Miss Thrifty's golden mile of designer treasures
Many celebrities love vintage clothes and often wear vintage dresses to the Oscars like this beautiful Valentino gown worn by Julia Roberts. Photo: Getty images
More photos:Friday November 06 2009
Beverly Hills may have Rodeo Drive and New York the Garment District, but Dublin can pride itself on its own unique shopping experience. I'm getting ready for a day of charity shopping begining at the bottom of South Great George Street. This corridor opening into South Dublin is fast becoming a golden mile for charity shops and a new breed of fashion sleuths.
My first stop is is Oxfam Vintage where I meet Samantha McGarry, the store manager. Samantha leads me directly to a back room. It is chaos.
Bags upon more bags, boxes, more boxes, but as I begin to look closer my eyes begin to soften at the treasure trove in which I now stand.
Quite simply, I am in dress heaven. A gorgeous red silk Coast dress sits untidily next to a pair of yellow and black Nike Basketball trainers and just as I put down a slightly marked grey Top Hat, a vision of beauty comes to me in the form of a sleek, cream, merino wool skirt. I pick it up, run my hands over the fold and the hem, check the pleats and take look at the label. I've no idea exactly who Lady Laura is, but I'm sorry she no longer makes skirts.
Recent donations to Oxfam have included a Vera Wang wedding dress and six bags of catwalk fresh goodies from Irish couturier Richard Lewis.
I could see that for me at least, a day of charity chic was about to be a little more expensive than I had anticipated.
Most of the shoppers here are as you'd find anywhere on any high street but as I look for something to team with my new skirt I come across Vicki and Ellen Andrew, who are, even to an untrained eye, far from novices when it comes to charity chic.
The first thing I notice is they don't rummage. Behind a stylish pair of square rimmed glasses, Ellen's eyes do the work and her hands move decisively. Ellen Andrew seems to know clothes, and neither she or her daughter Vicki see charity shopping as being something furtive. "I buy selectively. Not everything is good but occasionally I'll come across something that really works. I bought a little black dress here a while ago, it cost me €5 and its been my best find. I've worn it over and over again."
I slowly work my way up Camden Street and onto the Rathmines Rd. I see bags by Galliano, shoes by Gucci, a YSL dress and a very crisp blouse by Ralph Lauren. I have also seen film memorabilia in the shape of the exact jacket worn by Colin Meany in the film Into the West and it occurs to me there's a lot more to this than I had first imagined. If you come with an open mind you might not find what you need, but you'll certainly find what you didn't know you needed.
With limited numbers of volunteer staff in charity shops, many of the best items go into the window and are sold at fortnightly intervals. At the Barnado's on Lower Rathmines Rd, a recent donation of crystal drew such a crowd that the queue went all the way past the doors of local rivals Oxfam.
My last stop of the day, The Cancer Research Society store on Lower Rathmines Rd, is a paradise for bargain hunters. My eyes light up at the sight of a six foot high treasure chest of vintage clothing and retro items.
Recently, a Louis Vuitton bag was handed in by one well-heeled benefactor. Stock also comes directly from boutiques and high street brands like Urban Outfitters.
As we slowly begin to recycle the excesses of the celtic tiger, we just might find a new place in our hearts for another kind of designer romance.
Sinead Van Kampen is the editor of The Savvy Shopper . For a rundown on fashion and food bargains plus regular insider tips visit TheSavvyShopper.ie website.
- Sinead Van Kampen
