I don’t know about you, but gearing up for this Christmas has been much more hectic than normal. Mostly due to the fact I’m juggling Christmas and wedding planning.

Sunday, my mom, Patrick, and I headed up to Portland where Monday, my mom, my maid of honor, Megan and I set forth dress hunting.  The first place we checked out was Xtabay along Clinton street.  A fabulous, high quality vintage clothing shop, Xtabay has extended to offer up vintage wedding dresses as well. While I didn’t find my wedding dress there, I found a wonderful “going away” dress, which had the original store tags on it!  Cost? $98, more than I am used to spending (okay, my mom actually paid for it), but worth every single cent since it’s so perfect and in such glorious condition!  I also found a great pair of vintage screw-on earrings and broach to match for $10.  Sadly, I didn’t snap any pictures of me in the dress, but here is (sorta) a picture of the dress, it’s the turquoise one in the background.  The dress can also be seen here with a stunning coat, which I would have bought, had it not already been sold!  But let me tell you, if you’re searching for high quality (we’re talkin’ like new quality) vintage Xtabay is the place to be! Liz, the owner, carries only womens clothing, shoes and accessories, and is very, very cordial and an absolute delight to talk with. And if she doesn’t have what you want at that moment, sign her book with your contact info and what you have in mind, and she’ll get back to you if something comes in!

Tuesday, Patrick and I hit up the Kennedy School and Edgefield McMenamins as possible wedding venues.  We are both keen on the Kennedy School, and have crossed Edgefield off our list, mainly due to its remote location.  We’re going to be looking at more locations in January.

Also that day we visited Terry Schrunk Plaza, which is the park located across the street from Portland’s City Hall.  Why did we stop there?  Because Schrunk was a key player in my Vice in the Rose City  research essay (working on some final touches before posting it).  He was sheriff for a long while, and then became mayor, despite his suspected involvement in the corrupt pay-off system between Portland’s underworld figures and police and politicians. It was windy that day, so my hair is mussed up…oh well.

Wednesday I headed to my mom’s house in Salem and checked out a local bridal shop there where I found my dress! While it’s not vintage like I had hoped, it is in a very 40s Hollywood glam style.  Of course, no pictures will be posted until the big day next December!  The store carries a selection of dresses to try on and then order, along with a selection of clearance/discontinued dresses, which is where I found mine.  The cost? $398.  Not too bad, but of course still a lot.  But my major goal in this wedding is to go local;  venue, cake, attire, jewelry, etc. Which means getting all I need for my bridal ensemble without once stepping into a David’s Bridal, and so far I’ve done that.

As for today, it’s last minute shopping, wrapping and scouting for things we want to buy the day after Christmas.  I hope you all have a wonderful and safe Christmas!! Merry Christmas!

Eugene is home to yet another great vintage clothing store, Karma Kloz, located at 540 Fillmore.  The shop is filled to the brim with everything you could ever want to add some retro flair to your closet and offers both mens and womens clothing.  There are hats, shirts, dresses, coats, shoes, ties and jewelry galore and you could easily spend hours there.  As for style, there is loads of stuff from the late 1960s through the 80s, but there are also some wonderful hats and shoes from the late 1940s and 50s.  The shop has a creative pricing system involving playing cards and the owner has a very nice cat who is more than willing to help you shop.  Overall, Karma Kloz has a creative and fun atmosphere and the owner is keen on expressing the importance of resale for not only your wallet, but for the environment and local economy as well.

What did I find?  For awhile now, I’ve been wanting a “Lucy in Connecticut” type jacket, you know, plaid, somewhat boxy, shirt jacket.  And at Karma Kloz, I found it!

The label reads “California Male R” – a brand I’ve never heard of before and haven’t dug up anything on the internet yet. Anyone familiar with it?  The tag is located on the inside left of the jacket and includes gold metallic thread.  The jacket itself is made of an odd light flannel type fabric (it’s not wool, although it does look like it), and has a great plaid pattern to it and fun fit to it as well, a tad fitted with an elastic waist and cuffs.  I want to say it’s from the late 1950s, early 1960s.  First time customers get a 10% discount so I got it for only $16.00!

The downside to Karma Kloz is its location.  It’s rather far out from the other stores similar to it, which are all located within blocks of each other in the east side of town.  But it’s well worth the visit!

