Olaf's Brings Men's Vintage Clothing to Court Street

It must be hard to be a man…there are just so few good places to buy vintage clothing! (If you’re not trying to channel one of the guys from Scooby Doo, that is).

Not so for Carroll Gardens chaps anymore, however. Shortly before Christmas, a gift from Santa was dropped on Court Street; Olaf’s, a new exclusively gentlemen’s store, which is the brainchild of Jeanne Messing and Jen McCulloch. (Jen also owns Olive’s Very Vintage for women a block down).

Olaf’s looks a bit like a movie set – like the home and wardrobe of a very dapper gentleman of another era. Dark, smoky gray, striped wallpaper, mounted antlers, a typewriter, old Playboy magazines, cocktail sets straight out of Mad Men. And of course, lots and lots of clothes.

There are Pendleton plaids, hunting boots, suits and cufflinks from the 1940s, communist propaganda pins, and tuxedos, spectacles and pocket watches from the 19th century. Olaf’s is anything but a used clothing store. Along the walls hang vintage suspenders and braces and ties, all in beautiful condition.

“We’re for the guy who grows his own food, but goes to the city to get his newspaper,” explains owner Jeanne Messing of the vibe of the shop.

Quite a whimsical image indeed. But who actually shops at Olaf’s?

“A lot of hipsters from 20 - 40. But also older gentlemen come in that are in their seventies or eighties because it’s the kind of clothes they’re used to,” Lauren Jaffe, a young Olaf’s employee says.

While I was looking about the store an older man walked in, in the aftermath of this week’s blizzard, all the way from Coney Island. His glasses were a bit fogged, and on his parka and hat were droplets of melted snow.

“I came by the other day when you were putting the Valentine’s in the window, and I thought I’d come back and get a Valentine or two,” he told Lauren, with the sweetness with which one speaks when discussing Valentines.

Unfortunately, the window Valentines are not for sale. And yet the exchange underscores the nostalgia that Olaf’s is able to capture.

Despite the aura of “another era” that permeates the shop, however, the clothing itself is incredibly translatable and wearable. The wool trousers are smart; the wing tip loafers, elegant. What differentiates Olaf’s from other vintage clothing stores that might offer, for instance, tuxedos from the 19th century, is that the pieces are classic rather than costume-y.

Best of all, the prices are fairly reasonable: dress shoes ($100 - $150); tweed sports coats, many with beautiful leather covered buttons ($75 - $200); tweed and wool fedoras ($36 - $65); even vintage rock tees for under $30, like the 1972 Pink Floyd tee adorning one of the mannequins (paired nicely with a bowler hat).

An additional advantage to buying vintage is the recyclable aspect of secondhand clothing.

“Vintage is the stylist’s way to live green,” says owner Jen McCulloch.

Olaf’s offers free in-house pinning services so that your suit will have a custom fit. Secondhand does not have to look like “hand-me-down.”

What’s next for Olaf’s? Why, antique furniture, specifically early-American pieces, will be added to the unique décor pieces and “oddities” already specking the shop.

“We should have some pieces in the store next week,” Messing says.

That’s good news for us girls, too.