Hi and welcome to this year's Octoberfest! I haven't done this one in awhile....two years to be exact. When I stepped away from ATV full-time a couple of years ago, it was right after Octoberfest started that year so only one post actually got completed. Last year, I couldn't get it together in time and I wasn't sure enough that I wanted to do the series, so I didn't. This year, I really wanted to come back and give it a go so here I am. I promise nothing, I think that's safer, but I do hope you enjoy the posts I have planned for this year's series.
If you've been here before, you know I usually like to ease us into the creepier, darker posts so I try to start with lighter topics. Today we're going to be looking at repro Halloween collections from some of the brands I follow. I love the fall and Halloween collections brands create because they're usually this really fun blend of classic vintage with rockabilly, psychobilly and gothabilly elements, and it's always tastefully done. I look through the simpler items to see if there's anything I can possibly DIY, like accessories or t-shirts, but mostly I just fangirl and fantasize about being able to buy the pieces--and these days, finding imaginary places I'll likely never get to wear them to. lol I wanted to feature more companies, but then you'd be here for even longer so I stuck to two. Let's get started!
*The formatting for this post is probably wonky, and I'm sorry about that. Some captions are in a smaller font than others and I haven't been able to figure out what the issue is. Blogger recently changed the entire layout and design of post creation, and I've tried everything I know to do to fix the issue, yet it persists. I'll try to figure it out before the next post in the series. Please bear with me in the interim.*
Unique Vintage
I love Unique Vintage but to afford clothing from there on even a remotely regular basis is a prayer I'll never get answered, so for now I'll settle with just showing off my favorite pieces. There are a few active collections on the site at the moment so I'll go through a few of the items I liked the most.
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I want to say I saw a variation of this skirt in a repro company's Hawaiian/tiki-inspired collections, but in place of the icons in this skirt the icons were obviously tiki/luau-inspired. I loved it, so when I saw this skirt it immediately drew my eye. I love everything about it. I love the blend of colors, the swing style of the skirt, the versatility of looking good with or without a crinoline underneath, the pleated sort of design with the icons, I can't think of a thing I don't like. It's too cute to me. |
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| Smak Parlour Black & Pumpkin Print She.E.O. Fit & Flare Dress, $78 |
This is a very simple dress. I'm not including it because it's the most stunning thing I've ever seen. I'm including it because 1-if you're used to making your own clothing I think this would be quite easy to do, and 2-my favorite bit about it is the jack-o-lantern accent neckpiece and sleeves. It gussies up what would otherwise--and probably still is, to some--be a boring dress. I suppose this would be relatively easy to DIY if you have experience with making clothes, and the pumpkin accent should be easy to do as a custom applique? Maybe I'm being too ambitious. But I like the simplicity of this dress all the same.
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| Purple and Black Bats Tulle Swing Skirt, $58 |
I've really been into bat accents this year. Usually it's the typical pumpkins or ghosts, but I've noticed this year I'm gravitating more toward bats and color rather than the usual black. That brings me to this swing skirt, which is in this beautiful shade of royal purple and highlights the sheer bat accent overlay. I'm not a fan of pairing it with the bold striped top, as the site styled it, but I would love to see how other colors would work with a skirt like this. I also wouldn't mind keeping it simple up top and letting the skirt be the focal point of the outfit. How would you style this skirt?
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While I love the skirts and fancy dresses and would love to wear them more often (or imagine wearing them more often lol), the truth is that I'm much more of a t-shirt gal. I'm also working on opening my own t-shirt shop at some point, so I've been paying more attention to t-shirt designs. Since I can't afford to buy the shirts I like, I've had to learn how to DIY them, and while I probably couldn't handpaint this shirt I still wanted to show it off. For the more casual folks out there, this shirt has that Halloween appeal while not sacrificing comfort for it. I love it. |
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| Beetlejuice x Unique Vintage Crawling Critters Print Hannah Swing Dress, $118 I love that there was a collaboration between Unique Vintage and Beetlejuice in time for Halloween. This isn't the first time I've seen a Beetlejuice collection on the repro sites, but I've never featured any of the pieces. I like this one because I think it appeals to both the girly vintage and the rockabilly/gothabilly vintage lovers by being kitsch and a little spooky. I also kind of think you could wear this outside of Halloween season; it's more Beetlejuice than anything else and you can always rep for the Juice. lol |
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| Universal Monsters x Unique Vintage Monsterror Print Hedda Swing Dress, $118 |
I love that the style of this dress is in comic book style, with different classic monsters all over the print. I also love the more prominent pocket style of this dress and the black paneling around the shoulders and pockets. Even though the dress is a swing dress like the others I've featured, the distinctive print and paneling gives it an entirely different look. I also like that this dress was shown without a crinoline underneath; many swing skirts don't have the same character without one and this one looks great either way.
