“When will we get to the 1990s?” asked a student of mine as I was halfway done with my fashion history recap of the 1950s—the golden age of haute couture! The pupil was one of many youths enrolled in a Vogue Summer School course for pre-college students who were keen for me to speed things up and get to the hallowed era of CBK. Disappointed, I responded, “Just four more decades to go!”
Thankfully, I experienced the exact opposite of disappointment at The Sturbridge Show, which opens tonight and is, save for a few gems, filled with vintage and antique pieces that precede TikTok’s favorite fashion era. “This is not Gaultier nineties mesh or pieces from the 2000s,” says the show’s operator, David Brockman, as he walks me through the show hours before it opens. “And there are probably new things that you can move into if you wanted to try the thirties,” he adds, gesturing me (a ’50s-and-onwards gal) to Eveliina Vintage’s’ booth, which is filled with a sherbet-hued array of satin and organza slip dresses from the ’30s and ’40s.
This is a show for the very-vintage enthusiast—35 vendors from all over the country have set up shop in the highly-curated fair. Though Sturbridge contains pieces that will make a fashion-nostalgic weak in the knees (Mary McFadden! Pierre Cardin! Zandra Rhodes!), the show is not meant to overwhelm.
“I only want to have a 35-dealer show,” says Brockman. A vintage dealer himself who has been operating NYC-based Honeymoon Antiques, Brockman purchased The Sturbridge Show—which was formerly Sturbridge Vintage Clothing & Textile Show—from Linda Zukas in 2022. Since then, the sartorial antiquarian has turned it into a thrice-annual vintage fair on Manhattan’s West 18th Street in the Altman Building—the former carriage house that received goods for legendary New York department store B. Altman & Company. “I wanted to create a very boutiquey, slow shopping experience. I think that’s what everyone wants, and it’s something that’s really lacking in the New York vintage scene—you can take a minute.”
But don’t take too long! These pieces are going-going-gone! My personal favorites from the show, which is on through tomorrow night by tickets only, are below.
Photo: Danté Crichlow
Photo: Danté Crichlow
Consider this one off the market because she’s coming home with me! This gorgeous late 1960s coat by Bonnie Cashin (which looks very similar to this coat in the School of the Art Institute of Chicago Library & Special Collections) also bears a Saks Fifth Avenue label and features leather piping and Cashin’s signature twist-lock buttons. Cashin is an American designer who helped define the American look with her fresh and practical sportswear designs and despite her place in American fashion history, she has yet to land in my wardrobe.
