I donate to thrift stores, though I don’t buy there. The thrift stores around here don’t have fitting rooms and don’t take returns. I need to try things on, especially pants.
I also get sort weirded out about wearing used. I’d much rather buy new and just have fewer pieces in my closet. My recycling is done by donating for someone else to buy or wearing it until it is worn out and then used for rags.
Besides that, I hate shopping, especially in stores. I would much rather shop sales online, try on at home, then return anything that doesn’t work to the brick and mortar store.
ETA, I grew up in a large family and never had new, I always had to wear hand me downs, even as a teen and the older kids had different body types. I think that adds to my need to have new now.
I bought most of my clothing in Salvation Army store when I was in graduate school and had no disposable income to speak of. A lot of my kid’s clothing came from a consignment store when he was little. Now I don’t really do this because most thrift stores in our area are geared towards students and not my style, although I don’t mind in principle, provided clothes don’t look worn. I’m still very happy when I manage to buy a nice trinket in a thrift store or on a garage sale, but I don’t have room for them in our house any more. Oh, and I bought a few weird pieces of clothing in thrift stores for S’s Halloween costumes.
Have always loved thrifting, mostly for clothes. Grew up on it and raised my girls on second hand. Of course we wash it when we get home. They like that they can just get a pile of stuff and not have to pare down to a couple items. The downside is the closets can get really full this way!
When they were little I’d buy their clothes second hand and then sell them in lots on eBay after they grew out of them for about as much as I’d paid so that was a win. Now that they don’t outgrow a wardrobe a season, I take clothes to the local consignment and do alright there.
DH is not as into it, but he always looks for denim shirts to wear when he welds because he wears a t-shirt under and he’s just going to get holes in them anyway. He also loves his wool coat he found this winter.
We’ve bought and sold a few prom dresses on the FB swaps too.
A few weeks ago my mentioned daughter’s went to a thrift store (as opposed to the nice upscale consignment shop) in their area. My oldest daughter commented afterwards that she felt a little awkward afterwards…just the realization that she chose to shop there to save $, find a good buy, recycle clothing BUT she was well aware that some people shop there because they it’s the only place they could afford.
I think she had a little inner conflict about if she should shop there when she doesn’t have to. But clearly, most thrift stores have lots to choose from - plenty to go around.
We know/follow a couple of bloggers/Instagramers who for a living (or part of their living) go to thrift/consignement, buy stuff and then resell it on a site or storefront of their own.
Clearly people do this with garage sales, ebay, etc. - is it all fair game for everyone???
I think I lean towards yes…again, they aren’t walking out with a truck load and nothing left for others to buy…but it’s pause to think.
Almost all of our clothes are second hand. My kids have never minded a bit- in fact, I when I recently purchased prom tickets, my daughter’s first question was when we could hit the thrift store. For us it’s mostly about cost and the rest about recycling and keeping a smaller footprint- the things we buy used are generally of higher quality than we could afford new, and we know fast clothes are bad for the world.
I regularly shop at the thrift store. I find new items all the time with Land’s End or LLBean labels. Right before my daughter went on study abroad I found a Marmot rain jacket that she lived in for the next 5 months. I remember I paid $7 for it (not even on half price that day) and I’m sure it was a $120 jacket.
I also like to look through the domestic stuff and buy fabric. Sometimes it is a bargain at about $1/yard. I wish I lived near Thumper1’s store.
I bought a ton of decorative and serving stuff for S1’s wedding at thrift shops. Has been re-used for a couple of my niece’s and nephew’s weddings, too. I really like some of the serving pieces, but we just wouldn’t use them often enough to keep them. After the younger gen is all married, I’ll probably re-donate, unless some of them would like various pieces.
S2 is in Eastern Europe, and thrifting is a big thing there. He bought a gorgeous leather jacket the first week he was there for $18.
