Six Reasons to Thrift

So as you know I have been in the thrift stores none stop the past few months. I have a ton of mutual bloggers and fashionistas who live in the thrift store and I just never truly went. I always stayed in the mall or department stores. Mainly because I didn't know the treasures that the thrift stores carried. All I could think about was cross colors and worn out wool.

Lately I seem to lose inspiration with clothing. I look at it as an art form, not just clothes, so when I lose inspiration, I have nothing. The malls and online shopping tend to have all of the same shit, just in different colors. Then I constantly look at clothing, so it sometimes blurs all together.

Thrifting gives me a breath of fresh air, gives me a lot of inspiration, and helps me love what I do again. Especially for the price. Last night I purchased 14 pieces of clothing for $35. Crazy.


Once I found out that I could make my thrift store finds look sophisticated and chic, I have been hooked.

So I put together six reasons why you should venture into your local thrift store.

This is the number one reason why I choose to go to the thrift store. I find so many different finds for dirt cheap. Full suits for $4 or a trench coat for $10. Especially if you go on half off days, where everything is 50% off or more.


Goodwill is known for their every other Saturday half off days, they also have a color coded tag of the week sale. I once left Goodwill with 10 items for $20. From Calvin Klein, BCBG, to Express. I go to the mall and spend $200 easily and never with as much variety.

The second reason I choose to go thrift is because I am more likely to find unique pieces. Again the mall is just stocked with trendy pieces. It is sometimes hard to get inspired. We all want to be unique and wow others. It is just in our human nature. So you are more likely to find things that others will envy you for.

Usually when I am thrifting I am looking for specific items. Blazers, blouses, skirts or dress pants are my go to for thrifting. I usually don't care for the shoe department, only because I haven't found anything I loved enough. I also know which thrift store is best for my wants. Goodwill is great for blazers and other local thrift stores are great for skirts. You just have to find the best one for you.

My third reason is quality. Yes, quality. The fast fashion chains like Forever 21 and H&M sometimes lose quality of their garments. You can only wear them a few times before it looks worn. But at thrift stores you are purchasing mostly already worn garments. So you see them in their true form.

Also a lot of garments in the thrift store were made years ago or by labels from small boutique shops. A lot of my blazers and suit pants I purchase from thrift stores were made by small label designers. They were made with quality fabric and sewed to perfection.

A suit like that goes for $300+ in a department store.

Since I started the blog it has forced me to be more creative. In order to be more creative I have to do something different to expect different results and the malls are far from different. So I go in there with an open mind and put pieces together based on what I am inspired by.

It also helps master the D.I.Y. in me. For instance there was this ugly 80's jumpsuit that was sadly hanging there. But the bottom pants were amazing. I am sure a lot of people left it there because they couldn't get past the top portion. So I bought it and tucked in the top part into the pants. Viola! I wore the look here.

You will end up realizing you are more creative than you think. If you see something in there that just needs to be altered, then purchase it. A suit can cost $4 in there, alter it for $40 and you have an amazing suit.

 Another reason to thrift is the variety of items and the rotation. Malls only rotate their clothing each season and usually a month or two before the season begins. Thrift stores stock their racks daily and it isn't by season. There are times that I see more coats in the summer or more shorts in the winter. But that is mainly because people are cleaning out their closet.

I once went to Goodwill one day out of the week and found a massive amount of items. There is usually nothing the thrift store turns away. More variety in sizes, colors, and specific items you are looking for.

If you truly know me, charity is a big thing for me. I am always giving back. So if you don't have it or usually don't give money or volunteer for charity, you can shop for it. Most thrift stores are giving back to the community in some way.

All Goodwill stores are around to provide many people with jobs. Rather they are homeless, felons, or just no resume at all. They teach them tons of skills.

Another favorite thrift store of mine is My Sisters Closet. Most of their proceeds go to women and children who were places in homes after dealing with domestic violence.

Many other thrift stores just give back to the community in various ways. You can always call up and ask your local thrift stores if they give back and to whom. Then shop there the most.



I hope this pushes you to shop more at thrift stores, if you aren't already. If you do, what are some of your favorite thrift stores in your neighborhood?