As mentioned before, Eugene is a city fill of great resale and vintage shops.  Recently, Deluxe, located at 1331 Willamette expanded and added Kitsch, located at 1060 Willamette, right next door to the McDonald Theatre.  Kitsch is filled with great vintage goodies at really reasonable prices!  I saw several pairs of shoes for only $8.00 and most sweaters were $8.00 – $13.00.  They have mainly 70s and 80s stuff, with some new funky stuff mixed in and on occasion some 50s and 60s pieces.  They have everything from overalls to shoes to swimsuits to buttons.  Also, both stores are places to sell your old clothes and you’ll get store credit!  So maybe it’s time to clean out that closet of yours and snag some new (to you) vintage swag!

What did I find there?  A fabulous 1960s Carl Naftal dress.  There there no tears, or stains, and the zipper works like new!  It also has a pocket – you heard right – a singular pocket, as shown on the right.  I’ve had zero luck finding out anything about Mr. Naftal.  But I have found a few dresses on-line, and they  range in price  from $265.00 for this beautiful full skirted dress to a mere $14.99.  Most are in the $40.00 price range however.  What did I pay for this beauty? Only $19.00!

Carl Naftal certainly knew style though.  Check out this beauty from Memphis Vintage.  Can we say drop. dead. gorgeous?  I don’t know how much it sold for, but I would have paid an arm and a leg for it, it’s so beautiful!  Memphis Vintage is a great site offering up vintage clothing in fantastic condition, so it’s worth taking a gander at.

In other news…I’m seeing Inglorious Basterds tomorrow night.  I love Nazi movies, Hellboy, The Rocketeer, Indiana Jones.  There are very few bad Nazi movies…Hanover Street is one of them – despite having Harrison Ford in it, it was just plain bad.  I won’t even go into Ilsa She Wolf of the SS and other Nazipolotation flicks, because those don’t count in my books.  Anyhow, I do like Brad Pitt and Quentin Tarantino on occasions, so I hope it’s good.

Eugene, Oregon, aka Track Town USA, is home to Nike, the University of Oregon, and some swell vintage clothing stores, and most are within just a few blocks of each other, so it’s easy to “make the rounds”.

Puttin’ on the Ritz

First off, we have Puttin’ on the Ritz, located at 350 E. 11th Ave.  If it’s quality you’re looking for Puttin’ on the Ritz is the place to go.  The shop of filled to the brim with mostly clothing from the 1920s through the 1970s, along with linens, ceramics, and some kitchen ware.  They carry both mens and womens fashion, everything from hats and shoes to ties and jewelry.  The only downside to Puttin’ on the Ritz is their prices.  They certainly have quality, and you really pay for it.

Nobody’s Baby

Located at 365 E. 13th Ave., Nobody’s Baby is not only a vintage clothing store, but a costume rental outlet offering top of the line costumes.  In terms of vintage clothing though, they are just a step down from Puttin’ on the Ritz in terms of quality and prices.  They also carry stuff that is new, but looks old, especially in terms of their lingerie.  Nobody’s Baby also offers mens and womens clothing.  But despite their incredible range, and quality, I hardly go in after an incident in which I was trying on a dress, and feeling it a little tight, and instead of risking injury to the dress, I asked the woman working there to zip it up.  The dress was too small, and she promptly gave me a diet to try that would “melt the pounds off”.  So, Nobody’s Baby comes with a warning label.

Eugene Jeans

Just down the road from Nobody’s Baby is Eugene Jeans.  Run by a Frisbee Golf enthusiast, Eugene Jeans, located on 132 E. 13th Ave., is more filled more with 1970s clothing than that of the 40s or 50s.  Tim carries a wide range though, from vintage swimsuits to Converse, Eugene Jeans is a further step down from Nobody’s Baby in terms of quality, but he also has better prices.  Again, both mens and womens fashion is offered.

Oak Street Vintage

Just two blocks away from Eugene Jeans is Oak Street Vintage, located at 1409 Oak St.  Unlike the other mentioned stores which turn most of their attention to mostly clothing, Oak Street also offers some furniture (a lot of Hey-Wake) and ephemera.  As for pricing, Oak Street is hit and miss – sometimes their stuff seems way under the market, other times, way over.  Their clothing is both mens and womens and often pretty good quality.

I hope this entry was of help to those in Eugene or who plan to visit Eugene sometime soon.

I plan to do some more of these types of entries.  In addition to these stores, there are the more purely antique stores around town.  Additionally, the city of Springfield and the small town of Coburg offer up some wonderful antique shops as well, which I plan to write about sometime soon.