While I enjoy the Halloween collections, I realized most of my focus was on the fall collection. It's plaid-centered and has more variety than the Halloween offerings, so here are some of my favorite pieces. It was extremely difficult to narrow these down but here we go.
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My favorite thing about this, by far, is the orange plaid. I suppose its not necessarily groundbreaking, but typically you see the blue/green or red/black plaid mixes circulating the most; I've seen brown or teal plaids coming up but it's very rare that I see an orange. What I love about this is that it's a lovely blend of vintage and Halloween without having a theme, like the other pieces I put above, so it's a much more subtle nod to the season and the holiday. I love the silhouette and the neckline, and the way its styled here reminds me of a modern-day Tumblr witch. This should have been photographed in a smoky forest with fog and fairy lights. LOL |
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There are levels to the love I have for these pants. Firstly and most importantly, they're sailor-inspired pants, and those are by far my favorite type of vintage pant. Cigarette pants are at a close second. I love the button detailing down the front, absolutely love the color, and the fabric is lightweight, which I also like. If I could add something, it would be to make the pantleg just a little longer or cuff the hems. The color is season appropriate and I like the subtle striping rather than the all-out plaid. I'm not opposed to plaid pants, though, which brings me to the next entry. |
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| Collectif Red Berry Plaid Thea High-Waist Pants, $68 |
These are the classic holiday red plaid pant. These remind me a bit of cigarette pants, which I also love during this time of year. Most of fall here is typically warmer than normal so you could probably get away with wearing this exact outfit without freezing your nads off. I also really like the cinched waistband; it creates a different look to the torso, which is helpful for people like me who aren't abundant in torso space. lol I like the simple way this outfit is styled as well. You could wear these pants throughout the holiday season, which I also like as many of the pieces I included on today's list are mainly appropriate during Halloween, while this is seasonally appropriate for both fall and winter.
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| Emerald and Navy Plaid Abby Pinafore Skirt, $58 |
I love this skirt for two reasons. Firstly, I adore pinafores. They're like cuter overall dresses. lol Secondly, I love the color. I love a classic red plaid like the pants I included above, but I also like blue and green plaids. They remind me a bit of kilts, which for some inexplicable reason I've always wanted to wear, and there's a bit more variety to choose from when selecting a color to wear up top. This is another that has some versatility and can be worn comfortably outside of the fall season.
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| Miss Candyfloss Plaid Belted Teagan Coat, $101.97 |
What I like most about this coat is that it isn't super structured. It's a complete 180 from my usual fall preferences for outerwear, but I really like this coat. I like that it's in a swing style as well, so it would still lay nicely if you pair it with a swing-style bottom. I also like the mixture of colors with this kind of plaid striping; it's larger than the other plaids I've featured and the color palette is a bit different. I love coats that you can pair with belts and the beret is a perfect addition to the ensemble. The way this was styled is *chef's kiss.*
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| Unique Vintage 1930s Green and Red Plaid Thelma Suspender Pants, $88 |
Finally, I wanted to show these plaid suspender pants. These pants have so many of my favorite things--a high waist, cuffed hems, suspenders, buttons, and pockets. LOL I'm even okay with the color of the plaid. I don't mind how its styled here either; I'd probably stick with black up top as well. The fabric looks lightweight, which I appreciate, and it has that fall/holiday feel to it without being over the top.
Collectif
I decided to come here after seeing some of the pieces over on Unique Vintage, and I wasn't disappointed. The fall and Halloween collections are completely different from the house collection at Unique Vintage but no less adorable. If the more cutesy/classic vintage take on Halloween isn't up your alley, I think some of the pieces here may agree with you more. Here are some of my favorites.
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I feel like you can't have a Halloween-inspired post without the witchy wide brimmed hat. There's no frills or fuss with the hat; other than the leather strap going around the brim, there's nothing else to it. And that's just how I like it. It's simple, would look good with a majority of the pieces I've already featured, and is perfect for this time of year. |
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| Peta Spooky Velvet Swing Dress, $95 |
This dress for me is a modern-day take on the classic Wednesday Addams ensemble. When you zoom in on the dress, the print is a mixture of spooky icons and images. I love the plain Peter Pan collar and fitted sleeve cuffs. Even though it's in a swing dress style, I think I'd prefer it without a crinoline. I'd probably use this as my Wednesday homage with black tights and ballet slippers, and the hat up above.
