Signature style: Angela Crane

Angela Crane revels in the fine garments of earlier days. Picture / Carolyn Robertson

Angela Crane has turned her passion for the past into a business. She and Lissy Patterson sell vintage clothes and furniture - as well as garments that Patterson has created or reworked from old ones - at Champagne Taste, their store in Auckland's Pt Chevalier.

Crane combines her retail venture with studying social work at Unitec.

Married to Little Brother menswear designer Murray Crane, the couple raise their blended family - Myer, 8 (Angela's son), Bella, 8 (Murray's daughter), and Monty, 4 (the couple's son) - in a noisy art deco house in Pt Chevalier.

Your favourite fashion designers?

Marilyn Sainty for her integrity, Karen Walker for her wit, Mala Brajkovic for sheer gutsiness - and my husband for combining all these strengths and more.

Biggest fashion indulgence?

Vintage. There really is nothing better than scouring shops and spending what you could spend on one garment on a whole year's wardrobe.

Last item of clothing bought?

Aside from op-shop finds, two pairs of shoes by New Zealand shoe designer Kathryn Wilson.

Beauty routine?

I cleanse and moisturise using New Zealand-made Skinfood and use Johnson's Holiday Skin Body Lotion. Cole Schierenbeck at Stephen Marr cuts my hair and I visit Lucy and the Powder Room occasionally for no-kids-day pampering.

What can't you live without?

My husband and our kids, good books, our cleaner Tracey, Evian spray, fresh flowers, Bambina's sunshine smoothies, and something to look forward to.

Who does the best handbags?

Jamin Puech, a French company stocked exclusively in New Zealand by Scotties. They are completely mad and so graceful at the same time.

Favourite fashion accessory?

My Cartier Tank watch, the most exquisite and grown-up thing I've owned.

What do you wear when relaxing at home?

Little Brother T-shirts, shorts, jandals.

What item of makeup would you be most lost without?

It would have to be my red lipstick, M.A.C's Dubonnet.

Who inspires you?

The teachers and colleagues I spend my study days with. Anyone who has a good sense of humour ... and anyone who has hauled themselves up after one of life's major falls.

Any style icons?

Tilda Swinton. I met her last year when I was working at Scotties' Ponsonby store. I guess it was while she was in Auckland filming the Narnia movie. She is as breathtaking as she is sincere, and as radiant as she is unaffected. And the infamous Chris Vovan, who works at Little Brother's High St store, because the way he puts himself together is simply marvellous.

Essential summer item?

Paddling pool for the kids, Karen Walker Annie sunglasses, and a nice cold glass of something outdoors at Prego with my husband.

What to avoid?

Those tacky concertina sunshades with out-of-date Team New Zealand photos that people put inside their car windscreens. Complicated looks, hair or makeup, in the summer heat. And mirrored, white-rimmed Dirty Dog eyewear that all cops seem to wear.

Favourite colour?

Green, because I don't see enough of it and it always looks interesting to me.

Favourite store of the moment?

I can't help but say my own store, Champagne Taste, in Pt Chev for its goldmine of vintage finds at beer-budget prices. Crane Brothers because it's the most beautiful store in the country - and I thought that even before I married the owner.

Best outfit ever?

When my husband redesigned his store a couple of years ago I bought a dress for the event. It is a 1950s style that may have once been a ballerina's costume - black satin and tulle with embroidered red-velvet roses.

Best fashion bargain?

A pair of flawless, black vintage Miu Miu stilettos which I found at an op-shop for $2.