I couldn’t figure out why this dress was in the window for so long at Cabaret, a vintage clothing store on Queen Street in downtown Toronto, so I decided it was time to find out. By Catherine Lash

Window at Cabaret

I loved this dress since the first day I saw it and thought it would be perfect for a wedding; and I was amazed that it hadn’t sold each time I passed by. Yesterday I dropped in and found out that it had in fact been sold; I also discovered that it was a reproduction based on a blue 1950s dress by an unknown designer that is still part of the store’s current stock.

The 1950's little blue dress that was the inspiration

The staff at Cabaret had received a few requests for a wedding dress in this style so rather than recreating the wheel, they remade a favourite design. While most vintage shoppers are looking for a one-off dress, real vintage can be hard to find, especially for a wedding day. This is an option worth considering if the vintage trail is getting cold; it’s made to measure, comes in many colours and at $595 it’ll razz your berries without taking too much of the long green.