Thrifting is lovely, isn’t it? Finding all sorts of treasures for a pittance, stumbling onto a copy of your favorite book from Elementary school, imagining the former lives of all these things.
However, there’s a big difference between thrifting for fun and thrifting as your primary mode of shopping. Thought it can be a bit trying, but I highly recommend it. My wardrobe contains the likes of BCBG, Banana Republic and Anne Klein … and let me assure you, that has very little to do with my salary of $2. Here are the strategies I’ve honed over 15 years of thrifting:
- Don’t be afraid to try on things that aren’t a size you would usually wear. You should be able to eyeball something to see if it’s your size. I have thrifted pants sizes 4 – 13!
- Keep an on going list of things you are looking for. It’s easy to get caught up in the spirit of cheap clothes and buy a bunch of stuff you already have or don’t need. I find that shopping at thrift stores can actually be easier than shopping in normal stores because they are often organized by color and type of clothing (sweaters, and then divided by color) so you can pretty quickly see if they have the pink, long sleeved button-up that you’re coveting.
- Learn how to alter clothing. Can you hem things? Do you know how to take in a skirt? These skills aren’t hard to learn and they’ll save you heaps of time and money.
- Shop in the fancy neighborhoods … or shop in the poor neighborhoods. Stay away from the hip neighborhoods! I do almost all of my thirfting in the neighborhood where I work … a neighborhood which is almost patently un-hip. But! This means that all the cute vintage dresses, 1960 purses and vegetarian cookbooks are still there, because it’s not overrun with hipsters. Rich neighborhoods are good for fancy ‘work clothes’ and nice furniture.
- Think about how you can re-purpose things. You love the print on that tiny skirt? Make it into a throw pillow. Mismatched cups become vases or votives, vintage records or books can go on your wall, an old children’s school desk can be your new end table, and that pretty patterned sheet could be your new curtains … or pillow cases … or dish towels!
How do you make the most of your thrifting?
4 comments:
I have given you an award my dear. Thanks for the sweet reads.
x
Oh, my fiance found an (we think) authentic WWII era great coat with the original buttons still attached for $4 this weekend! We always shop at a Thrift on the South Side of Chicago. They almost always have great books, and every now and again awesome clothes. I bought a bright yellow band jacket there for $5 a few months ago.
Awesome tips :) I LOVE thrifting, so many of my favourite pieces of clothing are second-hand buys!
Panda! Thanks so much! I´ll be sure to stop by (and pass on the love) once I find a better internet cafe. Peruvian internet cafes were not built for internetz addicts of my caliber :)
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