Vintage seller to the stars

When you see a shot of a celebrity in vintage couture, there's a good chance it came from Cameron Silver's store.

Oh yeah, Julia popped in the other day," Cameron Silver says with a knowing laugh. "She didn't buy anything though." As the owner of what is probably Los Angeles' most exclusive and priciest vintage clothing store, Silver, who is a VIP guest at Fashion Week, isn't talking about any old Julia from down the road - he means Julia Roberts.

She is just one of many Hollywood names who have worn a frock from Decades, Silver's store, to a red-carpet event. Renee Zellweger, Pamela Anderson, Lindsay Lohan and Kristin Davis are some of the others.

Just about every time you see a paparazzi picture of a celebrity in vintage couture, there's a good chance it came from Silver's store.

Decades stocks the kind of gowns most wannabe princesses can only dream about, with fantasy price tags to match - vintage Chanel, Courreges and Pucci, as well as lesser known but equally significant designers such as Ossie Clark and Holly Harp.

"Every day there's an Oscar winner at Decades," says Silver.

"Coming to a store like this can be rather intimidating, especially when you see the prices. But we want it to be friendly, we want it to be a kind of salon where you can hang out."

He is not just a shopboy to the stars, though. In fact, he is becoming a bit of a fashion celebrity himself.

He started his working life on stage. Growing up in Beverly Hills with fashion-literate parents, Silver went off to study theatre at university and while there, also learned a lot about stage costumes.

His first career was as a singer, specialising in German cabaret songs from the 1920s and 30s, and he even released a record.

So, having already developed a passion for theatrical costume and vintage shopping in second-hand stores while on tour, he opened his boutique on Melrose Ave in 1997.

"Where I used to recycle old songs, now I recycle old clothes."

He feels his skills as a performer are still used on the stage at Decades. It's not so much about selling, it's about story-telling - and every dress has a story.

That is part of the appeal to his celebrity customers.

"When you have cash, everything is accessible. You can have whatever you want - if you're on the internet you can have it within 48 hours. So you don't want what everyone else has, you don't want to look cookie-cutter, especially when you can buy history."

No doubt another part of the appeal is Silver's take on vintage clothing, unique in Los Angeles at the time he started the store.