In modern times it seems that "vintage" and "retro" clothing can be fashion statements, whether by wearing new clothes made in older styles, or by wearing actual "old / antique" clothes.
Was this ever something that happened in other historical periods? Or were "vintage" clothes actually only ever thought as "old", and older styles simply seen as "unfashionable"?
You may be interested in a previous answer of mine, here, which goes through the various periods of historicism in the 19th century. In short: the concept of just wearing vintage clothing on a daily basis does seem to be a late 20th century invention, but designers and dressmakers had previously been mining the past for inspiration (and actual fabric taken from older clothing at times).