Old Clothes That Have a Future : Vintage stores sell a little history and lots of nostalgia with each poodle skirt, pillbox hat and Hawaiian shirt.

Visit a vintage clothing shop, and you’ll fall into a fashion time warp.

Such shops deal in musty memories: strapless party dresses with full chiffon skirts from proms gone by, lacy gowns from long-ago weddings, Depression-era day dresses bereft of fancy decoration, zoot suits, poodle skirts and Jackie Kennedy pillbox hats.

“I often wonder what great events happened in this or that dress,” says Judy Tackett, owner of Attic Delights in Orange, picking out a black day dress from the 1930s.

“I ask myself, ‘What was her life like?’ ”

More than a half-dozen vintage clothing shops are scattered throughout Orange County, each with its own distinctive personality.

Some sell garments that pre-date the 1970s. Others, such as Tackett’s shop, are more discriminating, choosing only high-quality clothes from specific eras.

Attic Delights is shaped like a shoe box, and it’s about the size of one, too. Racks of gowns hang from the high ceiling, suits and dresses fill the store’s narrow middle, and hats line the walls.

“A lot of people come in and tell me, ‘I wish I was born back then so I could wear this stuff.’ I say this is a great time because you can wear anything,” Tackett says. “In the ‘60s women had to wear short dresses. Now anything goes. You can buy clothes to fit your personality--or change your personality.”

Vintage clothing stores offer funky fashions for men and women who want something different than department store fare.

Store owners say they often sell to movie stars and celebrities--people who can afford expensive couture clothes but prefer to set their own styles.

“The clothes are romantic, and the workmanship is incredible,” Tackett says. “They took time with detail.” To illustrate, she pulls out a yellow cardigan overlaid in black lace and adorned with intricate hand-sewn beading.

Tackett buys much of her merchandise from private parties, keeping an eye out for unusual garments.

“A lot of the clothes are still hanging in people’s closets,” she says. “I bought three generations of clothes from one family. I had the wedding dresses from the great-grandmother, grandmother and the mother. You could see how the styles changed.”

Students of fashion can trace the styles through the decades, from an 1850s high-neck lace blouse to a 1960s short A-line dress in shocking pink by Blackwell.

“It’s right in style,” Tackett says. “But you’re not going to see it anywhere else. It has its own personality.”

She also has a rare 1940s black crepe dress with carnival glass beading sewn around the neck by Eisenberg & Son that sells for $350, a 1950s black knit dress with a rhinestone collar for $48 and an 1890s navy wool traveling outfit with braid trim on the jacket for $300.

Dawna Saucedo, owner of Gasoline Alley in Orange, began collecting old clothes in high school.

“I loved wearing them, and I started selling them to my friends,” she says. Soon she had a garage full of vintage clothes. She opened Gasoline Alley 18 years ago, acquiring a large inventory of pre-1960s garments.

“I bought most of it years ago when the stuff was still plentiful,” she says. “Now you can’t find it.”

Her clothes have been used as costumes for period movies. Dennis Quaid wears one of her jackets as Jerry Lee Lewis in “Great Balls of Fire,” and actors sported her ‘50s styles in “La Bamba.”

Vintage styles back in vogue include 1940s dresses and suits, velvet gowns, Hawaiian shirts, kimonos and Western wear, Saucedo says. Some are buying polyester from the ‘70s.

“It’s sick,” she says with a laugh.

The ‘60s, with psychedelic Pucci is this a designer? fabrics, flared pants and short hemlines, are also making a comeback. Saucedo has brown suede hot pants and a fringed vest, a short baby doll-style velvet coat and a lime-green chiffon evening dress from the era.

As more people grow to appreciate vintage clothes, the garments have become increasingly scarce.

Increased demand for vintage clothes has pushed prices higher.

Clothes that once sold for 50 cents in thrift stores now fetch $50 to $500.

Locals Only in Laguna Beach specializes in Hawaiian shirts, denim jackets and jeans--casual clothes turned hot collectibles. Collectors will pay $40 to $700 for a good quality Hawaiian shirt with a rare print, according to Jim Olarte, co-owner of the shop. Pre-1940s Levis can cost up to $1,000.

“People collect the weirdest things,” Olarte says. “They get influenced by period movies like ‘Tucker’ and ‘Back to the Future.’ They think, ‘I want to look like that.’ It’s the nostalgia thing.”

Ernie Zalk, owner of Tippecanoes in Laguna Beach, first saw that old clothes had a future 15 years ago.

“This was going to be a gourmet food shop, but when I opened the only thing that sold was a rack of vintage clothes, I brought in on consignment.”

In an old house on Coast Highway, he’s stuffed three rooms full of clothes. There are racks brimming with bell bottoms, beaded gowns, tuxedo shirts and plaid sports coats. There are old light fixtures strewn with ties, bins filled with costume jewelry and hats that hang from the ceiling.

Zalk has benefited from the retro looks currently in fashion, especially the ‘40s-style ties and suits for men. “Wide ties like the ones we used to sell for $3.50 are going for $65 in department stores,” he says.

He travels the country for vintage clothes, often searching out warehouses for old overstock. “I buy everything,” he says.

His latest find is 15 pairs of platform shoes, leftover from the ‘70s. Their massive heels and clunky shapes look strange now, but sooner or later Zalk knows they’ll be back in style.