{"id":8580,"date":"2008-10-07T13:00:34","date_gmt":"2008-10-07T18:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wordpress\/?p=8580"},"modified":"2023-07-31T14:38:46","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T19:38:46","slug":"thrift-store","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/shopping-guide\/thrift-store\/","title":{"rendered":"How to thrift store shop: 12 tips"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Times are tight. If there was ever a good time to learn how to thrift store shop, it’s right now. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of my favorite childhood memories is shopping my local Salvation <\/strong>Army Thrift <\/strong>Store with my seamstress grandmother. We would search for designer pieces and\/or unique finds that we could alter or transform into unique styles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was back in the day when shopping thrift stores was looked down on. Thankfully, thrift store shopping is not as taboo as it used to be. Nowadays, you can hold your head high walking into Goodwill — and then post your fab finds on the ‘gram. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Whether you’re new to shopping secondhand or need a refresher on the thrifting mindset, these tips can help you shop more efficiently and with better results. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Two<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Thrift store shop like a pro <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1. Go where the Rich people live<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Head to a wealthy area, as you can often find awesome items donated by people who, for whatever reason, can’t be seen in an item twice. Their excess is your treasure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Wear tight fitting clothing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Many thrift stores don’t have fitting rooms. So unless you want everyone looking at your goodies, wear tight-fitting clothing like leggings and tank tops. This way, you can try on items quickly and somewhat modestly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Start small<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Purchase accessories and basic clothing items like jeans. Once you become a seasoned thrift store shopper, then you can go into coats, blazers, etc. These can be tougher buys because you need to inspect them closely and they may need updates or alterations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Do a smell test<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It an item is musty and has a strange odor in the shop, it may be tough to get the smell out. Synthetic fabrics like rayon and acrylic are especially challenging in this regard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Make friends with the sales associate<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Ask thrift store sales staff when they put their new stuff out and\/or which is the best day to shop. The early bird really does get the worm (or.. prada) when it comes to shopping a thrift store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

6. Clean your purchases<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Clean your thrift store buys<\/a>. Donated items aren’t always cleaned before they are donated. Worse, donated clothes may be stored in outside donation boxes or warehouses — where they pick up mold and, possibly, bed bugs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Shop on tuesdays <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

According to a friend at DC Goodwill\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n <\/g>\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n <\/clipPath>\r\n <\/defs><\/svg><\/span><\/a>, most donations come in during the weekend and it takes 25-36 hours to process everything and get it on the sales floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. Be a frequent shopper <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Goodwill and some Salvation Army stores have loyalty programs, where you earn future discounts and access to special offers by shopping. Check with your local store to see if it has something similar. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even without a loyalty program, there are advantages to shopping often. The inventory in a thrift store changes constantly. The more you can get in the store, the higher your chances are of finding something amazing in your size and at your price. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

9. Use your eagle eye <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Examine, examine, examine! Check the armpit area to see if there are any stains. Make sure all buttons are in place. Check the pockets to make sure there are no unpleasant surprises. In general, check for any stains, rips, tears, and holes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10. Think seasonally <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Spring cleaning? Tax season? College graduation? These are all times when people purge their closets and donate unwanted goods. If you can’t thrift every week, time your shopping trips in the spring and when seasons change. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

11. Shop the whole store <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There’s no rule that you must stick to the women\u2019s section. The men’s section is the perfect place to find an oversized blazer. Or if you’re petite, poke around the kids section for options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

12. Shop ahead <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In this world of instant gratification, most of us dislike thinking ahead. We like buying swimsuits during the summer, coats during the winter, and so on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The “right now” perspective doesn’t work as well when you’re thrifting. This is because people donate their stuff at the end of the season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take advantage of that by shopping off-season intentionally. Maybe it’s tough to picture yourself wearing a wool coat in June — but by the time winter rolls around, you’ll be thrilled you learned how to thrift store shop<\/a> several seasons earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Times are tight. If there was ever a good time to learn how to thrift store shop, it’s right now. One of my favorite childhood memories is shopping my local Salvation Army Thrift Store with my seamstress grandmother. We would search for designer pieces and\/or unique finds that we could alter or transform into unique… Read More »How to thrift store shop: 12 tips<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1640669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8580","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-shopping-guide"],"mv":{"thumbnail_id":1640669,"thumbnail_uri":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/lesbian-couple-buying-clothes-sustainable-fashion-2022-03-18-09-07-05-utc-300x169.jpg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8580","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8580"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8580\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1640669"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8580"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8580"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebudgetfashionista.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8580"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}