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LouieRusty Zipper Vintage Clothing
July 24th 2007 13:28
Website name: www.rustyzipper.com
Location: US (Scott Mills, Oregon)
Category: Vintage Clothing and accessories
Rating: 4 out of 5 (Unbelievable amount of clothing, but some pictures make the items look 'lifeless')
If you're as sick as I am of heading to your nearest Vinnie's Boutique or Salvo's store to look for a hidden treasure and coming home empty handed, you'll be wise to turn to the specialists on the good ol' "Interweb".
Given the differences in population and relative changes in trends over the last 50 years, it's getting more and more difficult to find a great vintage piece in Australia. The US has an incredible amount of clothing being sold privately on the web. This is how I came across RustyZipper.com.
Cleverly named after the oft-found condition of used garments, Rusty Zipper was founded by a team of 8 people in Oregon in 1996. To their credit, they now have over 15,000 items in their warehouse. Not all of them are listed at once, but it sure feels like they are.
The site design is flawless. Navigation is clean and you can search by category. They even have a search function where, as suggested on the site, you can type in "Shiny nylon disco shirts for men from the 1970's" and it will respond accordingly.
Once your options are displayed, the navigation pane will offer other suggestions. I was looking at 1950's dresses, and it prompted "in addition to 1950's dresses, you might like 40's-50's Purses"......so I said "Wouldn't I?!!" and clicked myself through. I got giddy with second-hand excitement!
Rusty Zipper helps you narrow your searches down by size, by era, by material, by style. You can choose to be notified of new listings via email, and each item has more photos (including close ups of the fabric) and details the cut and style of the item. As with all vintage, you should check your measurements against those on the listing, as often they will have been taken in and can be difficult to alter further for your fit.
One of the great parts of Rusty Zipper is that they also stock a variety of old school iron on transfers. From TV shows, movies, "tasteless" (their own category) and my favourite "cheesy". This gives you the option of marking your own t-shirt, bag or item of choice with some vintage paraphernalia.
For the seamstresses amongst us, you can find some incredible vintage patterns, from the usual suspects like Butterick, Simplicity and McCall’s, for all types of garments for men and women. They even have patterns for crocheting doilies and sewing cushions.
Rusty Zipper delivery costs seem a little steep, however they do deliver to Australia, and given the cost of their items is usually substantially cheaper than vintage pieces found in re-sellers around town, you're probably better off in the long run (even after conversion rates have been applied).
Grab your measuring tape to get your exact Bust Waist Hip sizes and instead of being all talk "....oh yeah...I soooo love vintage....yeah...it's awesome....totally..."......get some on you!
Rusty Zipper will have you fully kitted from head to toe before you can say "does this smell like my nana to you?".
Location: US (Scott Mills, Oregon)
Category: Vintage Clothing and accessories
Rating: 4 out of 5 (Unbelievable amount of clothing, but some pictures make the items look 'lifeless')
**All pictures shown are from rustyzipper.com**
Hot Stuff! 1970's Evening Gown
If you're as sick as I am of heading to your nearest Vinnie's Boutique or Salvo's store to look for a hidden treasure and coming home empty handed, you'll be wise to turn to the specialists on the good ol' "Interweb".
Hot Diggity! 1960's Women's Knit Dress
Given the differences in population and relative changes in trends over the last 50 years, it's getting more and more difficult to find a great vintage piece in Australia. The US has an incredible amount of clothing being sold privately on the web. This is how I came across RustyZipper.com.
Home Page from rustyzipper.com
Cleverly named after the oft-found condition of used garments, Rusty Zipper was founded by a team of 8 people in Oregon in 1996. To their credit, they now have over 15,000 items in their warehouse. Not all of them are listed at once, but it sure feels like they are.
Carrie here I come! 1980's Women’s Dress
The site design is flawless. Navigation is clean and you can search by category. They even have a search function where, as suggested on the site, you can type in "Shiny nylon disco shirts for men from the 1970's" and it will respond accordingly.
1950's Women’s Skirt
Once your options are displayed, the navigation pane will offer other suggestions. I was looking at 1950's dresses, and it prompted "in addition to 1950's dresses, you might like 40's-50's Purses"......so I said "Wouldn't I?!!" and clicked myself through. I got giddy with second-hand excitement!
1960's Women's Shirt
Rusty Zipper helps you narrow your searches down by size, by era, by material, by style. You can choose to be notified of new listings via email, and each item has more photos (including close ups of the fabric) and details the cut and style of the item. As with all vintage, you should check your measurements against those on the listing, as often they will have been taken in and can be difficult to alter further for your fit.
1970's Leather Purse
One of the great parts of Rusty Zipper is that they also stock a variety of old school iron on transfers. From TV shows, movies, "tasteless" (their own category) and my favourite "cheesy". This gives you the option of marking your own t-shirt, bag or item of choice with some vintage paraphernalia.
For the seamstresses amongst us, you can find some incredible vintage patterns, from the usual suspects like Butterick, Simplicity and McCall’s, for all types of garments for men and women. They even have patterns for crocheting doilies and sewing cushions.
Cheesy Iron-On Transfer
Rusty Zipper delivery costs seem a little steep, however they do deliver to Australia, and given the cost of their items is usually substantially cheaper than vintage pieces found in re-sellers around town, you're probably better off in the long run (even after conversion rates have been applied).
Grab your measuring tape to get your exact Bust Waist Hip sizes and instead of being all talk "....oh yeah...I soooo love vintage....yeah...it's awesome....totally..."......get some on you!
Rusty Zipper will have you fully kitted from head to toe before you can say "does this smell like my nana to you?".
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Comment by DuskDevi
Rugby World Cup 2007
I am a vintage freak...although I make sure I never have to ask;
I've just had a quick look at the site (70s long halter dresses...drool...) and I understand what you mean by this;
...but still...Ohhh....that first pic (raspberry 70s evening gown) is to die for!!!
Hope you're well hon
Dusk
ps. wish this site looked like the Cruisin' USA one but all the (vintage) fashion ras...
Comment by Chic Critique
I agree, the site could be improved, but how good is their gear!!!
Speak soon cyberbuddy!
Comment by Sisi
Comment by Chic Critique
Comment by kati@rustyzipper.com
Thanks for the review, these are always a pleasure to read. Please enter "Kati" in the coupon code section and we will slap a little 3 dollar discount to your total, not a lot - but it will help with the shipping atleast.
Take care!
Comment by jen@rustyzipper.com
In the past year, we have switched to a higher resolution camera & have been removing the backgrounds so the photos are a bit clearer.. While we'd love to be able to spend more time photographing each item, it is hard to do with over 1500 new items coming in each month (& we want to keep costs down too, of course).
We did just add a groovy new feature.. When you click to view any one item, it will pop open a slider bar at the bottom of the item with up to 80 thumbnails linking to similar items in the same size range.. A great way to zip quickly through a bunch of stuff!
Also, our wholesale site is now open to the public Really Long Link where in addition to "lots" of vintage clothing, you can buy individual items priced as low as $2.50 & most under $10.
Thanks again for your effort in putting together this very detailed review of our site!
Jen / RustyZipper.Com