How to Shop Vintage Like a Pro and Uncover Your Truly Unique Sense of Style

POPSUGAR: Are there certain brands that you always look for?

Mya Price: One of my favorite 1980s designers is Diane Freis, who has created some of the best pieces that really complete my style and personality through her love for bold colors, patterned designs, and fun aesthetic. I always keep her love for boldness in mind as I curate, in addition to Henry Lee selections, which I've been able to curate some of the best vintage blazers from this specific brand over time. Additionally, how can you ever pass up a vintage selection from Betsey Johnson? I believe that no matter the brands and/or designer, cost doesn't matter when it comes to style because it's about how pieces make you look and feel.

PS: Do you have a favorite decade for vintage finds and why?
MP: The short answer is no! I truly enjoy curating vintage finds from all decades because adding timeless pieces from all decades of life makes me happy. I've collected vintage finds from the 1950s through the 2000s. I will note that I truly enjoy 1960s and 1980s selections, especially when I think about pieces that have been passed down to me from my grandmother such as her jackets and dresses. I will never get tired of my mom's 1980s vintage earrings and two-piece colorful sets. These specific decades will always have extra space in my heart due to my family history.

PS: What's your best hack for shopping vintage online vs in-store?MP: When it comes to curating vintage selections for my personal closet and business, More Than Your Average, I only curate my inventory from in-store locations. I truly enjoy the 'in-store' curation process because I'm able to spend time walking through aisles for inspiration, spending time with the racks looking for the selections that stand out from the crowd and have a bold personality, and also feeling, touching, and trying on the pieces that may potentially find their way into my personal closet and MTYA collections.

PS: Do you believe in getting things altered or do you look for the perfect fit?
MP: I don't see anything wrong with ever getting selections altered, especially if someone doesn't feel confident, bold, or comfortable wearing a piece. For example, it can be challenging at times for me to find vintage slacks due to my height — I'm 5'11'. On the flip side, I curate for having the perfect fit in mind for my clients. At the end of the day, it brings me happiness to receive messages such as, "this dress was the perfect fit and makes me look good and feel better!"

PS: Any super memorable finds you can't believe you thrifted?
MP: While in Boston for a work trip, I found an Iris Apfel coat hanging in a thrift store on a rack all by itself. From a distance, I immediately gravitated to this jacket because of its pattern, detail, color, and length, but didn't realize it would be one of my favorite pieces to date from Iris Apfel. I immediately grabbed the coat and almost shed tears with excitement in the middle of the store. This piece is now safely in the hands of my sister.

PS: Are you a collector or do you turn over your own closet and re-sell?
MP: I consider myself a collector and/or curator. I don't mix and mingle vintage finds from my personal closet with items I've specifically curated for my business unless items I've curated for my personal closet years ago don't necessarily fit anymore or my interest for that item has shifted. This is a rare occasion because each of my personal pieces tell their own story

PS: Do you have tips for getting the right fit when shopping vintage online?
MP: I truly love my online business presence and platform. I remember the joy I felt when I listed my first vintage selection on the MTYA website (on a lunch break during my full-time job). For my business, I prioritize listing sizing/measurements, a thorough description (e.g. this item also includes shoulder padding), and also a styling tip to compliment each piece. The feedback I've received over the years from customers is a strong appreciation for my thorough approach to these details with a styling tip to place the icing on the cake. My advice is to look for vendors that are transparent about condition and are willing to engage with your questions and concerns.

PS: What are your top three places to shop vintage?
MP: I'm originally from Kentucky prior to moving to Washington, D.C. two years ago, and some of my most prized finds have come from Kentucky's smaller counties such mom-and-pop-shop boutiques and antique stores. In addition to having roots in Kentucky, where I highly enjoy going back to visit for inspiration, finds, and family visits, I also travel often for my full-time job. During that time, I'm also able to curate amazing items for my personal wardrobe and business. Some of my favorite locations for curating include Boston, Nashville, and Chicago.

PS: What materials do you look for and do certain ones hold up better than others?
MP: I typically look for a combination of different materials, but I also keep in mind their impacts on the environment. Typically, my favorite material to select is vintage silk based on its longevity, friendly impact on the environment, and versatility when it comes to pairing this material with other selections and also transitioning from one season to the next. I have a personal closet full of vintage silk blouses and I find myself adding to that collection often.

PS: What do you love most about wearing vintage over new items?
MP: I 100 percent love wearing vintage items over new items. While I will intermingle vintage with new items such as a graphic tee, a majority of my personal wardrobe is filled with vintage such bold accessories, coats and furs, blazers, dresses, hats, and more!. I believe in sustainable and up--[=cycled vintage fashion that leaves a gentler impact on the world. I appreciate the history, timelessness, and story behind vintage selections — that alone brings me the greatest happiness!

