So anything before 1920 is antique... between 1920-1975 is vintage and 1975-1990 or so is retro. I have notice that plenty of people are calling items from the 1980's vintage on Etsy and elsewhere. I have some emotional response to this because if I wore it new in Middle School it is hard to think of that item as "old or vintage". It makes me wonder if I am retro or vintage yet... are the wrinkles I see in my vintage clothing reminders of the upcoming wrinkles on my face... the worn out fabric in places the sagging stretch marks on my skin... do I have a funky thrift store smell yet of mold? But with age comes character they say and I think that is partly what attracts me to vintage. That these items have a past and history, sometimes you can dig and find that history out and other times you never know. That added element to something like clothing or objects creates a nostalgic quality that seems irresistible to the artistic personality. Last summer I was at a stoop sale and bought for $5 a Graflex Speed Flex camera from the 1950's. It was the camera that Weegee used to photograph NYC at the time and I was quite excited. The woman told me that it was used by the Rye, NY police dept in the 1950's to record crime scenes ! Suddenly this item had this history and purpose that now I was part of. Only antiques and vintage can do that.
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