Ugh! I'm late for my October blogpost - but it's my birthday tomorrow, so I hope I can be forgiven!
I was going to start this blog post by saying that thrifting has become more popular recently.
However, I am not actually sure that's true. Wearing second hand clothes, hand clothes and toys down to younger family members and friends, as well as going to thrift stores has been part of my life since I was born, basically.
What happened rather recently is, that I discovered how much better second hand is for the environment!
My husband and I have been getting most of the furniture for our new house pre-loved and we're making an effort to do the same with our and our daughter's clothing. Especially because she grows out of everything so quickly!
Why second hand?
1. It's cheaper!
Is this the most persuading and obvious argument for second hand anything, as in clothes, toys, furniture, etc...? Most likely, yes.
What more is there to say about this one. Nobody wants to spend more money than necessary. So here it is. Second hand. Your frugal solution.
Just beware of people who are selling obviously used things for a pretty penny and marking them as "vintage", "retro" and "antique" for vanity and advertising reasons.
You don't need that kind of BS in your life.
2. It's eco- friendlier!
By not buying new clothing, but extending an already made garment's life cycle, you reduce the demand for fast fashion! One piece at a time you save valuable resources. That obviously goes for any other items as well. From furniture and home decor items to baby items and toys - so many things can be found pre-loved.
You have probably heard of what should be everyone's new mantra to save our planet:
Reduce, reuse, recycle!
Supporting the slow fashion movement and buying what you can pre-loved is a great way to reduce and reuse!
3. Second hand clothes may contain less harmful substances.
According to remake.world lots of conventional fabrics are made with harmful substances that promote health issues in humans. Check out what they have to say about conventional cotton and read the full blogpost here.
"Unlike organic cotton, a slew of toxic synthetic chemicals are also required in processing conventional cotton. Some of these chemicals include silicone waxes, petroleum scours, softeners, heavy metals, flame retardants, ammonia, and formaldehyde. Body heat and sweating actually accelerate the absorption of these residues into your skin." - remake.worldSo, if you buy a worn-in piece (lots of people LOVE worn-in T-shirts and jeans!), it's most likely been washed a whole bunch of times already. That way the toxic chemicals might have mostly been rinsed and cycled out or at least reduced. And then you wash it one more time when you first get it, obviously.
Disclaimer: There's no way to prove that your piece is free of toxins, unless you take it to a lab.
4. You can find unique pieces and brands.
These are technically two arguments, but for some it might not be so desirable to find known brand names.
I sometimes like to be a little flashy though and I prefer certain designs and cuts. That's why I enjoy finding brands like Levi's, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Nike, Adidas etc. for a fraction of the original price.
To me the best finds however, are the unique vintage pieces by named brands.
For my toddler girl I have found vintage rompers, older collection track suits and T-Shirts, I've never seen before, at thrift stores all for less than $5 a piece. And every time I found one of those I did a little victory dance, because I love dressing my girl in these unique pieces, that no other child on the playground has.
5. Your new item is only new for one day.
That's an argument, which hasn't ever occurred to me and I came across, while researching for this blogpost. It's so true though.
Your new piece has been handled by lots and lots of people before you get to wear it. And once you have worn it, it's technically not even new anymore. I get that only YOU have worn it though, but hear me out. You can actually find new pieces, which were just owned by somebody else before, but never used!
Give it a try!
Where can I buy second hand?
1. Thrift shops
I'm sure you know of at least one thrift store in your area. Churches and Not-for-profit organizations sometimes have them conveniently located in residential neighborhoods.
I like to shop at big thrift store chains like Savers, which belongs to the same family as Unique and Value Village. Then there are Good Will, Salvation Army and a little more boujee: Buffalo Exchange and Plato's Closet!
Plato's Closet and Buffalo Exchange both sell and also buy gently used clothing. The buyers review the clothing and buy it, rather than selling donated clothing like a lot of other thrift stores. In my opinion the shopping experience is closer to browsing a typical fast fashion store because of the prior assessment of the items.
Plato's Closet belongs to the same family as Once Upon a Child.
Unfortunately I haven't been to a Once Upon a Child store yet, but I'd love to check it out one day.
The concept is the same as at Plato's closet, so I'm sure there's lots of treasures to (easily) find.
For now I'm just going to stick to diving deep into the unknowns in the kids section of our regular thrift stores.
My advice: Search for baby and kids clothes in both girl & boy sections, as well as a couple sizes up. Stuff gets mixed up in thrift stores A LOT and I feel like the people who price and arrange the items sometimes have no clue, if something is boy/girl or unisex. Plus there's usually no unisex area anyway. So it seems like all pink stuff and dresses are girl and everything else is boy.
Search Thrift Shops in your are and you'll be surprised how many there are!
I've recently discovered Remember Yesteryears, which is more of an antique place but they are selling furniture, beautiful vintage dresses and some kids items!
Another fun place to visit is Deep End of the Sand Box! They have mostly vintage toys, records and T- Shirts, but there's a lot of other little things to discover as well.
The more difficult part about thrifting is finding the shops that feel fun to shop in and provide you with the pieces you love! This requires some time, patience and practice - hang in there and you'll soon be a thrifting pro :)
2. Online
For clothing you can check out Poshmark, thredUp and if you love (and need!) outdoor clothing check out wornwear by Patagonia!
Also see if you can find what you need at Good Will's online auction house next time you're shopping online.
3. Facebook Marketplace
Oh, Facebook Marketplace. It's a love/hate relationship I have with you. Facebook Marketplace is basically my husband's instagram. He could spend all day just scrolling through and looking for the best deals in our neighborhood. I get so annoyed about it sometimes but I have to admit, we've found lots and lots of great deals. From furniture to toddler shoes. So... *sigh* What can I say?
4. Outdoor (flea) markets
In German we say "Flohmarkt" and I have fond memories of going to these outdoor markets every summer. There are specialized ones for kids, books, women, sneakers... etc. as well as antique markets. All of them would sell used and sometimes handmade stuff. Sometimes unique, sometimes mass produced.
I haven't quite found one I like in my area yet, but I'll keep searching the internet and asking around.
Thrift Toddler Haul
I have used second hand or hand-me-downs since day one with our daughter! Lots of her clothing, muslin blankets, swaddles, toys, books, even strollers were pre-owned, loved and full of other families' memories.
