Vintage Lilly Pulitzer Edit/5

Lucindervention

Is the Lilly Pulitzer brand on absolute fire right now? Damn right.

Will that stop me from shopping the secondary market for vintage? Absolutely not.

identifying vintage Lilly Pulitzer time frame

The label tells all when it comes to identifying the time frame of your potential vintage Lilly find. Examine the fabric content. If it is one hundred percent cotton, it is truly a first generation dress. The 1960s brought a 35% cotton / 65% poly blend. (Nearly all of my vintage Lilly dresses are of this generation.) In true Carol Brady form, a one hundred percent polyester knit was introduced by the brand, and as it became standard for 1970s clothing. 

The Vintage Fashion Guide is the best resource for not only Lilly Pulitzer labels and identifying time frames based upon them, but so many other brands.

circa late 1960s/early 1970s
circa mid 1960s dress
circa late 1960s/early 1970s
circa mid 1960s dress
circa mid 1960s dress

vintage lilly pulitzer dresses

vintage lilly pulitzer skirts

vintage lilly pulitzer liza (the junior’s) line

vintage lilly pulitzer men’s stuff

vintage lilly pulitzer on the blog

left to right: 1/blue, 2/golden yellow, 3/pale yellow, 4/lime, 5/blue, 6/golden yellow, 7/americana, 8/golden yellow, 9/light teal

searching for vintage Lilly Pulitzer

When perusing eBay and Etsy for vintage Lilly Pulitzer, I recommend searching for the following, in order of my success:

Since I purchased most of my vintage from eBay, I have never been able to try on prior to buying. Learn from my lessons:

  • Always look at the measurements of the item. If the measurements are not included in the item listing, then request them from the seller. Lay flat a dress that fits and measure it. Compare measurements.
  • Vintage Lilly Pulitzer runs small. I only purchase items that are at least a size larger than what I would wear in today’s line. I once fell in love and bought a dress that was four sizes larger than what I would typically wear. A trip to the tailor and I have a dress customized to my size perfectly. I wore it to my birthday party two years ago.
  • Read the fine print about the item because finding a NWT condition vintage Lilly item is next to impossible. If you have any doubts about an item, ask the seller if there are any flaws and subsequently, for photos.

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