Trend Street: Dressed to the nineties

19 March 2015 - 02:03 By Siphiliselwe Makhanya
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The Vintage Gang were not trying to start something.

They just wanted to throw on some throwback threads and take snaps of themselves at the Durban skate park. That was three years ago. Now, more than 64000 Facebook fans later, they have embraced the fact that their style holds sway with the thousands of young "Vinnies" who follow their page.

Unusually for a group of youths anointed with the elusive glamour of cool, Nonhle Mkhize, Ayanda Mkhize, Azabelutho Magadlela and Sifiso Dlamini love that their aesthetic has been co-opted - it allows them to indulge their quirks without being constantly asked to explain themselves to their peers.

Nonhle, a catering management student, said: ''I remember when we first started posting pictures of ourselves. People were clueless. I would take pics wearing brogues and they would tell us it was silly."

The Vintage Gang's style references the recent past (the 1990s) so it is technically retro, but they are not people to dwell on the nuances of the terms.

Said Ayanda: ''The term Vintage Gang first came to us when we were sitting in the library."

They happily admit to ripping their inspiration straight from their parents' youth, and out of the archives of local and American black popular culture.

Said Nonhle, 20: "I love the 1990s because it's Lebo Mathosa, it's Brenda Fassie. Moesha is a show that showcases braids.

"I get inspiration from that and other shows, like the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."

Sifiso, 24, a management accounting student, described his style as "dapper with a mix of street".

"I love denim so my look features a lot of it. I also love shirts in printed fabrics. It adds an edge to my look."

The gang has a strong sense of social responsibility. Civil engineering student Azabelutho, 21, wants it known that she's a Christian.

''People think ours is a lost generation, but we don't understand why adults say that when they do nothing to find us," she said.

They have thrown their weight behind an ''anti-sugar daddy" campaign, discouraging their peers from getting into transactional relationships with older men.

''It's something we believe in," said Azabelutho.

''You can be a young woman with integrity and look good at the same time."

The gang know their peers' struggle. They, too, are constantly broke. This makes thrifting perfectly suited to their needs.

''We aren't poor but we understand what it's like to not have money.

"This style is in us so we find ways to express it. We may not have money, but we're not going to look for it in dodgy ways."

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