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| Carletta Hocus Pocus Peplum Top, $55 |
I haven't done nearly enough tops throughout this post. Honestly, I was more focused on the dresses and pants than the separates; I missed a lot of cute tops and cardigans. That brings me to this peplum top, which would be so cute with a black or orange pencil skirt. I like that this top has color, but its a bit more muted. I love the neckline and the three-quarter sleeves; I'm not sure what it is about 3/4 sleeves but for me they're a fall staple. I also like the more subtle imagery; the orange wisps of smoke are the largest bit of color on the top and I like how that was done.
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| Caterina Witch Stripes Pencil Dress, $90 |
I wouldn't call this spooky so much as it's just a dark striped dress with a vintage-inspired silhouette. lol But for those who like the subtle gothabilly look, I think this outfit would be good. I like the different directions of the stripes would bother me, but it gives the dress some personality. It also emphasizes the different elements of the dress--the pockets, top, bottom, collar, buttons and waistband all have a different type of striping.
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| Maddie Spooky Velvet Trousers, $62.50 |
This trouser actually reminds me a bit more of a legging, but they were cute and I really liked them so I put them on here anyway. lol These pants have the same print as the Wednesday Addams dress, so there's not much I can say about them that I didn't say about the dress. I like that these are high-waisted; a cute little crop sweater/top and flats would make this a really cute outfit. I thought the concept of velvet cigarette pants was fabulous, and bonus points for the spooky print.
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| Rooey Bat Mesh Velvet Mini Dress, $75 |
I saw this little bat mesh on several of the pieces in the Collectif shop but this was the main one that appeared to be vintage-inspired. This is like a spooky cocktail or dinner dress and I love that. I like the velvet collar and dress against the sheer cleavage and sleeves, especially with the bat print; it modernizes the classic cocktail silhouette. This is described as a mini dress, but it looks to be about knee-length to me. Probably longer than that for me because I'm tater tot sized but oh well. lol It's quiet and classic vintage goth and I'm here for it.
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| Caterina Mosshill Check Pencil Dress, $87.50 |
Another pencil dress, I know. I figured since I chose more swing skirt and dress styles from Unique Vintage that I'd go for a different silhouette. This one is obviously more fall-inspired than Halloween, which brings me back to the plaid. I love the simple brown plaid on a pencil dress. I feel like someone's classy mom or teacher would wear this dress. lol This would be fun to dress down; using darker accessories rather than lighter ones would create a pretty contrast. I would probably go with black accessories, but that's probably a bit too boring, even for this dress. How would you style it?
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| Bright and Beautiful Evelyn Floxlease Check Trousers, $87.50 |
I LOVE wide-legged houndstooth pants. I think I love them more than sailor and suspender pants. The '40s and some '50s pant silhouettes are by far my favorite when it comes to vintage trousers. These are stunning to me. I don't even need these to be cuffed. Houndstooth/tweed-like prints to me are classic fall patterns, and I love playing with more masculine prints and styles during this time. I think it's also why I gravitate to more structured pieces around the fall. These pants are effortlessly classy, comfortable, and lightweight. I'm jealous of whoever has these pants in their closets.
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| Hailey Flared Dress, $102.50 |
To finish things off, I wanted to show this long sleeved flared dress. One of the main reasons I like it is that it reminds me of the '50s coats that could also be worn as dresses. I love the color; it's that perfect shade of burnt orange that reminds me of cooler fall days. I also like that it's so simple; other than the pleating in the skirt, the twin button detail down the center and the double pockets up top, this dress is completely plain. For me that leaves the possibilities wide open as to how you could accessorize the outfit. It's basically a blank canvas and you could go for a muted look, pops of color in the accessories, leave it plain, or add a darker touch.
So that does it here for me today. As you can see, my style is a bit all over the place but it's okay. I accept myself, wonk fashion sense and all. lol Like I said in the intro, I really wanted to feature a few more companies, but because I liked so many items in the different collections, I'd be here until next week trying to finish the post and you'd be here until the week after that just trying to get through it. lol I love capsule/seasonal collections; they bring out the inner kitsch in me that loves the cutesy themes and looks. I hope you found something you liked in here today; maybe an outfit you'd like to recreate for Halloween or the holidays. If you're ready to get into the creepy stuff, meet me back here in a few days for the real beginning to this series. lol See you Sunday!
