Dating union labels

A Guide to Identifying ILGWU Union Labels in Vintage Clothing

If you want to wear vintage clothing it's very helpful to be able to put a rough date on garments. Even if you don't intend to be a purist about things, it helps to know an item's approximate era in order to avoid overpaying for something that's been misdescribed. Or perhaps you'll find yourself in a charity shop, clutching what you think just might be an original s dress. I have a quick checklist I work through whenever I spot an item I think might be vintage. None of these on its own will be enough to determine whether a garment is proper vintage, but looking at all together will help you to draw a reasonable conclusion. If you know your stuff there's a chance you might find a bargain that's been mis-labelled as later than it actually is by a seller mistaking the original for the revival.

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Learning how to identify and date vintage clothing are essential skills for any vintage enthusiast. The best clue is the label, which we will get to below, but first, we'll look at what to examine on the garment itself. These are some brief tips to get you started but additional research will be required to learn more about each point.

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When I buy vintage clothing I want to know that it is vintage. Click here to download pdf. Below is our guide to dating with labels.

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Union Label Timeline

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