Here in Sweden and Scandinavia in general, vintage - particularly 1950's and 1960's clothing, furniture, and design - is widely popular. Even people who don't do the "vintage lifestyle" thing seek out vintage clothing, furniture, and decor. It's in rather high demand here.
McInerny's, one of the major retailers of Hawaii's yesteryear. Oh how I wish I could've had the chance to shop there!
In Hawaiʻi, vintage is not nearly as trendy as it is in Scandinavia, but that doesn't mean it can't be found. Actually, the interest in vintage shopping and collecting is steadily growing in Hawaiʻi as well. In fact, for people who are into the Hawaiian and American midcentury styles, Hawaii is a very interesting place to be - and a very interesting place to shop!
Showing off my new bakelite brooch.
This winter I had the chance to do a little more vintage shopping at home. I had some time to revisit some old favorites, explore places I had heard great things about, and discover a new vintage shop as well! Here are some of my favorites on my home island of Oʻahu.
If you find yourself on Oʻahu's North Shore, you're probably busy taking in the gorgeous scenery and the winter big wave surfing. But if you're up for a little shopping, be sure to stop in Haleʻiwa town. Amidst the many surf shops there, there is one surf shop that also has a place for vintage in its heart. One of the owners of Barnfield's Raging Isle Surf Shop is a vintage collector and sells vintage accessories in the shop. The shop is mostly filled with surf gear and surf clothes, but there are a few cases of vintage jewelry and accessories there as well. The owner has a great eye for beautiful things and I never leave empty handed. For me, a visit to Raging Isle pretty much means I'll end up buying a brooch. There's tons of wonderful stuff there, but its the pins that catch my eye. Here are some of the amazing brooches I picked up on my last trip. They were all so gorgeous I couldn't leave without them!
A bakelite button brooch by Simonetta Starrabba. This Italian artist has been making brooches from 1940's and 1950's buttons for over 30 years.
A brooch from the 1950's - sweet pastel glass beads strung on a metal leaf.
And the fun continues. Nope I'm not done yet. My mom got me this sparkling brooch and earrings set for me for Christmas that same day. She let me pick my Christmas present out myself, so it had to be these canary yellow and pumpkin orange beauties!
And now the finale. Okay, are you ready? Here comes my pride and joy of my Raging Isle haul:
1960's Swoboda "lava rock" kiʻi (Maori/English: tiki) with gold coral and peridot.
As soon as I saw it, I just knew it was coming home with me!
Now that I've made some big additions to my brooch collection I just need to plan my outfits around these beauties! But my vintage excursions around Oʻahu didn't stop there. I've got two more places I'd like to share with you, so stay tuned!
