Ditch Fast Fashion: Vintage Fashion Fairs across Scotland

Baggy sports jumpers, retro denim jeans, and polka dot dresses for days – vintage fairs are a great place to switch up the wardrobe

Article by Dylan Tuck | 13 Sep 2019
  • Judy's Affordable Vintage Fair

One thing you’ll always see popping up at university is the ever-travelling circus of vintage fairs that drop by month after month. With the dangers of fast fashion now more widely-known than ever, making the switch to buying second-hand is a great way to top up your wardrobe while equally being environmentally conscious. That said, here are some of the best vintage fairs and shops around Scotland to snatch a bargain or two. 

Judy’s Affordable Vintage Fair

Good old Judy. Her travelling vintage fair is always gallivanting up and down the land with buckets of retro clothes and trinkets perfect for anyone with an eye for old-school fashion. If you’ve got room in your flat (and can carry it), the fair also stocks plenty of stylish furniture and household goods too, as well as a range of street food, so your haul won’t be affected by a rumbling belly. University of Edinburgh, 12 Sep; Leith Theatre, Edinburgh, 28 Sep; The Briggait, Glasgow, 29 Sep

Preloved Kilo

The clue’s in the name. Preloved kilo is the UK's largest kilo sale vintage fair, which basically means you grab a bag, fill it up, and pay by how much it weighs. If you’re after some light bits then Preloved offer fresh looks for a pretty cheap price, although it’ll cost a fair bit more for heavy materials like denim, jackets or shoes. The trick is being savvy – watch what goes in the bag to go easy on the purse-strings. Dates TBC

Lou Lou’s Vintage Fair

The self-proclaimed ‘Purveyors of Nostalgia’, Lou Lou’s is a reputable vintage fair that rocks up in town several times a year. Bringing together a range of traders and selling everything from fashion to collectables, crafty things and other handpicked goods. Like most vintage fairs, Lou Lou’s is pretty dependable if you’re after some cool snags, and was even voted Best Vintage Fair back in 2013. Caird Hall, Dundee, 12 Oct 

West Vintage

Calling all Glaswegian hipsters: we’ve got a shop for you. Fancy rocking baggy sports brand jumpers, chunky dungarees, oversized tees or funky colourful 70s style shirts? West Vintage can fix y’all up. With a store in the city centre’s Saltmarket and one conveniently around the corner from Glasgow University, their retro must-haves are almost dangerously close. 649 Great Western Road, Glasgow

Super Market Vintage

Super Market by name, but you can’t buy frozen pizzas or value lager here. Super Market is a female-led, independent events company who organise the vintage fairs held at student hotspot Hillhead Bookclub on the regular. With a range of nostalgic looks alongside being able to sink a beer while browsing, bar-meets-vintage is clearly a win-win. Hillhead Bookclub, Glasgow, 22 Sep, 20 Oct and 17 Nov

Headlock Vintage 

One for the uber-cool kids on campus, Headlock often makes Glasgow’s QMU a destination, while also appearing at festivals like Glastonbury and Parklife. Stocking retro football shirts, rails upon rails of denim and a wide range of funky fleeces: think designer label clothes kept safe since the 90s, that’s Headlock’s deal. And, if you can’t make their fairs, they sell via ASOS Marketplace and regularly update their stock. Super trendy. QMU, Glasgow, 16 Sep; Teviot Row House, Edinburgh, 17 Sep

The Vintage Clothing Kilo Sale

Commonly found carting truck-loads of old school clothes up and down the UK, The Vintage Clothing Kilo Sale, as the name suggests, is a vintage clothing sale where you pay by the kilo. It does what it says on the tin, right? Celebrating their ten year anniversary since their inception, items are priced at £15 per kilo, meaning that if you come along to this fair, it'll be bloody hard to leave without snagging a few absolute bargains. The Briggait, Glasgow, 14 Sep; The Out of the Blue Drill Hall, Edinburgh, 15 Sep; Ironworks , Inverness, 21 Sep, Aberdeen Arts Centre, Aberdeen, 22 Sep