FAQ

caitiedid is a Melbourne vintage clothing archive. Every piece has already lived at least one life before it reaches you. We stock vintage clothing across the decades, chosen for natural fibres, honest construction, and the kind of making that was meant to be kept. Clothes that remember.

Vintage and antique clothing from roughly the 1900s onward, chosen for cloth and construction rather than trend. Silk, wool, cashmere, linen, velvet, cotton, suede. Antique nightgowns and beaded handbags. Mid century coats and more than the occasional pair of shoes. Embellished things, the diamante and the beribboned and the slightly impractical. And a small, carefully kept section of vintage baby and toddler clothing, newborn to three years. And a little for older children too.

Yes. Everything we sell is genuinely old rather than reproduction, unless a listing says otherwise. Deadstock, for instance, is unworn but still truly of its era. Where we can date a piece with confidence, we tell you how and why we know. Where we are estimating, we say so plainly. We would rather tell you a thing is likely 1970s and mean it than tell you it is 1972 and be guessing.

Every listing carries a precise condition note, written in our own vocabulary and meant to be read closely. Vintage is, by definition, not new. A small flaw is not a defect; it is part of the record of a thing that has been worn and loved. We photograph and describe anything worth knowing about, a mended seam, a faded patch, a missing button, the soft thinning that comes with age. If it would change your mind, it is in the listing.

Vintage sizing bears almost no relation to the number on a modern label, so we encourage you to ignore the tag entirely. Every piece is listed with exact measurements taken flat, bust, waist, hip, length, sleeve, whatever the garment calls for. The surest method is to measure a piece you already own and love, and compare. Our size guide walks you through exactly how. When in doubt, write to us and we will happily talk you through the fit before you buy.

There is no fixed schedule, because the cloth arrives when it arrives and nothing is listed before it is ready. New pieces tend to appear in small, considered drops rather than great unloadings. The most reliable way to see something before it is gone is to be on the newsletter, where new arrivals are announced first.

All prices on the site, including postage, are in Australian dollars (AUD). International buyers should check the current exchange rate before purchasing; your card provider or PayPal will convert at their prevailing rate.

All major cards via Shopify Payments, plus PayPal, Apple Pay and Google Pay.

By arrangement, yes. We are an online archive rather than a shopfront, but for local buyers we can sometimes arrange a collection or a viewing. Write to us first and we will tell you what is possible.

Always. If you are after a particular era, colour, shape or fabric, tell us. We cannot promise to conjure a thing out of air, but we keep a quiet list, and the archive is always moving. The right piece has a way of turning up.

All sales are final, with one important exception below. Because every piece is one of one, genuinely old, and described in close detail before you buy, we ask that you read the listing and the measurements carefully and ask us anything you are unsure of before you order. We would always rather answer ten questions than have a piece come home.

This is the exception, and it matters to us. If a piece arrives with a fault we failed to disclose, or is materially not as described, write to us within 14 days of it arriving, with photographs. We will make it right, by repair, refund, or replacement as the situation calls for. Nothing in this policy takes away the rights you are guaranteed under the Australian Consumer Law. Honest condition reporting is the whole foundation of the shop. If we have got something wrong, we genuinely want to know.

Everything is written down and kept where you can read it whole: returns, shipping, privacy, and the terms the shop runs on. The short version of each follows, with the long version a click away.

Returns. We do not offer change-of-mind returns. Every piece is one of one, measured flat, and described down to its last moth kiss, so please read closely and ask us anything before you buy. If a piece arrives with an undisclosed fault, or significantly different from its description, the Australian Consumer Law protects you and we will put it right: write to us within 14 days of delivery, with photographs. The full refund policy sets out the process step by step.

Shipping. Orders are packed in tissue and dispatched within 1 to 3 business days, tracked, via Australia Post. Postage is calculated by parcel weight for both domestic and international orders, shown at checkout, and any customs duties or import fees on international orders are set by your country and are yours to settle. The shipping policy has the full detail.

Privacy. We keep only what is needed to send a parcel and to tell you it is on its way: your name, your address, your email. They are used for nothing else, and kept no longer than they must be. The privacy policy carries the standard legal detail in full.

Terms. The rest of the machinery lives in the terms of service: orders and payment, pricing, the accuracy of listings, and the standard legal matter. Everything is governed by the laws of Victoria, Australia.

If anything is unclear, write to us at correspondence@caitiedid.shop. We would rather explain a policy before you order than point to it afterwards.

Everything is sent within Australia via Australia Post, packed properly and tracked from the moment it leaves us to the moment it reaches you. Postage is calculated by the weight of your parcel, and the exact cost is shown at checkout.

Once a piece is on its way you will get a tracking number, so you can watch it travel. Parcel Post usually takes around two to six business days depending on how far it has to go, a little quicker between the capital cities and a little longer to regional and remote areas. We pack and post within two business days of your order, often sooner, because we are as keen to get a piece to you as you are to receive it.

