1960s Shopping Guide: Fashion, Home And Tech

Shift dresses and Chelsea boots, Penguin Modern Classics, Beatles and Motown 45s, and a Dansette.

Below: what to buy for a 1960s theme, a 1960s birthday or someone who grew up then - clothes, books, records and gadgets, with what to check before you pay.

Straight answer first: we don't sell clothing, books, records or technology. We draw and print cards, art prints, pin badges and stickers in the UK, and we stock party decorations. Everything else here is advice on where the genuine items come from.

Years covered in the 1960s

• 1960 - Coronation Street began, national service ended and the sixties had not started yet. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1960
• 1961 - The Beatles started playing the Cavern and Yuri Gagarin went into space. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1961
• 1962 - Love Me Do, the first James Bond film and the Cuban missile crisis. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1962
• 1963 - The big freeze, Beatlemania, Doctor Who and the assassination of President Kennedy. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1963
• 1964 - Top of the Pops, pirate radio, mods and rockers, and BBC Two. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1964
• 1965 - Churchill's funeral, the 70mph limit and the Beatles at Shea Stadium. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1965
• 1966 - England won the World Cup, and then Aberfan happened in October. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1966
• 1967 - Sgt. Pepper, Radio 1, colour television and the summer of love. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1967
• 1968 - Manchester United in Europe, Dad's Army and a year of protest. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1968
• 1969 - The moon landing, the Beatles on the roof and the end of the decade. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-1969
• That is every 1960s year we have written up so far: 1960 to 1969.

1960s clothing and accessories

• Shift dresses, mini skirts, geometric black and white prints and bold blocks of colour.
• Go-go boots, Mary Janes, and a beehive or a sharp bob.
• For men: slim suits, polo necks, Chelsea boots, parkas for the mod look.
• Late decade: afghan coats, kaftans, flares and round wire-framed sunglasses.
• Charity shops rarely have genuine 60s stock now, so reproduction is the realistic route.

1960s books worth buying

• To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee (1960).
• A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess (1962).
• The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath (1963).
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl (1964).
• Penguin Modern Classics with period covers are cheap and look right on any shelf.

1960s music and records

• 7 inch singles are the decade's format and still turn up in charity shops for a couple of pounds.
• The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, the Who; Motown and soul for the dancing.
• Sgt Pepper and other late-decade LPs are worth buying for the sleeve alone.
• Original UK pressings cost more than reissues; a worn copy they recognise beats a mint one they do not.
• A Dansette or a period portable player makes the records an event rather than an ornament.

1960s home and interiors

• Teak sideboards, nest of tables and a Danish-style dining set.
• Op art and psychedelic wallpaper, paper lampshades and a lava lamp.
• Poole Delphis and Denby stoneware in brown and orange.
• A Dansette record player in the corner and a transistor radio in the kitchen.
• Twin tub washing machines, a Kenwood mixer and a fondue set.
• Habitat, opened 1964, for chicken bricks, paper globes and flat-pack basics.

1960s tech and gadgets

• Transistor radios in bright plastic cases - cheap, plentiful and often still working.
• Reel to reel tape recorders, and the first compact cassette machines from 1963.
• Instamatic cameras and Polaroid Land cameras.
• Rotary dial telephones in colours other than black, which arrive in this decade.

Where to buy and what to check

• Record fairs beat online for singles - you can check the vinyl under a light.
• Test a transistor radio before buying; battery corrosion in the compartment is the usual killer.
• For a party, one real object plus reproduction clothing is the sensible split.

How to shop a decade without overspending

• Set the budget before you start; period shopping is where budgets quietly double.
• Reproduction for clothing, genuine for the small objects - it looks the same in photographs and costs a fraction.
• One real item plus three cheap nostalgic bits beats one expensive present every time.
• Check the year, not the decade. Plenty of what people file under one era actually arrived in the next.
• Music last: a single from their year plus the 1960s playlist covers the whole evening.

Shop prints and posters

Milestone birthday cards

Blank inside, kraft envelope, printed in the UK.

Decorations for a decade party

Banners, balloons, cake toppers and confetti, plain enough to take any era theme.

How to write it so it lands

• Buy for the year they turned eighteen, not the year they were born - that is the era they actually remember.
• Photograph the label or the pressing before you buy online; reissues and reproductions are rarely described as such.
• Leave the clothing to last. The objects are harder to find and the outfit can be sorted in an afternoon.

Where to shop next

• Look back to 1960
• Look back to 1961
• Look back to 1962
• Look back to 1963
• Look back to 1964
• Look back to 1965
• Look back to 1966
• Look back to 1967
• Look back to 1968
• Look back to 1969
• 1960s history: events, politics and culture
• 1960s calendar: year by year
• 1960s music: songs, genres and trends
• 1960s films and directors
• 1960s books, films and TV
• 1960s books: novels and authors
• 1960s art: artists and styles
• 1960s fashion: styles, designers and trends
• 1960s food: dishes, restaurants and trends
• 1960s travel: destinations and holidays
• 1960s technology: gadgets and computers
• 1960s games: board, card and video
• 1960s trivia: fun facts
• 1960s quiz: questions and answers
• 1960s party playlist
• The 1960s: the whole decade
• Retro gift guide: the 1960s
• The decade before: the 1950s
• The decade after: the 1970s
• All decade guides in one place
• Decade history by era
• Decade calendars: every year from 1920
• Decade music: songs, genres and trends
• Decade films: best movies and directors
• Decade books: novels, authors and reading trends
• Decade art: artists, styles and trends
• Decade fashion: styles, designers and trends
• Decade food: dishes, restaurants and eating trends
• Decade travel: destinations and holidays
• Decade technology: gadgets and computers
• Decade shopping guides
• Decade games: board, card and video games by era
• Decade trivia: fun facts by era
• Decade quizzes: questions and answers by era
• Decade trivia game: play for points
• Decade quiz: test your memory
• Shop art prints and posters
• Shop greetings cards
• Shop birthday cards
• Shop funny cards
• Milestone birthday cards
• Nostalgia gift shop
• Retro party supplies
• Playground games by region
• Knock down ginger
• Conkers rules
• Marbles rules
• School dinners we all remember
• Decade guides: books, films and TV by era
• Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• Sympathy and bereavement cards
• Sympathy cards guide
• Pin badges
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What 1960s homeware is worth buying?

Teak sideboards, nest of tables and a Danish-style dining set. The home and interiors section above lists the rest, from furniture to kitchen kit.

What should I wear for a 1960s theme?

Shift dresses, mini skirts, geometric black and white prints and bold blocks of colour. The clothing section above covers the rest, including accessories and where to buy.

What are the best 1960s books to buy as a gift?

To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee (1960). Every book listed was published in the decade, so the date on the title page does half the work.

What 1960s records are worth buying?

7 inch singles are the decade's format and still turn up in charity shops for a couple of pounds. A single or album from the year they turned eighteen is the most personal option and usually the cheapest.

Do you sell 1960s clothing, books or gadgets?

No. We make greeting cards, art prints, pin badges and stickers, and we stock party decorations. For the rest, charity shops, car boots, eBay and independent record shops are the honest answer.