Judy’s Affordable Vintage Fair

As much as fashion is all about the next new thing, sometimes we find ourselves longing to dress in the style of yesteryears – bellbottoms instead of skinnies, paisley in place of monochromatic or maybe even good ol’ fashioned fur instead of constant knitwear. There’s no denying, previous generations had style – the thriving vintage scene all over the world is testament to that. Whatever your wardrobe inclinations might be, Judy delivered when she came to Cambridge this past Sunday.

Judy’s is a traveling vintage fair that’s been on the UK circuit since 2005. More than just vintage, it offers reworked and hand-made items, all “price-checked by [their] experts” to make sure shoppers pay less than they would on the high street. Walking in, the first thing that hits you is the smell: the smell of clothes with history, which all veteran vintage shoppers know and love. The clothing itself is your standard variety vintage, with a focus on the 40’s and 50’s; almost every stand-owner was dressed in a vaguely pin-up manner. Cat eye eyeliner and rolled hair abounded; one very sweet lady kindly explained to me how she had done her hair in finger waves (suffice it to say, it’s a laborious process).

The box sadly wasn’t for sale

Back to their wares: there was a good balance between men’s and women’s clothing – the boys’ stuff ranged across a few more decades, with some standout 80’s geometric patterned anoraks (the colors were too bright for me to properly take it in, the hallmark of a good 80’s piece). The section for men’s outerwear was amazing – jackets and blazers in a variety of different fabrics and styles. The women’s was good too, but not quite as much variety: patterned knee-length dresses dominated.  There were some amazing fur pieces, including a brown wool-cashmere blend riding jacket with fur lapels (orgasmic) and a floor-length black number with gold lining (heavenly).

Sadly, neither fit, but luckily I stumbled on this amazing shearling jacket, the likes of which I’d been lusting after for a number of years. It wasn’t exactly student-budget friendly (£50), but it was still at least half of the price of its first hand counterparts. Lastly, non-clothing items included vintage jewellery (including a stand that sold old costume jewellery – fabulously OTT), watches, records and shoes.

My purchase of the day

Check out Judy’s site for where and when the fair will be appearing next (it returns to Cambridge on May 18^th in the Guildhall).