Long time friends, celebrity stylist Philip Boon and fashion designer Sonia Audino, are preparing to present you with an unmissable weekend of luxe vintage heaven, when they open the doors to The ML Vintage Experience…
Shop from a unique collection of never-before-worn designer vintage clothing and accessories by Pucci, Missoni, Gianni Versace, Valentino, Krizia, Courreges, Genny, Callaghan, Complice and many more – all in the original showroom of late Melbourne fashion doyenne, Mary Lipshut.
In consultation with the Lipshut family, Boon and Audino have already delivered the best of the collection to international vintage connoisseurs including Doris Raymond’s legendary The Way We Wore in LA and New York Vintage Inc in NYC, whose celebrity clients include Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen and Rihanna.
This event will offer everyone the rare opportunity to step inside Mary Lipshut’s now-closed showroom, and discover European designer clothing, carefully selected by the lady herself in Milan and Paris during the 70’s and 80’s.
We asked Philip Boon about his experience so far;
TGW: Are there any particular pieces that you’ve become attached to?
PB: There are many pieces that we’ve both grown attached to! Like the first season Gianni Versace jodhpurs with amazing owl embroidery – so cool – and only one pair! I also love the turquoise wool dresses by Callaghan. Sonia loves (and looks amazing in) the wool Missoni shirtmaker dresses. There are too many to mention here.
TGW: What are a few of the stand out accessory pieces for you?
PB: For me, the most outstanding accessories are the plethora of belts – beautiful tan leather – and even some that are like a harness over the upper body. There is an early 1970’s lucite handbag that is very chic, and an amazing array of patterned scarves.
TGW: Describe your experience of selling the collection into ‘The Way We Wore’ in LA and ‘New York Vintage Inc’ in NYC.
PB: Our trip to ‘The Way We Wore’ in LA was made extra special by the wonderful Doris Raymond. She really is the premier vintage dealer and retailer in the world. Everyone from designers like Jeremy Scott, to British Vogue and Dita Von Teese go to Doris. She was so fantastic to Sonia and I, giving us an exclusive tour of her business and she bought a lot of the collection (we continue to supply Doris now). She also stars in her own TV show called LA Frock Stars. You can see it on YouTube and you MUST! (note from TGW: see a preview below).
As for New York Vintage Inc, that store is legendary. We sold many first season Gianni Versace pieces there, and quite a bit of Callaghan that was actually designed by Versace in the early days. A piece we sold there ended up going to Mary Kate Olsen, so you’ve got to be happy about that!
We did the vintage fairs in both LA & NYC and it was very difficult to leave without purchasing pieces for ourselves, I went home with a 1970 Pierre Cardin jacket and Sonia found a great navy 1960’s coat, but, we were very focussed on work so we remained strong!
TGW: Tell us about the most special/unique/sublime pieces that will show at the ML Vintage Experience?
PB: The ML Vintage Collection is a selection of never been worn pieces of very high end designer clothing, and that in itself is sublime! It also includes highly collectable pieces by Roberta Di Camerino, who isn’t that well known in Australia, but very special on the world stage of vintage. Some pieces sell internationally from $2,000 up to $10,000! You will see all of these pieces and many more, in a curated space and all at very accessible prices. Exciting!
TGW: As a collection, what does Mary Lipshut’s vintage clothing tell you about her?
Mary, who I counted as a friend, was a trail blazing business woman on the world stage. She was a fashion buyer who was highly regarded in Europe, was very good friends with the Missoni family and Gianni Versace himself. She sat front row at all of the Pret-A-Porter shows in the 1970’s and 80’s. She really loved fashion.
“Mary Lipshut’s collection at this very moment in time, is so in line with current trends.”
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Mary was very interested in all parts of a garment. She loved seeing the textiles produced, and the quality is what really shows through when you see the collection, which is up to 40 years old. But it’s still like brand new clothing.
The ML Vintage Experience looks to be an incredible style moment for those of us who are obsessed with vintage, and a priceless opportunity to own a piece of Melbourne’s fashion history.
Find out more:
One weekend only
ML Vintage – upstairs 3/7 Almeida Crescent, South Yarra (just off Chapel)
Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th August, 2015
Between 10am and 5pm daily
Open to the public, credit card = YES
1970’s and 1980’s designer womenswear starting from just $50.
The Garb Wire 
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