Beatniks

It's really such a shame that there isn't much of a vintage clothing culture here in Hong Kong, unlike, say, Beijing. People generally don't like to wear used clothing. I understand why, but I have to shake my head at the thought of all those lovely vintage clothes that are just mouldering away in some mahjong auntie's closet.

There are a few vintage shops in Tsim Sha Tsui and Causeway Bay, but I've generally found them to be oriented more towards hipsters and young people, with a focus on denim and t-shirts. There are a few consignment shops in Pedder Building (wait, are they still there? I haven't visited in years), but I don't really need an Ungaro ballgown.

For me, the only consistent source for vintage clothing is Beatniks. It used to be in Tsim Sha Tsui and relocated a couple of years ago to Central. Some of you may have gotten worried when it disappeared from its wet market location. But a couple of months later, Beatniks has resurfaced at 31 Staunton Street at Graham. Now, it's a bit weird in terms of location. You have to walk down Graham a bit from Staunton Street and it's in a little alley way on the left. It's right next to some faux-Italian restaurant called Cenacolo.

Beatniks is run by Ah Mo, who has a great pair of stylist's eyes. She's picked out things for me that I would never have even looked at, and she was always right. Most of the clothes in Beatniks are from the 1960s up to the 1980s, but really, the shop sells whatever Ah Mo picks up from her sources all over the world.

That violet dress with ruffles is really cute. It's about HKD400. Hm...am I too old to wear it?

I will be back for this one.

Love this entire outfit.

Damn! I love that dress. I would wear it during ghost month and wander around at night.

The white dress with yellow embroidery is beautiful.

Here are some of the items that I've bought from Beatniks over the years. I tried to wear them with as few accessories as possible to give you an idea of what they look like on their own. None of them cost more than HKD400. I should mention, however, that I've had most of these clothes altered at Mitty, but that was also really cheap, less than HKD100.

This dress was a size too big originally, but Mitty did such a great job taking it in.

I love yellow dresses.

This dress makes me feel like I stepped out of Sympathy for Lady Vengeance.

Love the belt.

A dress I would never have chosen, but I'm glad Ah Mo showed it to me. I wear it all the time during summer. It's kind of like the sartorial equivalent of a mullet: business (or rather, dowdiness) in the front, party in the back.

Another top I wouldn't have ever chosen for myself, but Ah Mo made me try it on, and I fell in love. Ugh, this pose makes me look so fat.

Sorry, this ended up being such a vanity-driven entry. I hope it's shown you the variety of choices you'll find at Beatniks, though. And this should be enough to assuage my obviously-huge ego for a while, so I won't be boring you with more pictures of me standing on a newspaper in my living room with an occasional guest appearance by Chabi's butt until I need the next dose of vanity.

Anyway, head on over to Beatniks as they're having a sale right now, probably till the end of the month.


ps. I know that there are a couple other vintage clothing and accessories shops in Central, but I'm not going to write about them because I don't think their pricing and selection are reasonable. So it's not that I don't know, but I'd rather not write a negative review, especially since I know one of the owners.

Ace Dragon and Shitoujii

I'm going to admit from the start that I don't have any pictures of my own to show because I haven't gotten any tattoos from Gabe (from Ace Dragon) or Leon (Shitoujii). I like going to this dude, Ricky, in the Philippines, because he's fantastic at the type of tattoos that I like (ornamental, traditional Chinese designs), and he's relatively inexpensive. Check out his work here!

Anyway, I did get a tattoo above my diaphragm in Hong Kong a few years back, but the dude who did it for me has disappeared. Plus, he does triad tattoos so I'm not sure if he tattoos civilians. I only got a booking with him because a girl friend of mine was dating some gangster-type, and she strong-armed him into tattooing me. He did a really great job although he kept telling me to hold my breath. I'm not a deep breather (long story), and I tend to take in quick, short breaths, and the rise and fall of my ribs was jostling his arm.

Anyway, I still thought I should mention Gabe and Leon even though I don't have any pictures. Gabe is quite famous, and he got a lot of attention when he inked David Beckham. I don't really know much about Beckham, nor do I actually know what Gabe did for him, but I guess it's a good endorsement of Gabe's skills.

Gabe did tattoo a friend of mine, and her tattoo (an ornate design of vines and flowers) looks really pretty, so that much I can say. You can find out more from his Web site here, although he hasn't really updated or done much with his gallery. His studio is in Tsim Sha Tsui, and the full address should be in the site somewhere.

Leon, on the other hand, is a friendly acquaintance of mine. I met him through a friend who was his client, and I have to say, Leon's work on my friend was breathtaking. He seems to really excel in big pieces, as well as delicate lines, plus he seems like he would be a really comfortable tattoo artist to hire. He's not an incessant chatterbox at all. Don't you hate tattoo artists (and dentists!) who won't shut up? I really much prefer the ones who stoically mind their own business. I went to this dude in London once, and while he was really talented, he talked so damn much! I just wanted to read my book in peace but he kept talking about the Eurostar and Ryanair.

Anyway, Leon's work can be viewed on his site here. His gallery is fairly comprehensive, although it doesn't seem like he's added any new work on.

He has a studio out in Mong Kok, just so you know. As far as I know, he charges around HKD1,000 per hour.