A New Look For Curious Knopf

As of last Monday I'm renting a small basement room so I can expand my vintage clothing shop (and also better store items from my photography shop.) I've been running the shop out of my apartment but our place is not that big and we have literally no storage space (why have they never heard of closets in Berlin?!?!) so for over a year vintage clothing has been literally coming out of our ears....

The room is a ten minute walk from my apartment and part of a juggling school/shop so I've already seen lots of amazing circus acts when I've been working there. The light was a big problem though and hanging the gray backdrop in just the right way was also a big challenge. A few days ago I started to despair when I thought I was going to have to shell out big bucks for studio equipment and those are big bucks I definitely don't have.


But then I found some great information on how to set up a photo studio on a budget from things you find at the hardware store (if you can read German, check out the article here.) I need to do a little bit of tweaking (still need to build that styrofoam tower to reduce the shadows...) but I think they turned out ok. And it all cost me way less than a 100 Euros which is even better. I'm going to be expanding Curious Knopf a whole heck of a lot in the coming months, so stay tuned.

Friends Sometimes Do Have Benefits

As a special promotion to all of my Facebook fans, I'm offering free shipping on all vintage clothing until the end October. To participate is easy. Just click here, become a fan and then go to my shop and choose out what you like. Let me know in the notes to seller box that you are taking part in the Facebook promotion and I will refund you the shipping price over PayPal. If you want to buy later or just feel like saying hi, then become my fan anyway. I'm often offering special deals through Facebook and that way you'll be the first to know.

xoxo Rebeccah

Winter in Berlin

Anyone who knows me the slightest bit or who has read my most recent blog post on Schaufensterbabe knows that I'm simply not a fan of winter. What can I say? You can take the girl out of California but you can't take the California out of the girl.....

Still, even a weather-spoiled East Bay girl like me gets giddy at the first real snowfall. Inches of snow have been on the ground for a couple of days now. Since it doesn't seem like the weather is going to warm up anytime soon, I suppose it will stay there for a while.

I took advantage of the pretty whiteness to take (and re-take) some pictures in front of ye olde green wall. The snow started getting a little too crazy by the time I got to this vintage 1940s black rayon crepe dress. Such a beauty, but I still have not managed to take any photographs that do it any justice. Black is so darn hard to photograph. Sigh....

Any Christmas presents ordered outside of the EU from my shop need to be placed by December 7th to make double sure they'll be there on time. But tis' the season for vintage every season I say. Everybody needs a little vintage pick-up to help get them through the holiday hectic. As a little x-mas gift to you, I'm offering 10% off of everything in my shop until New Year's Day. Just type in the coupon code winterinberlin at the time of purchase and the discount will be automatically added.

Gruss und Kuss,

Rebeccah ;)

How Much Fun Can You Have With One Little Old Vintage Scarf?

The answer? A whole heck of a lot! I posed with this scarf today and, boy, did I have fun. Granted, it was pretty easy since it is a gorgeous 1960s silk Italian scarf in a retro Hawaiian print. Just try and not have fun with that. I dare you. ;) Here are some of the different photographs. I didn't post all of them because a few are just a little too goofy even for a goofball like me. Here goes:


I'm pretty sure I'm humming The Hills Are Alive here, though of course, the song would better fit some of my Trachtenmode pieces....


According to Wikipedia, it's a little known fact that Mary Magdalene was actually very into retro tiki Hawaiian print which she combined splendidly with religious pathos. Who knew?


This one I call my Isadora Duncan look, though I suppose the scarf would have to be a tad bit longer...


And this is my Mata Hari (come on, let me flatter myself. ;) )


Here I am, doing the discerning Haufrau, trying to decide if what I have in my hands is a quality item. Come on, lady. The scarf is from the 60s, made in Italy of 100% pure silk, is in mint condition. Geez. What else do you need to know?


I also think the scarf would make a fab belt, but it would have to be on someone with a slimmer waist than mine. Thank you little old scarf for providing so much entertainment on a humid late summer day!

Dirndls, Trachtenmode, Bavaria, Oh My!

One of the most amazing things about being a foreigner living abroad is how clearly you can see certain things that the native locals simply cannot. Take, for example, Trachtenmode.


Trachtenmode is the traditional costume of Bavaria and Austria, best known in its form of a dirndl and Lederhosen to the rest of the world. But there are also lots of dress that are "dinrdl light" (no apron, no frilly blouse) and adorable long country style circle skirts. At its very best, Trachtenmode is colorful, playful, feminine with just a touch of frill and often covered in Alpine flowers. It just doesn't get much cuter than that....


Yet when I show this clothing to my (German, but not Bavarian) husband he always says "No way! You can't wear that!" His cultural conditioning has just blinded him to how great they really are. Luckily there is a whole world out there with women who just might see the cuteness that I see. ;)

Shop Update: Kind of Blue

I'm not really sure why but, with the exception of navy I've just never worn much blue. Maybe I have it partly in my mind that it's a better color for the blonde and blue eyed, though a brighter blue also does look fabulous on someone darker. The good news is, if you are a fan of blue in its more royal, sky and icy shades, then I have a lot of goodies right now just for you in my shop. Bis bald! :)

Meet The Model

Name: Erica aus Amerika (Erica from America)

Height: A whopping 6 foot 2 (I think...)

Astrological Sign: Leo, baby! ;)


Originally from: The Detroit Metro Area, Michigan

Has lived in Berlin for: almost ten years (I beat her by one year. Originally I planned to stay for a couple of years and she for a couple of semesters. Berlin just does that to you.)

