vintage clothes

I thought perhaps people on this forum might be able to offer advice. I've been cleaning out my mother's closets and upstairs where she has kept many, many clothes from the 50s and 60s and 70s. Many of them are polyester dresses, but also there are wool outfits, some really funky silk party dresses and a gorgeous wool coat with a silk lining -- that sort of thing. Some of the stuff still have the tags on them.

Q: is there a way to determine how much they are worth? Should I take all this stuff to a vintage dealer? I have an eye for some things, but not all that is here. There's quite a bunch, and I figure most of it will go to Thrift store.

But not all -- those party dresses are a hoot.

There is a particularly obsessed, MAD-for-vintage-clothes population out there (yes, count me in) that just dies to find these kind of garments going through the thrift stores to be tried on and damaged, or just not appreciated (What! This PEARL set out here for...?!?)

Look on Etsy.com under for vintage women's and you'll get a pretty good guess for market value. There are some labels and fabric makers that are extremely sought after. Vera scarves are very collectable, so look through those pockets, so too are hankies. Don't overlook any accessories, "junk" jewelry, shoes or bags that might have gone with the dresses. Look for trade marks on rinestone pins - Eisenberg Ice is supposed to skyrocket in value, it's all getting snapped up now (www.collectorsindex.com/eisenberg.htm) Polyester prints from the 70's are big, and your wool coat with silk lining is the holy grail. Anything in silk. Labels are fabulous, and tags are a dream come true. Even items worn beyond use are collected for their design details. Buttons are another big area. The only thing in a wardrobe that isn't particularly sought after are pants, but you can't touch a pair of 50's capris for love or money. Any patterned fabric is wanted by someone. Collectors of 50's modernism are looking for everything. Got swimsuits? There's another specialty market.

You'll get the highest prices from a sophisticated market, urban, Chicago, San Francisco and New York. Dealers on Etsy are always looking for more stuff. You'll be ahead of the game if you can get digital pics into the discussion of terms. Always name them by labels first. Maybe you can find a fashionista to look them over to help sort by decade, maybe put the "outfits" back together. A collection from a single owner is another added value. There's someone out there who will be all over you for this stuff like white on rice.

Ellen: wow! you've actually made me excited about going through a ton of clothes -- I was dreading it. Thanks for all the information. I'll bet my mother has a hundred pair of shoes, not to mention "junk" jewelry as you say. I have heard of Etsy, so I'll definitely get on that site. Oh, and I would never have thought to go through pockets.

This will be like hunting for treasure.