The way people talk about 'vintage' clothes now drives me up a wall

I was at a thrift store in Portland last weekend and overheard some kid call a 1990s Coca-Cola t-shirt 'vintage.' That's not vintage, that's just old. Vintage means at least 50 years old (like 1970s or earlier), but everyone throws the word around now because it sounds fancy. Am I wrong for thinking vintage should actually mean something from before the 1980s?

3 comments

3 Comments

finleyf8816d ago

Read an article saying true vintage is pre-1980s. That makes sense to me.

vera30815d ago

Had a buddy who swore her 90s band tees were "vintage" and I kept my mouth shut until she tried to sell one at a shop and they laughed her out the door. They told her vintage means pre-1980s, full stop, no wiggle room. @finleyf88, that article's spot on. It's not about being snobby, it's about how they made stuff back then. Pre-80s clothes were built different with natural fibers and real construction. Once you start paying attention to the labels and stitching, you can't unsee the difference.

taylor_young15d ago

Doesn't it feel like people do this with everything now though? Like how every old truck is suddenly a "classic" even if it's just a rusty 90s Ford with a dented bumper.