork out anything from $39 for a vintage brooch to $2,000 for a designer gown – the latter could very well have cost more than $10,000 when it was NWT.

If you have never shopped or worn vintage, Kelly says be sure to visit a reputable store so that you know you are buying genuine vintage and not just second-hand. The key is to be adventurous and be open to different styles. Her staff is always on hand to provide styling advice as well as alteration suggestions.

Que Sera Vintage

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When Rhonda Soh started Que Sera Vintage in 2001 at Far East Plaza, she only had one single rack of vintage dresses. The rest of her merchandise were vintage-inspired.

“At that time, not all Asians were receptive to wearing ‘old’ clothes. But as time passed, people became more well-travelled and with social media flourishing, wearing vintage became a way of displaying their own style.”

She says that fans of vintage dresses appreciate the finer details on these that you can’t find in fast fashion. Case in point: prints that match perfectly even at the zipper seams or inner lining with lace piping.

Que Sera Vintage is now a pop-up store in Wheelock Place. It used to occupy a shop space of more than 1,500 sq ft at UE Square, making it what Rhonda calls the biggest vintage store in Singapore.

Today, her store still specialises in vintage dresses, namely those from the 1950s to 1980s. Her regulars go for “dresses that are fun and in brighter shades, and have mileage for work and weekends”.

Prices are great for vintage clothing newbies too as they start from $39 for tops and from $69 for dresses. If you are looking around for a gown for a special occasion, they are priced from a reasonable $89.

Drop by on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays when Rhonda and her team restocks their racks. They check all vintage clothing to make sure that they are in wearable condition. Otherwise, the pieces are washed, mended or even reworked.

A Vintage Tale

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There is a tale behind A Vintage Tale. Although the charming boutique is now located in Joo Chiat, it was established in Milan in 2016 before its Sicily-born owner Azzurra La Mantia moved to Singapore.

She tells us that she handpicks pieces when she travels and is also in contact with many vintage collectors. This is why her store is always stocked with one-of-a-kind pieces – some are rare collectors’ items from luxury brands – from Italy and all over the world.

Expect new merch once or twice a month, with prices ranging from $75 to $5,000. Some of A Vintage Tale’s bestsellers include evening gowns, sequined dresses, jewellery from the 1950s and 1960s, and designer scarves.

Insider tip: the store has a unique Kilo Vintage Section where clothes are sold by weight, starting from $10 for 100g, with a minimum spend of $20 required. If you have a good eye, you can spot what Azzurra describes as “amazing vintage pieces” and even branded items.

“My advice is: When you walk into a vintage store, look at every single rack and shelf. Leave no stone unturned!”

Loop Garms

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With its quirky name and under-the-radar location (think Veerasamy Road), you already have an inkling of how Loop Garms is not your usual vintage wear store.

You won’t find 1960s Mod mini dresses here or enamel jewellery from the 1950s but instead, vintage merch related to pop culture of the 1990s and 2000s.

It stocks a lot of vintage tees, mostly sourced from the US and Japan, with prices starting at $30. Regulars stay in the loop by checking in on the store’s Instagram account daily as new stocks are added every day.

Co-founder FJ says that she can’t put her finger on any best-selling items because vintage tees are such a personal buy. “The great thing about vintage clothing is that everybody has a different connection to each piece. For example, a movie tee could mean nothing much to one person, but for another it could unlock a core memory from childhood, eliciting feelings from a long time ago, and that’s beautiful.”

Also, if a tee comes with flaws like pinholes, the staff lets the customer decide if he or she wants these mended (on the house). “Some customers prefer their pieces with the existing distress that’s already on it.”

Refash

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This circular fashion chain has more than 15 outlets islandwide, from Junction 8 and Plaza Singapura to Causeway Point and Bedok Mall.

As if that doesn’t already make shopping for second-hand clothing very easy for us, it also has an online store chock-full of budget finds from brands like Uniqlo, Love Bonito and Zara.

Some great deals we spotted online include a $9.90 Gap sleeveless tank dress, a $36.90 Cos jacket and a $29.90 Calvin Klein tunic dress.

If you are Marie Kondo-ing your closet, Refash accepts drop-offs of at least 10 clothing pieces. You get paid in cash or in store credit for the ones that they pick for resale.

Function Five

Credit: Instagram/ffivethriftshop

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This thrift store at Arab Street is a hit with its Gen-Z crowd because if you have the stamina to dig around, you can stumble upon gems like $5 second-hand (but unwashed) T-shirts on the first storey. Or just head upstairs for a more curated and cleaner – albeit higher priced – streetwear selection. There are even boxes of clothing that you can take home for free.

The shop owners get their merch from wholesale bales of second-hand clothing from overseas, with one of their goals being to save these from landfills and to put them on the backs of fellow Singaporeans who love thrifting.