Antiquing

Antiques -> Textiles, Linens -> Lace, Crochet, Doilies

Wedding dresses are a big business today, but many people prefer the look of an antique wedding dress to the more modern gowns. Choosing a vintage dress is certainly one way to make your wedding unique, as it’s highly unlikely that any or your friends or peers will be getting married in the same or even remotely similar dress.

Why choose from a catalog or the racks of a bridal store when you can choose an antique wedding dress to help make your day special. The workmanship and details in an older dress can be amazing, while to get that level of detail today you’d spend hundreds, maybe thousands of dollars more for a dress. If you have an old-fashioned sensibility, an older dress can give your wedding a more vintage atmosphere and make you think of time past.

If you’re shopping for an antique wedding dress, a piece of good advice is not go too antique. While with most antiques, older is better, with wedding dresses or any kind of clothing, older dresses might be in a bad state of repair. Fabric does deteriorate and lose its shape over time, anything that might have been slightly stretchy before is probably only brittle now, thread will rot over the years, and sometimes older dresses can be on the verge of falling apart.

But an antique wedding dress, unlike simply an ordinary dress or pair of pants, has likely been worn little and handled far less than average clothing. The key is to be choosy, especially when dealing with very old dresses. If you’re looking at a dress made before 1900, you could be taking quite a bit of risk as it’s much more likely to be unable to hold up to wear. Silk chiffons from the 1920s are also, because of their style and fabrics, less likely to hold up over the years. If your heart is set on either of these, then simply be prepared that the cost to repair and restore them will be much higher than most other dresses.

Know how much you can spend on an antique wedding dress before you shop in vintage shops or online on eBay, and stick to your budget. Do figure in the cost of alterations and any restoration and repair that a seamstress might find necessary to keep the vintage dress together for you wedding. Cleaning should also be considered, as archival cleaning can sometimes cost more than you paid for the dress itself.

Don’t choose an antique wedding dress that’s in obvious visible need of repairs or has stains. While stain removal is much easier today, that stain has been on that fabric for decades making it much less likely it will come out completely, if at all.

And if you decide to purchase an antique wedding dress from an auction, measure yourself carefully to find the right dress. Sizes were different years ago than they are today, so the auction should give detailed measurements for the garment. If it doesn’t, ask for them before purchasing.

Photo Credits: Just Jefa

Originally posted 2008-11-01 05:00:13. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Antiques

Antique bicycles, even ones as recent as the 1950s and 1960s, are highly sought out and prized among collectors today. Certain brands and types of bicycles are snapped up and restored by bike aficionados who pay far more for the bicycles than they cost when they were new. Some older bicycles from early bike history can cost hundreds and even thousands of dollars, and while few collectors may get to own one, many go in search of them.

The predecessor to the bicycle was invented by a Baron in 1817 who wanted to be able to get around his royal gardens at a faster pace than walking. Sometimes referred to as the hobby horse, this machine had two wheels lined front to back, much like modern bicycles, though this differs from most antique bicycles because there were no pedals. The frame was wooden, which he straddled, then propelled himself forward by pushing his feet on the ground.

It was almost 50 years later before a new type of bicycle appeared, even though the word bicycle wouldn’t be used yet. The design was similar to the Baron’s walking machine, but pedals were attached directly to the front wheel. This machine was also made of wood (including the tires!) until metal tires were used later. This antique bicycle is known as a velocipede. It was also commonly called a bone-shaker. Picture wooden or metals wheels on cobblestone roads and it’s easy to see where it gets the name.

Then, in 1870, an all metal bicycle was created with solid rubber tires—the first design to be called a bicycle. It was also the smoothest ride of all the different designs because of the rubber tires. Antique bicycles of this type today are quite valuable, and easily recognized by the huge front wheel and the small rear wheel, which gives them the name high-wheel bicycle. The reasoning for the large wheel was simple engineering. A larger wheel would take a person farther with each rotation of the pedals, so people would get the largest tire they could, one that allowed for the entire length of their legs. Wealthy men often owned these, because they were very expensive.

High-wheel tricycles were designed to afford women more modesty. The two back wheels allowed the person to sit lower and behind the large front wheel, rather than on top of it, so women wearing skirts could keep others from seeing up them. These are also popular antique bicycles for collectors.

Chains, suspension and pneumatic tires were the next improvements, and the chains alone allowed the bicycles to go back to the two same-tire-size design. This allowed women to ride the lighter weight metal bicycles and still wear skirts, and men started riding bicycles to work, and they became a hugely popular item. If you want to restore antique bicycles to ride, you’ll need to do some research into the best types to purchase, but for display, almost any kind you like can be found online in places like eBay.

Originally posted 2008-12-23 14:00:53. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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