When I was in my teens, I was all about posing as a walking billboard for Abercrombie & Fitch. My parents thought their stuff was way too overpriced, and adult Heather agrees. The only way I was able to get my hands on it was by spending my entire paycheck on a t-shirt covered in moose, and a pair of supa tight, low rise jeans. When you’re that age though, the price of “coolness” is never too much.
Once college started, I realized how much books cost, how much gas I was going to burn through, and how many other expenses I would have. It was in that moment that I painfully accepted the fact that I could no longer afford to go to the mall every weekend and buy another overpriced, branded tee.
A Discount Shopper Was Born
I reluctantly began shopping at TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and other discounted retail stores. At first I was skeptical that they would have anything I was interested in, but after seeing all the gems I was able to find for a fraction of what I was paying at the mall, I was sold. And sometimes, the discount gods would even bless me with the very rare A&F item! This whole experience transformed me forever—special occasions became my only excuse to shop at the mall.
Dipping My Toes Into The Thrifting Well
Fast forward to 2019 when I decide to open up a Poshmark account. As I started selling a few items, I found myself wondering what the buyer’s experience was like. I knew that if I wanted to be successful, I would need to make a purchase of my own so that I knew all the ins and outs. I had always been hesitant to purchase used clothing, because in my mind, why would I pay “x” amount of money for something that I could find just as cheap brand new? While that is occasionally true, I pretty quickly discovered the perks of buying secondhand items, specifically name brand items that normally carry a higher price tag, *cough, Free People, cough*. If you want to see how I have styled some of my thrifted Poshmark pieces, check out this post!
As I grew my Poshmark account and continued to sell and buy all sorts of items, I found myself falling into the black hole of watching thrifting videos on YouTube. Though I had never shopped in a legitimate thrift store before (with the exception of a trip or two to Plato’s Closet), I really admired these creators’ ability to score some serious finds. The whole process of sorting through ALL of that stuff, however, was way too daunting for me to consider.
2022: Welcome To Brick And Mortar Thrifting
About a month ago, I found myself binging thrift hauls on YouTube…shocker. It was a super boring Saturday, and I didn’t have anything going on. While I was watching those videos, I started getting curious about my local Goodwill. I decided to hop in the car, and see what all of this thrift hype was about. That “Thanks for donating, here’s 10% off” coupon collecting dust on the counter may have been a little extra enticement too.
I’ll admit, when I first went into the store, I was a little overwhelmed and a lot self-conscious. People in there seemed to be thrifting pros, but thankfully I had gained a little insider info from watching so many thrifting videos. After I got my bearings straight, I quickly got into the groove. Each thrift store is different, but at my local Goodwill, all the tops are a set amount, as are the jeans, skirts, dresses, etc. There is also a colored tag fastener attached to each item, and every week a different color is selected to be 50% off. I seriously can’t with those deals!
It was honestly so much fun going through all of the racks and all of the different sections to see what kinds of items I could score. As much as I love fashion and adding new pieces to my wardrobe, it’s actually the hunt and satisfaction of getting a super awesome deal that brings me so much joy. And let me tell you, joy was felt in abundance that day. Since that first thrift trip, I’ve started going pretty regularly. I live in a fairly populated area, so inventory is always changing. It’s like going to a new store every single time!
So, Is Thrifting Worth It?
Yes. A 100%, yes— I am officially hooked. Not only is thrifting so much better for the environment, but it’s honestly so much fun. Now, I will be completely transparent and say that in order to enjoy thrift shopping, you’re going to need to enjoy, well, shopping. Also, I’d make sure that you set aside some time to really look through EVERYTHING. If you’re on a tight schedule, you may end up getting stressed and overwhelmed.
One more rule of thumb: do not, I repeat DO NOT, go into a thrift trip with super high expectations. Some days you’re going to struggle by finding more pieces than your budget allows, and other days you’ll walk out empty-handed.
So even though I am now a major advocate for hitting up your local thrift, I will admit that, like everything, it does come with its cons.
Sizes
I can’t even count how many things I’ve picked up, totally prepared to throw in my cart, no questions asked, that ended up not being my size. I’m still training my brain to comprehend the fact that no, I can’t just move over to the next rack and look for my size there.
Wear & Tear
Another downside is that most of the clothing has been pre-loved, and life happens—stains, rips, tears, pilling, and permanent wrinkles. As someone who has a deep love and appreciation for clothes, I have gotten quite good at dealing with the majority of these issues. Most aren’t difficult, they just require a little know-how.
Stains
I have always been a lover of Shout. The trick here is to completely saturate the stain in the product, and use your finger to make sure the liquid permeates the fabric. Sometimes the stain will start to break up right then, in which case I rinse off the Shout and reapply. Then, let the stain and Shout marinate for as long as possible– I usually aim for over night. When you go to wash the item, make sure you use cold water just in case you need to do a second round of stain treatment. Warm water with set the stain even more.
Also, I cannot stress this enough–buy some OxiClean… STAT. That stuff literally removes EVERYTHING, including sharpie. For extra tough stains, soak the garment in an Oxi bath for several hours (I’ve let really tough stains soak for nearly 24 hours), treat the stain with Shout, and then add an extra scoop of Oxi to your load of laundry. If the stain is still there, just repeat the process. Works like a charm!
Rips and Tears
Now for this one, I do have a sewing machine to help me out. I do not, however, always have the patience or skill needed to get too crazy with that beast.
If you don’t get along too well with a needle and thread, HeatnBond will be your best friend. All you need is a damp cloth, your choice of hem tape, and an iron. Follow the directions on the package, and your item will be mended in a flash.
You can also use this stuff to close up small holes in fabric—you know, the ones that just seem to appear out of nowhere? All you have to do is place a tiny square of hem tape on the inside of the fabric, heat it up with an iron to make the adhesive tacky, flip the item over so that you’re working with the outside of the clothing, and use your fingernails to start manipulating the thread fibers back together. This may take a few minutes, but if the hem tape starts to cool down too much, just flip it back over and reheat with your iron. If you’re more of a visual person, check out this video for reference.
Pilling
This one is a super easy fix–all you need is a fabric shaver. They’re inexpensive, and can easily be found on Amazon. This is great for sweaters, extra loved t-shirts, leggings, and so much more. Over this little handheld shaver your pilled items, and they will look brand new again. Promise. I’ve also found that it works great on fabrics that tend to snag easily too. Run it over a snag, and it greatly diminishes the imperfection.
Wrinkles
Some fabrics seem to have permeant wrinkles. You look at them, they wrinkle. You toss them in the dryer, they come out even more wrinkly. For those items, swap out your iron for a handheld steamer. You can find them on amazon, and the smaller ones are pretty inexpensive. Steamers tend to be more gentle than irons on delicate fabrics and are a life saver for items that can’t be dried. They’re also great to bring along on vacation to freshen up a fit that just spent hours in a crammed suitcase!