Parcels over 5kg fall outside these rates. If yours might be, get in touch before ordering and we will work out the right quote together.

A note for the patient: vintage is worth the small wait, and we would always rather pack a fragile piece carefully than quickly.

Yes, we ship worldwide via Australia Post, with the same care and the same tissue as everything that travels within Australia. Postage is calculated by parcel weight and destination, New Zealand, Asia Pacific, US & Canada, UK & Europe, and Rest of World, and the exact cost is shown at checkout.

Once a piece is on its way you will get a tracking number, and delivery usually takes anywhere from one to four weeks depending on your country and its customs. We pack and post within two business days, and from there it is in the hands of the postal services and the customs office of your country.

One thing to know before you order, said plainly because we would rather you were not caught out. Any customs duties, import taxes, tariffs, or handling fees charged by your own country are your responsibility, not ours. They are set by your government, not by us, they are not included in the item price or the postage, and we have no way to predict or pay them on your behalf. Most parcels pass through without a fuss, but if yours is held for duties, those are yours to settle. If you are unsure what your country charges, a quick look at your local customs website before ordering is never a bad idea.

We declare every parcel honestly and accurately, as we are required to, and we are always happy to answer any question about postage before you buy.

With care, and with as little waste as we can manage. Pieces are wrapped in tissue and sent in protective, largely recycled and recyclable packaging. We reuse good materials where we can, so your parcel may well arrive in something that has also lived a previous life. That is rather the point.

Gently, and according to its fabric. Old cloth does not behave like new cloth, and the washing instructions on a vintage label, where there even is one, cannot always be trusted. With every order we send you our in-house illustrated care guide by email, which covers every fabric we stock in proper detail, silk and wool and cashmere and linen and velvet, leather and suede, and the fragile antique pieces. When in doubt, do less. Cloth that has survived fifty years did not get here by being scrubbed.

The small things section holds vintage and antique baby and toddler clothing, newborn to three years, chosen with the same eye as everything else.

A note on safety, because it matters more here than anywhere. Older children's pieces are sold for their beauty and their making, and some, with their small buttons, ribbons and delicate trims, are best kept for dressing up, for photographs, and for keeping, rather than everyday wear on a very small child. Each listing will tell you what we think a piece is suited to. Use your judgement, and never leave a baby unattended or sleeping in anything with small or loose components.

Yes. Occasionally, and selectively.

If you have something you think might be right for caitiedid, we would genuinely like to hear about it. What we are looking for is the same thing we look for everywhere: good fabric, honest provenance, the particular quality of having been made with care.

Write to us at correspondence@caitiedid.shop with photographs, ideally of the full piece, the label if there is one, and any condition details you are already aware of. Tell us what you know of its history.

We look at everything and respond to what interests us. We cannot always say yes, and when we cannot we will try to say why, because a piece that is not right for caitiedid may still be right for somewhere, and we would rather you know that than simply hear nothing.

The sustainability argument for vintage clothing is not complicated.

A garment that already exists does not require new resources to produce. It does not contribute to the volume of new clothing manufactured each year. A volume that the fashion industry's own reporting describes as unsustainable by almost any measure.

We are not making a practical one: the most sustainable piece of clothing is the one that already exists, cared for properly, worn by as many people as can love it.

Everything in the caitiedid archive has been chosen to last. The fabrics are natural where possible, wool, silk, linen, cotton, cashmere, because natural fibres biodegrade, and because they were made to last in a way that most contemporary synthetics were not.

The condition notes are specific because a piece that arrives as expected is a piece that does not get returned and reshipped. The care guides are detailed because a piece properly cared for does not need replacing.

This is the whole argument. It is not new. It is just worth making clearly.

We describe what we know and declare what we don't.

Every piece in the archive is described with the evidence available to us; label, construction, fabric, provenance. Where a label is present and appears genuine, we note it. Where there is no label, we say so. Where we are not certain of an era, a maker, or a fabric composition, we say we believe or we suspect rather than stating it as fact.

We do not sell pieces we believe to be misdescribed or falsely labelled. If a piece turns out to be other than described, if new information comes to light after purchase, we want to know and we will make it right.

The condition lexicon is part of this commitment. Named flaws are disclosed flaws. Disclosed flaws are honest ones.

If you have a question about the provenance or authenticity of a specific piece, write to us before you buy. We would rather answer the question than have you purchase with uncertainty about it.

Yes, digital gift cards are available in several denominations.

Everything we send is already wrapped with care, so in a sense every order arrives gift-ready. If a parcel is going straight to someone else, tell us at checkout and we will leave out the invoice and add a handwritten note if you would like one.

The newsletter. New arrivals are announced there before they go anywhere else, alongside the occasional piece of writing about cloth, care, and the things clothes carry. You can sign up here.

Write to us. We are a small operation, and we read everything, usually quickly and always properly. Reach us at correspondence@caitiedid.shop for anything at all, or find us on Substack & Instagram.