The Price of Thrift

[Laraquan]

I agree with you all. Here in Australia, many places sell their items of clothing for between $5 - $10, though it can go up a large amount for a wedding dress. The amount of 80s garb in there is astonishing. I'm surprised if I find anything from the 90s (not a pair of snap pants in sight - I'd probably buy a pair of them just for the novelty value) though there's often some fairly decent modern clothes.

I did manage to find a nice jacket, white with black markings, with frong pockets and buttons. I won't post it here since I'm no expert on what is vintage and what isn't and I'd be mortified if I got it wrong. I think it looks quite 50s though quite probably it's from the 60s. Anyway, it seems the only vintage-esque clothes I can find in thrift shops are jackets. If I'm lucky I can find skirts. Where are are all the dresses and shirts gone?

 

[pigeon toe]

The thrift stores I go to in LA are rarely any good. Most are completely picked through. However, back in the Bay Area I can usually find some great things! It has gotten more expensive, but it's still cheaper than Ebay or a vintage shop, so it's worth it to me.

 

[Mildred]

The thrift stores I go to in LA are rarely any good. Most are completely picked through. However, back in the Bay Area I can usually find some great things! It has gotten more expensive, but it's still cheaper than Ebay or a vintage shop, so it's worth it to me.

I agree with you. The LA thrift stores are bad now. When ebay started-they got flooded with dealers. Very sad. I used to walk out with tons of stuff and oh so inexpensive-not anymore.

 

[pin_up_pixie]

This may sound bad, but my favorites thrift stores are the ones in the "rich/old" communities. Like the goodwill in Palo Alto. It seems that every time I’m there I find something great, and it's the same old story. Someone's grandma died, and the family donates everything! So wile it is kind of sad, I'm always grateful they donated and didn't just through it away. Also great are estate sales in these areas. I went to one and met a very nice man, who's grandmother saved every pair of shoes she ever owned...and wore the same size as me! I gave him $50 and he gave me 30 pairs of vintage shoes....I was in heaven! Unfortunitly I was 19, and didn't understand the real value of having vintage. I wore them all till there was nothing left of them...so sad to think about it now.

 

[Lady Day]

There are thrift stores in Palo Alto? lol I may need you to show me around...


LD

 

[pin_up_pixie]

A couple. The goodwill is is kinda hidden on El Camino near Embarcadaro (sp?), and there was a very little one hidden off El Camino...on a tiny side street. Haven't been there in years though. The little one was so full of stuff, it was like walking into a different world. Hmmmm I think the next time i'm over there i'll have to see if I can find it again. If I can, I'll post the name and address.

Julie

 

[badleekitty]

Same here! I didn't go thrifting today, but "back in the day" (1998-2002ish) I could walk into my local Salvation Army and walk out with 4 or 5 fancy dresses from the 40s, 50s, and/or 60s. Now it's all 80s prom stuff.

Every once in a while my husband and I hit the shops and I usually come home with one or two things from visiting 4 or 5 shops. Stuff from the 80s and 90s is beginning to take over the shops around here. I guess that's what happens as time moves on, though

Oh! Those were the days!!! I really miss them.

 

[Vanessa Anne]

It's such a shame but in the U.K. thrift stores just don't exist. Not like back home in Canada. In the UK they have charity stores but they only sell new or nearly new stuff. Never vintage.

All the vintage stuff seems to go directly to vintage dealers where the prices are hiked up. I assume that charity stores want to make as much cash for their stores but they would make more if they sold vintage with a slight mark up themselves.

So sadly the fact is that you just can't get cheap vintage in the UK.

It's cheaper to buy off of US e-bay and have stuff sent over!

I must admit - I miss Goodwill!

 

[princessofcandl]

Wow... really? Well I have really good luck in goodwills and thrift stores. Not always actual vintage but vintage inspired. Or really good daily wear that can be flaired up with a vintage piece. I get deals all the time. I'd say 90% of my wardrobe is from goodwill/thrift store. Especially work clothes.

I get men's slacks instead of ladies. Better fit for my body type and they are midwaist (not too high and not too low). Then I shop by lable for other things. I just run my finger through the racks and scan the lables for some that are good. I can't tell you how many Talbots tops I've got from thrift stores. Most stuff I need to alter a bit or adjust but you can't beat the price. Yeah Goodwill has raised thier prices a bit but its still a good deal.

The rest of my closet is filled in with bargains from other stores. Macy's had a super sale this week and I got two suit seperates for $10 each (two blazers, one with matching pants).

Of course, I'm all about the hunt. I have fun looking for odd pieces at looooow prices.

 

[BegintheBeguine]

No shoes

Whenever I see anything vintage I buy it, no matter if it's men's or women's or what size. I've always bought any vintage shoes I've come across (for my shoe museum and to wear if it's size 5-6) but that commodity seems to have dried up just when I joined the Lounge. I'm still looking for you gals! I managed to spend $45 after work today, including a 50s dress, a Movie Star nightgown, 3 60s handbags, a ladies' attache case, and vintage-style dresses to wear.

 

[Miss Sis]

It's such a shame but in the U.K. thrift stores just don't exist. Not like back home in Canada. In the UK they have charity stores but they only sell new or nearly new stuff. Never vintage.