When our kids were young, we purchased a lot at the thrift shop while I waiting for them to be done with their after school class, so I could take them home. They had a lot of very nice, unworn or gently worn clothes and I didn’t feel bad if they didn’t like it because it was often all you could fit in the brown paper grocery bag for about $1 or $5. I still remember a lovely navy velour dress I bought D when she was a pre-schooler. D loved it and it was worn until she no longer fit it. It looked brand new she she purchased it!
When my D first started elementary school we went shopping for school clothes (so much fun for me!)
I bought a bunch of cute stuff for her at all the sales. Thought I was done.
Then I visited (same trip) this HUGE thrift shop which had OODLES of cute kid’s clothes. It was like a candy shop for kid’s clothes at super cheap prices. I took everything I had just bought new back to the store.
I loved that place–it became a regular stop when the kids were little. Not sure my kids ever got to wear much that was brand new (it all looked new though!).
The hunt…
At an upscale consignment/thrift shop I found a super expensive brand suit which I just KNEW would fit my son. To my dismay I couldn’t get any of my family to even look at my big bargain find. Think it was $150 bucks for an $800 to 1K suit.
Real surprise when my son later appeared a few months later in that suit! Fit like a glove–he said his fiancee had found it and made him try it on. (At least he listened to her!)
My kids grew up in consignment clothes, it was the only way they were wearing OshKosh and other better labels. Newborn clothes and sizes up to toddler often still have tags on them or very lightly used. I particularly liked getting snow suits and boots each season because they are worn so few times and almost always like brand new. Once they were in middle school, not so much, although D is a thrift store shopper now again. She loves a bargain.
Funny story…going into kindergarten D noticed the matching dresses/handbands/socks outfits at Gymboree at the mall and really wanted one but I couldn’t afford it. I went on Ebay and someone was selling more than a dozen outfits with all the matching things in two sizes. I bought the lot of them. D went to kindergarten and first grade with at least six or seven matched outfits for each year. I don’t know what I paid but lets say they were worth $80, I probably paid $20 each. I remember it being a stretch to buy them all but what a find!
I have always shopped for housewares at thrift shops, but not much for clothing. After one of Happykid’s pals found a gorgeous $3 dress for homecoming when they were in 9th grade, the whole gang of friends set $3 homecoming dresses as a life goal. None of them have been able to match that price for a fancy dress, but they are still serious thrift shoppers more than a dozen years later.
My DD has a gorgeous JCrew full length gown that she uses for formal events she is required to attend. It cost…$6.
How about UGGs boots…new with tags for $30? And Athleta sports wear new with tags for under $10 an item? You can’t beat those costs.
But then…I volunteer at the place so I see the stuff when it comes in for donation.
The last few Christmases, as sort of a useful gag, DH, and our kids have each gotten a treasure from the shop. This year, DH got a new (with tags) Brooks Bros cashmere sweater ($12). DS got a case full of camera lenses and filters that fit his SLR digital camera ($20…a big spend for me there), and DD got brand new with tags LL Bean fleece lined slippers ($6).
@happymomof1 – Our HS has a “prom dress re-cycle” (for lack of a better word). I took all of D’s dresses over to the high school as donations. One teacher ran the program. Need a dress? Come try one on! Such a good thing.
^My D worked on a prom dress project for her GS Silver Award “Cinderella Dreams”. She collected dozens and dozens of used prom dresses for about six months over the winter and then donated them and worked the windowfront shop helping girls to pick out their dresses and matching accessories. Hundreds of dresses were donated. What a blast! And all free/donations.
I started thrift store shopping when a friend suggested I look there for baskets and new items for our silent auctions.
Then, a few years ago, it became the thrill of the hunt when I found a whole set of vintage 1933 china for $45. At Goodwill, I found 5 white teapots and quickly googled the brand. $22 retail for $2.99. So, I had to get them but I gave them away to friends. Four sets of china and numerous English teapots, teacups and saucers later, I’m planning a big tea party fundraiser. Vintage china is one of my guilty pleasures.
Both D’s were in weddings last year and one bride let them buy their own dresses as long as they were navy blue. One D found a past season Adrianna Pappell beaded gown for, iirc, $25, and the other found a David’s Bridal bridesmaid’s dress for $15.