Greetings
Retro
Fans!
And welcome to Issue 2 of Judy’s
Affordable Vintage Digest. Before we
begin, we want to say a humongous
thanks to all of our lovely readers who
made issue 1 such a success - we had
over 1,000 views in the first two days
alone. If you’ve not had a chance to have
a proper read yet (shame on you!), Issue
1 is still available to read on Joomag here.
But more importantly, what have we got
for you to enjoy your cuppa with in this
issue? Well, we think the content you’re
about to read is our best yet. Read on
for the ins and outs of tea parties and
tattoos, a nose behind the scenes of the
wonderful wholesalers who bring you the
kilo sale, and of course, LOTS of twirling
around in pretty dresses.
A special thanks goes out also to our
lovely contributors, including our Leeds
traders, The Marvellous Tea Dance
Company (who you can read a delicious
recipe by on page 22) and last but not
least, the super talented ladies behind Le
Keux vintage and Miss Dixie Belle who
both shared hair tutorials with us. Flick to
page 24 and get preening.
We can’t leave without one last thankyou.
As we will be graduating in July, this is
currently the last issue in the works for
Judy’s Affordable Digest, and we want
to thank Judy Berger for giving us the
opportunity to share our love of retro with
you all. She truly runs a fantastic business
and it’s been an honour to be part of the
family.
So for now it is goodbye, but don’t forget
you can tell us what you’ve thought of
the digest at judysvintagemagazine@
gmail.com, and check out all things
vintage at judysvintagefair.com.
Happy reading!
Digest HQ x
What We’ve Been Buying
This Month
Jack
Behind The
Seams
It’s been cold in Leeds recently, but I
can’t wait for Spring to arrive so I can
wear these cut off denim shorts I bought
at a recent Kilo Sale. I went in with the
intention of looking to stock up for the
new season, so I’m pretty pleased with
my bargain. Hello holidays!
Johanna
Shirts are always a great versatile item
to have in your wardrobe, so I nabbed
these two pretty blouses at a kilo sale
and an affordable fair. I’m looking
forward to wearing them casually thrown
over jeans on library days, or tucked into
a skirt for smarter occasions.
Jenessa
Is a skirt? Are they shorts? No, it’s a pair
of classic 80s cullottes! I’m a sucker for
a pattern so these cheerful red bottoms
jumped out at me at a kilo sale. They’ll be
a great addition to my wardrobe come
festival season, or worn over tights while
it’s still chilly.
CREDITS
Head Of Design,Photography and Branding:Jenessa Williams
Head Of Content: Johanna Mangel
Head Of Advertising:Jack Zelenka
WITH THANKS TO
Judy Berger, Emily Hughes, Caroline Pringle, Benjamin Woodhouse and
Glass Onion, Chris Lambert, Ariana and Miss Dixie Belle, Angie and The Marvellous Tea Dance Company, Lynsey Le Keux, Hugo Sabin, Kate and Adam
Beavis, Daisy Ann Lloyd
Every so often people come together to sell, refresh and
celebrate their wardrobes. This fashion festival is also
known as the vintage fair. There are the grand bazaars
like the amazing ones Judy throws, but there are sweet
smaller ones too. Whatever the scale of the events,
they are everywhere. People are absolutely buzzing for
them and for good reason. Where else can you browse
through rails and rails of clothes all unique and more
incredible than the next?
When we walk through the doors and enter what feels
like fashion Narnia, we have no idea how much work
is poured into bringing us the magic. ‘When I work
at the fairs, it’s normally a very early rise. We have to
get to the venue and measure out all the stalls,’ says
Emily Hughes, the brand and event manager at Judy’s
Affordable Vintage Fair. ‘We normally have about two
hours to get all the traders in and set up, so it gets busy.
You have to have your wits about you and you have to
problem solve very quickly. You have to be a person
who can think on their feet.’ Similarly, for Helene Fallows,
owner of Revival, a vintage boutique in Huddersfield,
who has been putting on by-monthly vintage fairs since
November, it’s not all fun and games. ‘Until you’ve
organised one, people think it’s really simple, but there’s
a lot of communication with the stall holders, you have
to think about the publicity, the safety, setting the tables
up, marking out the spaces and so on. There’s more to
it than meets the eye,’ she says.
This is of course only one side of the coin. There are
many advantages to the job: just think of all the clothes!
‘Obviously I get to have a bit of a browse, do a bit of a
shop and the whole day is really sociable and lovely,’
says Emily. It also boosts the sales for traditional vintage
shops. ‘It does help, there are more customers coming
in, it does improve awareness and you definitely are
busier that day,’ says Helene.
If you’ve got a building full of traders and people hungry
for bargains, it makes sense that for the event to be a
success, it has to be organised pretty darn well. ‘All
I want from the fairs is for all the people to go home
happy; the customers, the traders and me. To make
sure that happens every event, there’s a lot of pressure,’
says Emily. ‘When people go ‘I had a really good day
today,’ that’s the best feeling, so satisfying.’ Despite the
stress of the job, she finds that it’s absolutely worth it.
‘What I like the most is the morning of the fair, seeing
the empty space go from that to an amazing market in
two hours.’
Let’s just all take a moment to appreciate the wonderful
efforts these good people are putting in to bring us
the best thing that has happened since Ben & Jerry’s
Cookie Dough ice-cream. See you at the next fair!
By Johanna Mangel
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