A couple of months ago I found out about Jane Doe vintage shop browsing Serbian fashion forums and immediately made a mental note to check it out the next time I'm in Belgrade. A real vintage shop (stocking only items from before the 90s) in one of my favorite cities sounded incredibly promising; I believe every city with an identity has its share of highly specific clothes - you'll come across a piece and it'll hit you how very much it's reminiscent of a particular time and place (the insane "Lepa Brena at the culmination of her 80s kitsch" black and gold blazer with extremely puffy shoulders, glittery dots and bows that I bought at Jane Doe, perfectly conscious of the fact that I'm probably never going to wear it, is the very embodiment of this concept). I went to other Belgrade vintage and second-hand stores prior to my venture to Jane Doe, but the latter was the only one that really lived up to my wishes and expectations in terms of both selection of items and atmosphere.
Many stores, regardless of what they sell, aim for that "make yourself comfortable" and "feel like at home" character, but very few of them actually succeed because it's rather difficult to maintain cozy mood if your employees aren't genuinely interested in making it work it too. What I liked best about Jane Doe was that it made me feel like I could stay there all day just browsing racks and trying on clothes. Its owner, Bojana, is super nice and puts a lot of energy into interacting with vintage/fashion enthusiasts visiting the shop. Bojana is in her 20s and runs Jane Doe completely by herself. She was the first one to take the plunge into opening a vintage shop in Belgrade, a gesture that has definitely paid off as she's established a steady base of regular customers.
Jane Doe (located on Bulevar kralja Aleksandra 161a) sells clothes, shoes, bags, hats and jewelry; the entire place (including the little front yard) is lavishly decorated with trinkets such as old magazines, illustrations and toys. The philosophy behind the name of the shop is that without an owner, every piece loses its identity and gets the label "Jane Doe". When you buy the piece, you give it a new identity and remove the label. Although I think the "Jane Doe" label suggests quite a bit of identity due to the shop being an all-around inspiring abode, I was happy to remove it from two blazers. Needless to say, Jane Doe is now one of my favorite places in Belgrade.
P.S. It's official: Dressful's first giveaway will be announced next Monday, September 20!
16 comments
Great. i Love VIntage SHops. Tnx 4 this info...next time i'm in Belgradde i'm gonna definatelly check it out. ;)
You'll love it, I'm sure. And if you find something that tickles your fancy, be sure to share it on your blog! I'd love to see it.
Ah, dear, your post reminds me on way too many things, like a little box I want to go back and explore it again and again! Happy to see you found one more "for must" stop in Belgrade that will keep you coming back to us many, many times...
Both Jane Doe and Belgrade are like a [little] box I want to go back to and explore it again and again to me. So glad you liked the post.
I love a great find in a vintage shop. You found a very nice piece.
I am definatly joining my boyfriend on the next business trip to Belgrade
Mr Fensišmensi visits Belgrade on business? I'm mildly jealous. ;)
Svi?a!
Srbski blogi...povej kaj ve?!
Tale dva sta mi zelo vše?:
http://bgdstyle.blogspot.com/
http://loveleyla.com/category/blog
i have a strange feeling i might know this girl! all in all, definitely going to check it out next time i go to Bg, which, sadly, won't be until next year, but the shop looks like it's there to stay, which is great :))
The feeling you might know her - that's such a Belgrade thing, I love it.
P.S. I miss your posts.
Eva, thank you very much for this wonderful post! I'm so glad you liked the shop!
Hope your next visit to Belgrade will be very soon!:)
Big Regards from Jane!:)))
:) Nema na ?emu, znaš da kad nai?em na nešto posebno, naravno moram o tome da pišem.
Vidimo se uskoro!
Love, love, love it!
hello,you mentioned that you went in different second-hand /vintage stores, could you please tell me where can i find them? I.m going to Belgrad this week and i would like to do a little thrifting
Hi! That was ages ago, so the only one I remember is Pull my Daisy in Dorćol.