A question from customers which is often asked of me, is “How did you come about owning a vintage shop?”. Well, I thought I’d start writing a blog about my wee vintage shop and share my passion with you all! My name is Lisa, and I am the proud owner of Vintage Quine in Falkland, Fife. My journey began a very long time ago. In fact, the name of my shop Vintage Quine goes back to my roots.

Why the name Vintage Quine? I love vintage – I am vintage… and I’m a “quine” fae Aiberdeen! (“Quine” means “girl” in Doric, the Scots language which originates in the northeast of Scotland). I’ve always been proud of my roots; you could say I’m a Doric quine through and through, born and brought up in the grey granite city by the North Sea.

Quine Innes modelling our The Seamstress of Bloomsbury Lauren Siren Suit in Navy Spot

I’ve also always been interested in social history and the past. I love the old black & white films, the sleek cars, the 40s dance bands, the fabulous old buildings and of course the stylish fashions. To me they have an exceptional quality and uniqueness, that today’s modern styles don’t seem to own the same way. My vintage journey started in the early 80s. I had an eye for picking up unique vintage pieces, whether it be a dress or an old vase. A born hoarder.

Me in Brief Encounter, Aberdeen 1988 — Me, Brief Encounter in Aberdeen 1988

Instead of pursuing my drama teaching career I had trained for I got myself a second-hand dealer’s licence, borrowed my dad’s car, and with help from my dear mum got myself a pitch at Aberdeen’s Sunday Flea Market. Oh, the glamour! Running a stall in the summer was one thing – but winter in Aberdeen is another. Freezing! This spurred me on to find a proper shop. It was basic to say the least and could definitely have done with a lick of paint! But the two upstairs rooms in the old tenement building had charm and potential! The main thing, it was right in the city centre. What do they say about location, location?

My shop was named Brief Encounter after the film, and over the years it grew from strength to strength. I was learning on the job and building a wee name for myself, becoming a champion of Thrift-Shop-Perusing and Jumble-Sale-Going. My strength was seeking out desirable vintage bargains that would suit my shop and my customers. Those 5 years would turn out be my apprenticeship in vintage styling!

Elma and Lisa - the original “vintage quines”

My first model Claire and I posing for the local newspaper.

The years flew in as you can imagine, hard work but incredibly rewarding with many good laughs along the way! Pictured here is me and my mum – the very first “vintage quine”! Pictured on the right is Claire who was my very first “Model Quine”. I learnt everything I possibly could about running a vintage business but eventually I was ready to do other things with my life. Little did I realize that the skills I gained would come into play years and years down the line. As my mum always used to say – in life “nothing is ever wasted, Lisa” – so true!

Fast forward to 2014, married, moved, mortgage, mum! And teaching drama to Primary children in over 50 Fife Primary schools along the way. The hoarding bug has never left me though. I’m still collecting stuff - it’s an addiction. My husband is nagging me to clear the loft. “What on earth are you going to do with all that junk?” It’s nae going anywhere Colin! (“It still hasn’t”, he would say today).

After keeping in with vintage and antique shops in and around Fife and forming relationships with them as a customer and fellow lover of vintage, an opportunity comes up! I can take on a wee space in Perth’s delightful vintage emporium Underneath The Arches as well as keep my day job. I pay some rent and they look after it for me, topping up and swapping out my stock and displays when I can. It’s a no brainer! Loft junk problem solved, Colin!

Opening Day of Vintage Quine in Newburgh, 2016

A year down the line… another opportunity arises. But this time I can have a whole shop to myself in Newburgh, a small yet charming space in a sleepy but highly community driven village. It’s ideal to expand the brand and test the waters a little. I can still teach and open the shop for business part time. Lou at Underneath the Arches (my former boss!) who owned the space was looking for a new tenant and thought of me! She knew that the small space I already had in Perth was only a fraction of what I could do and gave me the nudge I needed to start taking my business a little more seriously. I’m so thankful to her as I couldn’t have done it without her helping hand, and the kindness she showed to me when starting this venture. I love being back in my own shop once more like old times, and actually getting to meet with customers, chat and form friendships with them is exhilarating and a big part of what I had missed. However, the village is not busy enough to make a living out of it so to do it seriously I would have to move to a busier location. I’m a great believer in faith and an old saying of my Granny, “What’s for ye winna go by ye!”. Just as my lease was about to end a shop came up for rent in Falkland, huge thanks and gratitude to Debbie whom had her gift shop and tea room Miss Daisy’s in this location but had decided to move on in another direction, helped me enormously. , Here I was in the village I had lived and raised my family in for these past 20 odd years! Falkland is a busy tourist village and folk come to visit all year round, from all over the world. There is a thriving community of small shops, cafés, pubs and historical sites that have made it a one stop shop for tourists to catch a little slice of Scottish culture. This opportunity couldn’t be more perfect for me and my business, and I am chuffed to bits.

