Sunglasses Vintage and New

I finally got around to unearthing my vintage sunglass collection and thought it might be nice to show them here. Most I've had since the late 70s to mid 80s and I stupidly used to sell brand new unused vintage sunglasses to flea market vendors -- oh how I wish I had them now! I also included a few of my fav pairs of newer sunglasses as I wear them so much (don't trust the UV protection on the really old ones.)


Here's a group shot, I'll break down my favs into smaller pics.


These are probably my favorite because they belonged to my grandfather who died when I was just 4. They're "Cool Ray Polaroid" in a classic wayfarer style, tortoise frame. I don't wear them as often as I'd like out of paranoia -- today I realised in about 2 years they will be certified antiques!


Look at the fab carving and crystals on these 60s French sunglasses! Tres jolie!


The colour isn't showing up properly but these are purple metallic wayfarers from the 60s!


I can't believe I never wore these fab 70s shades! That's going to be rectified immediately!


These 50s sunglasses have fab light blue glitter along the top!


Here's another pair I never wore (what's wrong with me?) they still have their tags and are French made, from the 50s. Can't you just imagine someone like Brigitte Bardot wearing these on the French riviera?


These are vintage YSL cat eye sunglasses I found on eBay last year. You can still find them as the seller in Canada has a stockpile of them, and I might even wind up with another pair as I wore them to death last summer!


Newer acquisitions -- on the bottom are Alexander McQueens purchased last year, and the top are some Gucci shades I adore for hiding my cheekbones which have gotten sun damaged from sticking out ):


These are some older Gucci shades, I love them as the quality is amazing and they last forever!


How fab are these 50s huge cat eyes? Love them!


No vintage collection is complete without some crazy hippie half shades!


Sylvester! Need I say more?


These 50s shades were my favs for years. Also French made, and I had them in a gorgeous blue too. Sadly the lenses are too scratched for wear now ):

I hope you enjoyed my little collection! have you any fab vintage shades to share? I'd love to see them!

XXX

Beyond The Rack is Off Their Rocker

I had gotten a notice of a designer sunglasses sale at Beyond The Rack. Much to my delight I found the exact McQueen sunglasses I had just purchased at the Alexander McQueen boutique in London last weekend. They had different colours available and since purchasing these, I've gotten more compliments than I can count. So at $189, I thought I would purchase a pair in a different colour. Only something didn't seem right. The original retail price was listed at $450, which would make these a discount of about 58%. I paid 175GBP (roughly $266.) Having been in the New York McQueen shop this past week and inquiring about the price there, I was told they were $250. So the actual discount at Beyond The Rack is only 25% not 58%. Not only have they intentionally misled their customers, they didn't even have the grace to give me a response when I inquired, giving them the benefit of the doubt thinking it was a misprint. A further google search turned up the same sunglasses at a lower price, with free shipping -- something not offered by Beyond The Rack. So please, know your prices before assuming these online sample sale sites are truly a bargain.

Later today I checked out a "Accessories Blowout" on Haute Look. I came across the Gucci Britt wallet I had purchased on sale at the Gucci boutique FOUR years ago at the same price! Where's the bargain there? Four year old merchandise, at the same price found at the Gucci boutique.

I think I'll be unsubscribing from all of these so-called discount sites promptly. Much better discounts can be found directly from the designer boutiques where they don't have to lie about the original retail price either.

Cheers!

Reminder: Shop Idee Fixe Sale Ends Soon!

Just a quick reminder that our 20% off with FREE worldwide shipping on Shop Idee Fixe ends on Tuesday, 30 June at Midnight EST. So don't hesitate to take advantage of this great offer by mentioning the code "Rhubarb" today!

Kate Spade Knightsbridge Scarlet bag in Caramel, Brand New $135, Discounted price: $108

1970's Nina Ricci Sunglasses $50, Discounted price: $40

Gucci Mules Size 6.5 US (also fits size 6 US) $80, Discounted price: $64

So pop over and see all the goodies we have at great prices, and get buying today to take advantage of our sale!

Cheers!

Shoes and Your Mom

I've carried on a love affair with eBay since I discovered it back in '96, and still have fun looking for interesting items. But over the years the fees for selling have gotten completely insane. If I want to offer something at a decent price, I wind up with so many fees it doesn't make it cost effective to list the item. Not to mention the times I've gotten burned by buyers with absolutely no support from eBay whatsoever. The consignment shops around here are fab, and I've gotten loads of good deals purchasing quality clothing, but often times they'll price items so low that again, not really worth me putting them on consignment (you typically get 40-50% of the selling price when you put things on consignment.) In addition, I have literally bins and bins of vintage I need to sell from my old flea market booth and shop, and no local outlet will accept vintage unless its designer. So this leads me to "Shoes and Your Mom". I have a bunch of items coming up for sale on there, all prices include priority shipping within the US, and you're getting a deal on some brand new or maybe worn once designer shoes and handbags. Here are a few photos to whet your appetite:

Brand new, sold out when introduced in Nov. Kate Spade Knightsbridge Scarlet bag in Caramel.

Never worn Turquoise satin and suede Marc Jacobs booties.

Like new vintage '80's black suede Robot Creepers.

Black leather Gucci Mules.

There's a few more items... but I'll let you do the looking. Make sure to act fast, one thing I've noticed is that things get sold very quickly on SAYM!

Some of my vintage may wind up on SAYM (as the pair of Robot Creepers did), but I think I may try out Market Publique which is a new venue specifically for vintage clothing manufactured pre-early '90's. They have low listing fees, and the bonus is that it is all vintage. So the audience is not sifting through four thousand items listed unethically as vintage but are in actuality newly made to ultimately be disappointed, or worse -- ripped off. The other thing I like is that not just anyone can set up shop there, you have to first pass muster by the site's administration. They are looking for vintage sellers that really know their stuff so that you know who you are dealing with. Everything about this appeals to me, as a seller and a buyer! My only gripe is that I'd have to treat this more like a business and get a "shop" together. Which is fine if I want to continue to sell vintage, but at this point I'm looking to sell what I have and not accumulate more! Be sure to check out both Shoes and Your Mom and Market Publique and maybe you'll find just the item you've been looking for at a fair price!

So wish me luck!
Cheers!
Suzanne