PS: What first got you into vintage?
SE: I moved to Ann Arbor, MI for college and made some friends from Michigan who took me to my first Salvation Army. I started wearing exclusively vintage, came back to NYC that summer and got stopped everywhere I went [with], "WHERE did you get that??" It was pretty clear that there was demand for something that just looked a little different than the mass produced, carbon copied stuff out there. The attention was too much to ignore, so we started selling. The rest is history.

PS: Are there certain brands that you always look for?
SE: Depends on the category. Always love a good Ralph blazer, Pendleton wool shirt, Screen Stars graphic tees, older LL Bean fisherman sweaters. The best "very vintage" pieces from '50s and '60s come from smaller mom n' pop custom shops. They're easy to identify when there's an obscure woven neck tag with the name of a random small city and boutique on it. Those pieces are generally truly one-of-a-kind.

PS: Do you have a favorite decade for vintage finds and why?
SE: It's not a hard rule, but I find that pieces from the '60s have stellar patterns, super high quality fabrics/construction, and are often custom made or from super small batches. Each piece from any era is a piece of history, but it feels extra special when it's truly one-of-a-kind.

PS: What's your best hack for shopping vintage?
SE: I'm a business woman at heart, so efficiency is key. If you're thrifting, you can breeze through racks by looking for patterns and fabrics that are interesting. Stop to check it out when something catches your eye. I generally don't bother looking at tees and sweatshirts when I'm thrifting. The likelihood of finding a perfectly random, soft, clean vintage tee is so slim that it's just not worth the time because the look-at-the-fabric trick doesn't work there, you have to look at each tee on the rack to find something worthwhile.

PS: Do you believe in getting things altered or do you look for the perfect fit
SE: I believe in belts and scissors. If it's huge, belt it. If it's long, cut it. But my cousin lives in jumpsuits and pant suits from the '70s, gets them all altered to fit perfectly, and she looks like a million bucks every time she wears one. So, to each their own. I personally don't get things altered because I don't have time to go to the tailor and it doesn't feel great to spend more on the alteration than I did on the piece. But for the right piece, it's worth it. I have a vintage Bottega Veneta briefcase that I used everyday to go to work when I lived in the city. I feel like a boss every time I pick it up and it's classic — I'll have it forever. I spent $400 to have it restored which was brutal at the time because I spent $250 to buy it, but I can't say I regret it. Unlike a handbag, you only have one briefcase.

PS: Any super memorable finds you can't believe you thrifted?
SE: I lived on the Upper East Side in NYC for several years and there's a thrift shop I went to about once a week for personal shopping, not really for the business because items tended to be too expensive to flip. I found an epic Versace tee with a turtleneck (logo all around the neck) there. It's so obnoxious, but so fun. It was $10.

PS: Are you a collector or do you turn over your own closet and re-sell?
SE: I have about 12-15 vintage t-shirts in my drawer. Three of them are from high school when I dragged my mom to St. Marks street (Andy's) to take me vintage t-shirt shopping. That was very cool of me at the time. I probably add about one per year to my collection. I don't turn them over, if it's cool or soft enough for me to wear, it stays. My aunts and grandmother have given me special pieces from their personal collections that I treasure and keep, even if I seldom wear them. I have a Karl Lagerfeld beaded black blazer from my great aunt that I'm saving for ringing the bell at NYSE the day we go public.

PS: Do you have tips for getting the right fit when shopping vintage online?
SE: Measure your non-stretch clothes as compared to the measurements supplied online. Don't measure your body, and don't go by the labeled size in your clothes or theirs. When measuring bottoms, make sure the rise of your pants that you're measuring are the same as theirs, otherwise it will hit a different point on your waist/hips and need to be smaller/bigger accordingly.

PS: What are your top three places to shop vintage?
SE: Upper East Side consignment shops, massive Salvation Army stores in the midwest, and little boutiques in Amsterdam, Rome, and Prague. Bias aside, The Vintage Twin has the most comprehensive collection of vintage denim anywhere and the best service to go with it. And because of our special process that we use on all of our tees, our average tee is softer than the softest tee you will find in a good vintage shop. Killer collection.

PS: What materials do you look for and do certain ones hold up better than others?
SE: 100 Percent cotton is the only denim worth buying. Vintage furs are unlikely to be in a condition that will last long because the furs dry out. If you can get two to three seasons out of it, consider it a win. Either way, handle them gently to prolong their life. I love wool coats, too. They are super warm, and the details in those 1970s tweed fabrics are awesome.

PS: What do you love most about shopping vintage versus new items?
SE: It never ceases to amaze me how no matter the item, and no matter the age, gender, background of the audience, vintage pieces always attract compliments and attention. This just reaffirms that there's value in uniqueness. Especially for older pieces, it's such a cool feeling to know that nobody else will have the same piece, ever. That's a major luxury that's otherwise totally unaffordable today.

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