Favorite neighborhood in Berlin: Kreuzberg, baby (well, duh!)


Claims to Fame: Besides being a sweet and generous person, Erica can also sing one mean version of the song "I Am From Michigan", complete with hand gestures (and anyone who knows Michigan knows they are proud to be shaped like a hand.) She also knows her tenses and has a hankering for literature and linguistics. Oh yeah, and she loves to get out on that dance floor and dance, dance, dance.


Erica, thanks so much for being my model! And yes folks, she did get some free, bad ass dresses in the process. They looked so great on her, how could I say no? :)

Living Vintage in Berlin: Boil, Boil, Toil and Troedel

Any guidebook to Berlin is going to mention the flea markets that happen all around the city, mainly on the weekends and also sometimes during the week (here is a link to a list of each and every market, where they are run and their exact hours of operation. God bless German efficiency!) What are maybe less known to people from outside the city are the Troedellaeden (junk shops) that are scattered throughout each neighborhood. Though you can get vintage housewares, home decor and occasionally also jewelry, I personally think what they are best for is furniture.


My favorite Troedellaeden are the six or so lining Flughafenstrasse in Neukölln (U-7 Rathhaus Neukölln, between Karl Marx Strasse and Hermannstrasse). Basically each of these shops is a two to four bedroom ground floor apartment that is literally stacked floor to ceiling with tables, chairs, sofas, desks, you name it. Of course, a lot of it is pretty banged up, but their is still plenty of goodies to be found for an ever patient thrifting huntress. Most of the shop owners are likely to be male (German, Turkish or Arab), in their early 60s, reek of cigar smoke and probably speak little to no English but then it wouldn't be a true junk shop if anyone else were to run it.

Flughafenstrasse is far off the Kreuzkölln path (the area of Neukölln that has since become hip, though when I lived there five years ago it was basically a rat hole...) and is definitely not gentrified so you are also more likely to make a bargain. One of the shops, Trödel Klaus, even has a website which you can visit by clicking here.

Viel Spass beim Trödeln!

April Is The Month To Think Pink

I'm sure I'm not the only woman who thinks pink is grossly underrated. Perhaps it has been ruined for some many women by the legions of little girls between the ages of 2 and 10 who have pink dresses, pink bicycles, pink hair ribbons, pink pencils.... Once you reach a certain age, you can no longer even stand the idea of it. But maybe April is the month to re-think pink. What greater way to feel fresh and feminine this spring. Here are some lovely vintage goodies I recently found in this most delicate of colors.


Vintage 1950s Cardigan in Blushing Rose (XL), $56. Available at the ever-fabulous Small Earth Vintage

Eros Pink Cut Out Dress (S), $55. Available at Capricious Traveler


Vintage 1980s Pink Leather Pumps, (Size 8.5/German 39), $34. Available at Dear Golden Vintage


Vintage 1960s Bubblegum Pink Dress (L XL), $29. Available at Curious Knopf


Vintage Headband Hat, $25. Available at EGVintage


Vintage 1950s Shirtwaist Dress (L XL), $46. Available at Raleigh Vintage


Vintage 1970s Pink Peasant Dress (M L), $42. Available at Marie's Vintage


Vintage Fuchsia Cork Wedge Sandals (size 6.5-7/German 37), $32. Also available at Marie's Vintage

Happy springtime vintage shopping!

Living Vintage in Berlin: Cafe Sorgenfrei

With Mitte, Prenzlauerberg and Kreuzberg all vying for which neighborhood is the coolest and Friedrichhain trailing closely behind, it's easy to forget about Schöneberg. This is truly a shame for any vintage lover because they might have never heard of Goltzstrasse. Not only does the street have Mimi Textile Antiqitäten (Goltzstrasse 5), a shop which is the place in Berlin for antique vintage clothing and accessories from the 20s to the 40s, it also has the wonderfully retro Cafe Sorgenfrei.

Cafe Sorgenfrei (Goltzstrasse 18), run by a native Berliner and someone from the Pfalzer region, is done completely in the style of the 50s and 60s right down the doilies on the tables. The menu is also filled with all sorts of "old school" goodies like Hawaii toast and banana milk. Some of the vintage knick knacks and furniture is also for sale, so make sure you come with some extra bills tucked into your kid gloves.

On their website you can also see lots of nice vintage photographs such as the one below of the Fleischerei (Butcher shop) that was there in the actual 50s and 60s. Come by for some Kaffee und Kuchen anytime between 12 and 7 on Tuesday through Friday or for a little weekend jaunt (Saturday 10 to 6, Sunday 1 to 6).

Finders But Not Necessarily Keepers

I've always been good at finding things. When I was a child growing up in Arizona I would often find old Indian arrowheads lying on the ground or wheat back pennies, which I collected like mad, in an old jar of coins. This penchant for finding things continued as I grew older and realized, more and more, how much I value being a modern woman living vintage.


Not only is it a great feeling to find something stylish and unique at a flea market or a thrift store, it is also so wonderful to realize what you wear and own has a history. Just where is it that this dress has been?


And of course it is also easy on the environment. Heck, you can even feel good about shopping vintage in that love the earth way!


For a long time I assumed that everyone is good at finding things since it's always come so easily to me. In the past few years, however, I've learned that this simply isn't true.


I have many friends and also a husband who walk into a thrift store and are overwhelmed by the sheer volume. They simply cannot find that golden needle in the haystack, that one encrusted with Bakelite and jewels.


If you are one of those people, gentle reader, or even if you are also a vintage finding hound, please do stop by Curious Knopf Vintage. Na denn, bis bald! :)