If you’re a vintage enthusiast, you’ll know that a person’s saved searches on pre-loved platforms are practically classified information, as secret and unspoken as their banking logins. Here at ELLE UK, we consider ourselves seekers of sartorial truths, so we have managed, somehow, to extract such information – specifically, what impeccably dressed women are searching for on eBay, Vinted, Depop, and more.
Our findings? Firstly, 2011 was a great year for fashion, from Isabel Marant’s fringed boots to Christopher Kane’s galaxy-print dresses. Secondly, it has never been a better time to unearth 1990s slip and tea dresses from the likes of Anna Sui and Betsey Johnson. Thirdly, we miss old Topshop.
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Read on to find out exactly what is on the wish lists of the coolest girls we know.
(Old) Topshop
Topshop’s 2025 comeback may be nigh, but internet tastemakers like Susie Garvie know that nothing beats ‘Old Topshop’. ‘I love 2010s nostalgia right now, [what with] the revival of indie sleaze in recent years,’ Garvie says. ‘I love finding Kate Moss x Topshop [pieces] from that era, as well.’
Garvie’s searches for the brand also span the 1990s and 2000s. ‘[I enjoy] stumbling across iconic pieces, such as the USA flag-print denim shorts,’ she says.
Keep an eye out for Topshop’s designer collabs – Christopher Kane and Meadham Kirchoff are two of the most coveted – as well as Topshop Unique, which launched in 2011 and was the first high-street brand to show at London Fashion Week.
Shop Old Topshop
Topshop x Christopher Kane 2009 Crocodile Print Mini Dress
Topshop Kate Moss Black Dobby Dress
Meadham Kirchoff x Topshop Glittery Socks
(Old) Isabel Marant
A short 14 years after its debut, Isabel Marant’s AW11 collection is all we want to wear, from the patterned pedal pushers to those wedged trainers.
Elsie Matilda, owner of vintage shop Elsie’s Archive, recently sold a pair of capri pants from this era within minutes of them dropping on-site, while influencer Shelley Auguiste owns a pair of the hallowed Beckett trainers – the same style that Beyonce wore a black pair in her 2011 ‘Love on Top’ music video – and the tasselled knee-high boots.
‘I scoured the internet for months to find [them] for a good price and eventually found the perfect pair on Vinted,’ Auguiste says. ‘My favourite way to style them is with a skinny black jean, taking heavy inspiration from the AW11 runway. I [plan] to go full boho vibes with them this summer, pairing them with frilly Broderie Anglaise sets and fringe accessories.’
As for other Marant pieces on Auguiste’s wish list, she is currently searching for an ankle-height version of the aforementioned boot, tooth and feather necklaces, and woven and fringed leather belts.
Shop Old Isabel Marant
Isabel Marant Lokyo Tassled Boots
Isabel Marant Capri Pants
Isabel Marant Beckett Trainers
Isabel Marant Capri Pants
(Old) Betsey Johnson
If you’re after flirty, wispy, frilly little dresses to waft in during summer events, may we suggest vintage Betsey Johnson?
‘My goal is to find more 1990s and 2000s [Johnson] catwalk pieces – they’re just the epitome of pretty, delicate femininity,’ says Elsie’s Archive founder Elsie Matilda. ‘I think it is the perfect brand for wedding guest looks.’
Steph Ermer started collecting archive Betsey Johnson six years ago, and has amassed quite the collection, which she regularly shares on TikTok. Some of Ermer’s rarest pieces are from the ‘Ultra Collection’, a limited-edition line designed by Johnson’s then 23-year-old daughter, Lulu during the late Nineties and early Noughties.
Shop Old Betsey Johnson
Betsey Johnson Floral Dress
Betsey Johnson Jellyfish Asymmetrical Dress
Betsey Johnson Y2K Slip Dress
(Old Levi’s) Engineered Jeans
Stealthily, steadily, the coolest girls (and boys) are buying up pre-loved Levi’s Engineered jeans. First launched in 1999, they have twisted seams and a darted yoke for a perfectly baggy fit.
‘Like everyone and their dog, I am on the constant hunt to see what old Levi’s Engineered jeans are out there,’ says Garvie. ‘I do already have a couple pairs from Vinted, but not with the button-fastening back – I am really desperate to find a pair!’
Stylist and vintage dealer Izzy Harvey is planning an imminent restock, after receiving multiple requests from customers. ‘I’m seeing a huge demand for early 2000s [versions],’ she says. ‘There’s something so effortlessly sexy about the way they hang off the hips.’
Old Levi’s Engineered Jeans
Levi's Engineered Jeans
Levi's Engineered Blue Jeans
Levi's Engineered Twisted Denim 10th Anniversary Buckle Back
Levi's Engineered Jeans
(Old) Antoni & Alison
It was only a matter of time before Antoni & Alison’s pithy statement T-shirts and 1960s-tinged ready-to-wear began trending again. Central Saint Martins graduates (and couple) Antoni Burakowski and Alison Roberts launched the brand in 1987 with a collection of slogan tees called ‘Be Happy’, surging in popularity in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and gaining a hardcore following in Japan.
Fashion seller and influencer Olivia Haroutounian saw the writing on the wall four years ago, when she snapped up a handful of archive T-shirts that the brand had unearthed and posted on their site. They do this periodically, so it’s worth signing up for more information. In the meantime, there are more than a few slogan tees and vests from the duo’s diffusion line for Debenhams to choose from on pre-loved platforms.
Shop Old Antoni & Alison
Antoni & Alison Women's White and Red Vest
Antonia & Alison I Like Stupid Things (S) Purse
Antoni and Alison Lime Green Coat
Antoni & Alison Grow Your Hair (XS) Purse
(Old) Anna Sui
Last year, WWD crowned Anna Sui ‘the Gen Z fashion whisperer’, noting the uptick in searches for vintage designs on pre-loved platforms, as well as the designer’s continued relevance, with fans including Olivia Rodrigo and Dua Lipa.
Sui began her label in the late 1980s, but saw a surge in success in 1991, after she staged a fashion show featuring her friends, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista, who were all paid in clothes.
From flippy chiffon skirts to floral tea dresses, there’s a free spiritedness to Sui’s designs that align well with the Y2K revival. And good news – with some earnest searching, you can still pick up an early-aughts piece for a decent price.
Shop Old Anna Sui
Anna Sui Short Sleeve Cocktail Dress
Anna Sui Studded Bow Handbag
Christopher Kane
For anyone who has worked in fashion in the last two decades, any mention of (now-defunct brand) Christopher Kane will likely elicit a wistful sigh. For much of the mid aughts, the Scottish fashion designer was the darling of London Fashion Week, inciting fervent desire via neon, bodycon dresses (2007), laser-cut leather ensembles (2010), and galaxy-print concoctions (2011).
Such garments have now become collectors’ pieces, increasing in value year on year. Lucky owners of Christopher Kane archive pieces include New York-based historian Ruby Redstone, whose galaxy print dress from the designer’s resort 2011 collection was a much-searched-for consignment store find, while fashion editor Rebecca Hill snapped up her AW19 gel clutch on eBay.
Shop Old Christopher Kane
Christopher Kane Blouse Christopher Kane
Christopher Kane Loading…
Christopher Kane Neon Green Skirt
Christopher Kane Silk Coat
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