Rachel McGrath
1566 Barrington Street
May 11 (10am-7pm)
May 12 (10am-4pm)
$2
The Curio Collective talked about organizing a vintage fest for years. On a mission to combine the authentic with the eclectic, Brigid Milway (What These Old Things?) and Melanie Huntley (Lady Luck Vintage) wanted to bring the community together for one big show, the likes of Montreal, Toronto or even New York. They decided to just go for it.
With 30 vendors ranging in ages and interest, A Halifax Vintage Show hopes to attract the same to the former Attica Furnishings space on Barrington Street this weekend. Antiques, video games and records, estate jewellery, mid-century furniture and clothes—lots of clothes, from the ’40s to the ’90s—will provide “something for everyone who is interested in vintage,” Milway says. “Everyone connects to pieces for different reasons and so it is really cool to see so many different people come together.”
There have always been antique stores and a clientele to go with them, but seemingly there is a recent and renewed interest in pieces from the past. Vintage is trendy thanks to one of the most millennial of apps—Instagram.
“It is a real contradiction, but it works so well together,” says Milway of the odd-couple pairing of her skills—using new technology to sell things from the past. She used a digital presence instead of a storefront to get her business off the ground. Instagram is also how she found and reached out to many of the vendors who will be at the Halifax Vintage Show.
“With Instagram and social media it’s really easy to see who is out there and it’s been really helpful to connect all of us,” says Milway. “Everyone has always been there, but we are ready to come together now. I feel like Halifax is ready for a show like this.”