Opening Day of Vintage Quine in Falkland, 2017

In April 2017 - 29 years after I first started Brief Encounter - I opened Vintage Quine’s doors. I only had a week to move in and get it ready for an Easter Weekend Opening! Huge thanks to all my friends and family who helped get it ready, I was and am still truly blessed with the great supportive friends I have in my life! It felt so right though, I felt I had come full circle. Who would have believed it! I can now give up my day job and focus solely on my passion for vintage clothing and creating a haven for vintage lovers alike! My friend Fiona from Underneath the Arches who had been assisting me in Newburgh with window displays took charge of the Home section with her business Home Interiors whilst I focused on moving in my huge stock of vintage clothes and accessories as well as taking on the first of my vintage-reproduction clothing brands! I’m so thankful to her for being a big part of my VQ journey and offering her skills and passion to building Vintage Quine into the experience that it is today. My unique shop is set in one of the most picturesque Fife villages and is the ideal backdrop for a wee vintage shop. The charming cobbled streets and listed buildings lend themselves perfectly to a bygone era, and it feels like the ideal location for photographing my vintage pieces in photoshoots.

Entering my shop is like stepping back in time. From the old telephone on the desk and old brown suitcases stacked high to the ceiling, to 30’s glass lampshades dotted around on mid-century end tables giving a warm comforting glow to the whole space. My theatre background never leaves me as my shop is like my stage set, my vintage pieces the props, my background music the soundtrack, my vintage clothes the costumes, my Quines the stage crew, and my customers the characters! With me as the director!

Outlander Fans - Wearing the traditional Scots fashions from the 1700s!

A customer posing like Claire from Outlander TV series in the 1940s in front of the Bruce Fountain in Falkland

Falkland was the first film location to be used for the TV series Outlander. The first episode set in 1943 was filmed here, as well as the later seasons set in the 1970s. The filming features the village square (just yards away from us), and a couple of other shops and cafés which all got a 1940s makeover to transform the village into the old town of Inverness. Every week fans come to visit the village and tour the filming spots from their favourite show. Some even get dressed up! There’s always someone looking for Jamie.

Anya wearing Shelly Dress by The Seamstress of Bloomsbury; Debi wearing 1940s Long Sleeve Blouse by The House of Foxy (photographer Darja Bilyk)

If you’re a fan of that authentic 1940s style but prefer an easier to wear (and more coin-purse friendly version!), then my range of vintage-inspired dresses are just for you. The Seamstress of Bloomsbury make all their rayon crepe dresses from Original 1940s patterns – just like yer granny would have worn. They look gorgeous on all ages… and they certainly don’t make you look like yer granny! If 1940s isn’t your forte, then there are plenty of other eras to be explored. Vintage Quine stocks a broad range of 1950s dresses and separates. These are classic styles which are very flattering. Anya is wearing the Shelly Dress in Navy Mayflower Print. All ages look wonderful in these styles. The House of Foxy is another brand we love to have in our shop, they have pieces ranging from 1920s & 30s deco to 1940s wartime & film noir styles to 1950s swing. Debi wears their 1940s Long Sleeve Blouse in Blush Pink. I also stock a beautiful range of vintage-inspired Scottish accessories including hats, gloves, scarves, jewellery and much more. I like to source small companies and preferably those who are made locally. As a small business owner, I believe in supporting small UK brands and sustainably sourced products as opposed to “fast-fashion”.

The McAndrew Sisters dressed in Vintage Quine performing at a charity night in 2018

“Don’t sit under the apple tree, with anyone else but me!”

Since having been a drama teacher, performance theatre is never far away from anything I do. From fashion shows to fundraisers. Here are the wonderfully talented singing trio the McAndrews Sisters, serenading us all at a charity night earlier this year. I have dressed them for multiple performances and fundraisers, they model my dresses and ensembles so beautifully and really do get everyone In The Mood!

Quines Anya, Irene and Noelia posing in The Seamstress of Bloomsbury and Collectif in the Falkland Estate

Anya posing in The Seamstress of Bloomsbury in the shop and Marcie modelling for a photoshoot during lockdown 2020.

Of course, my favourite part of the shop is being surrounded by all the beautiful dresses – but even more so is getting to meet the women that visit my shop and seeing them spin and twirl around in them! I love how everyone wears each garment in their own unique way, and how so many of the styles flatter any age, shape or size. The Bonnie Quines who have modelled my vintage fashion along the way all have their own style and flair for vintage fashion and seeing how they take pieces from my shop and make them their own is so exciting. These familiar faces all pop up now and again on my social media and throughout the website too, so make sure to check both of us out on Instagram for even more inspiration! I’ll let you find out a little more about them in another post too.

Me and two of my wonderful Quines, Christine and Claire reopening the shop in April 2021 after a Covid lockdown.

My vintage journey has been a special one. I had a unique idea – and along with plenty of hard work, drive and self-belief Vintage Quine has grown into something I am enormously proud of. The people I have met and friendships I’ve formed along the way have truly shaped how my business has evolved, into not only a shop but an outlet for like-minded people to express themselves and inspire them to be who they want to be! Most important of all, I love what I do.

As the iconic fashion designer Christian Dior once said, “Whatever you do – for work or play – do it with passion”. Wise words Dior!

If you’ve enjoyed reading all about my journey and how Vintage Quine came to be, why don’t you visit the beautiful village of Falkland and experience my shop in person? I dare you to be inspired ....as I am being a Vintage Quine.

My Vintage Quine Journey