lesleysgirlsupcycled

We are two sisters with a shared love of history, fashion and family. Running a vintage shop on Etsy allows us to indulge in the first two without neglecting the last.

Over twenty years ago our mother passed away when we were children; she was a great inspiration, a fabulous seamstress and a brilliant mother... and she had killer eyeliner flicks in her youth! Although there is no rhyme or reason for a family to lose their mother so early, it has led to us being closer and stronger as a family, and ultimately thanks to our close sisterly bond we decided to set this shop up together, and we named it in memory of our mother- Lesley.

We aim to make vintage wearable, usable, easy and affordable. We want you to love the romance and beauty of the pieces but want to use and wear them too.

Janine selects the majority of our stock for the vintage shop; and all stock is hand picked as being a quality item, there are often things which get passed by because they don't meet our standards even if they fall into the vintage period specified by Etsy. After which garments are carefully laundered and pressed; any faults are noted and, if necessary, sympathetic repairs are made by Susannah. Any repairs are to put the garment back to the original state (and always noted in every case) not to alter the size or design of a garment.... any which are beyond repair are sent to the upcycling pile for this shop.

Researching, photographing and listing is a lengthy process involving Janine (as the most reluctant of models) and Simon as the keen photographer- the children often want in on the act too! For our research we have a huge pile of source books, use a range of reliable websites, as well as the support of Etsy teams, all combined with our own knowledge painstakingly acquired over time.

As Susannah has just given birth to her third child she is taking a back seat for the time being, although she is involved in every major decision of the shop. Her creative prowess will come into it's own soon with the launch of this- our second shop and its range of upcycled and reproduction handmade vintage products, so that any finds that are not usable or wearable in their current state get a new lease of life.