Vanessa Anne, that's not completely true. I have bought vintage things in charity shops here in the UK. You just have to look hard to unearth things that haven't been snapped up already.

I got a beautiful perfect 1930s dress in Edinburgh for £20 and have picked up various bits and pieces over time. Just this weekend a friend got a fabulous pair of coral and gold 40s wedges in a UK size 8 (almost unheard of to get that size) and a 50s green velvet handbag in Hampshire. The shoes were £20 and the bag was certainly less than that! My boyfrind's Mum found me three pairs of unworn lisle stockings in size 10 for £2 each in one of her local charity shops.

Lots of the charity shops like Oxfam are not happy hunting grounds but find the little independent place or a hospice shop and the better things tend to be in there. You just have to look everywhere!

 

[Vanessa Anne]

Vanessa Anne, that's not completely true. I have bought vintage things in charity shops here in the UK. You just have to look hard to unearth things that haven't been snapped up already.

I got a beautiful perfect 1930s dress in Edinburgh for £20 and have picked up various bits and pieces over time. Just this weekend a friend got a fabulous pair of coral and gold 40s wedges in a UK size 8 (almost unheard of to get that size) and a 50s green velvet handbag in Hampshire. The shoes were £20 and the bag was certainly less than that! My boyfrind's Mum found me three pairs of unworn lisle stockings in size 10 for £2 each in one of her local charity shops.

Lots of the charity shops like Oxfam are not happy hunting grounds but find the little independent place or a hospice shop and the better things tend to be in there. You just have to look everywhere!

£20 for a dress is hardly thrift store prices. When we talk thrift store we mean under £5. In the UK the prices for vintage/second hand are much more expensive in the states/canada. When i go home I'm always amazed at the price differences.

Yes you can buy vintage dresses at £20 over here, and yes that is good going for the UK, however I still dissagree - you can't beat a really good thrift store buy like the ones in the states/canada.

 

[Miss Sis]

It might not be the same prices for some things but it is stil ALOT cheaper than buying it in a Vintage clothes shop where for what I paid £20 you'd be paying £250 - 300! You wouldn't get it for much less on Ebay either.

Other stuff has been much cheaper - just a few pounds for slips, a 30s wedding dress etc. So it is there, it just might not be so easy to find or cost a wee bit more.

 

[Miss Brill]

This may sound bad, but my favorites thrift stores are the ones in the "rich/old" communities.

I've never found that to be true. I live in a small town & have scored many high-end luxury brands because people don't know what Hermes or Versace is, so they leave it laying & go for the Coach & Aigner. I think some stores may sell what is donated to that specific store, but I think a lot of them get trucks from the main store.

 

[Lauren]

I agree. I have the best luck at the low end thrift stores. There's one nearby that's run by a local Catholic church- a tiny little hole in the wall place that's next to a laundromat. Nearly every time I go in there I find something vintage- from 78s to vintage fur, to evening gowns, to California pottery, to fabric and all for very low prices. It's the larger chain stores like Goodwill or the Salvation Army that I've been having a harder time with, since donation stores sift through the better clothing often times and put it online or at "boutique" stores. Since vintage clothing is starting to be so fashionable it's getting rarer and rarer to find authentic pieces. Just two years ago I would find a slew of 60's and 70's clothing every time I went in, but now it's mostly 80's and newer. It seems the prices are raising as well, with dresses often times starting at $8 and above... I can make a trip to the LA garment district and buy the same thing brand new for around that price!

 

[nobodyspecial]

I find thrift shop prices to be highly variable for similar items. I live near St. Paul and from what I have seen the Salvation Army stores are the least expensive, but the merchandise is more hit or miss. Good Will and Savers and the like will have items for $5.99 and then a similar item for $12.99 on the same rack. My guess is the difference is due to different managers overseeing the incoming product as there does not appear to be any rhyme or reason to the price swing. Thrift shop buying for me seems to be a function of the more I shop, the more I find. There are times when the pickings are rather slim.

 

[Dinerman]

I like my thrift shop. It's conveniently located equidistant from 3 retirement communities, so it gets a lot of good things.

 

[Lady Day]

I like my thrift shop. It's conveniently located equidistant from 3 retirement communities, so it gets a lot of good things.

Nice! :eusa_clap

LD

 

[ITG]

Housekeeping Note: Moved from the PR to the OB as it's a multi-gender topic.

 

[Story]

Thought this appropro

Thrift Store Worker Returns $30,000
AP
Posted: 2008-03-10 10:42:49

POMONA, Calif. (March 9) - A thrift store worker in Southern California says she didn't think twice about returning $30,000 she found in donated clothing.

Barbarita Nunez was sorting clothes on Tuesday at the Veterans Thrift Store when she found a small box. Inside was an envelope of cash. Nunez said at first she thought the money was fake. But just in case, she gave it to her supervisor.

The money turned out to belong to a woman who had recently died. It was returned to her family, who gave Nunez a cash reward.

Nunez said she will send some of the reward to Mexico so her mother can have an eye operation and will use the rest to buy a digital camera.