What’s Trash and What’s Treasure While Thrifting? Learn From My Mistakes.

You wander aimlessly in a sea of cheap early 2000’s Aeropostale tees. Nothing but thin polyester and neon hues that scorch your eyes give you the urge to wash your hands. It's obvious why all this was donated. “How?” you wonder to yourself, “How is my local thrift store full of nothing but junk when I see countless girls online with amazing vintage pieces?” Let me tell you a secret: the store isn't the issue. There are treasures. You just don't have the treasure map! Let me help you track down the chest of gold and gems amongst the smelly trash that often inhabits thrift stores. Here are some things to pay special attention to.

Quality: Is it Gonna Last?

The woes of a mock-neck that seemed like a good idea until I brought it home and realized I had just bought tights for my torso.

There’s really no point in taking up precious space in your closet with pieces that are low quality. Honestly, sometimes the material, strength, and thickness of a garment are what draw me to it, to begin with. Usually, when something feels nice, it looks nice. The drawback that some see in thrifting is that items might have some wear and tear from the previous owner. If the piece is high quality though, you might not even have to worry about it ever showing those telltale signs of age. If you can see through a top when holding it up to the light, it's probably not the one for you.

Condition: Is There a Reason that the Last Person Said Goodbye?

This amazing 90's reversible jacket was nearly perfect. Besides this massive rip on the inside. All I can say is I'm #blessed that this jacket is reversible because I'll shamelessly wear it still.

One of the most heart-wrenching feelings when thrifting. You find an amazing vintage name brand piece with your name written all over it. But you glance down at the front of the garment and you spot it. A blemish. Very unsightly. Very noticeable. You think “maybe I can save it!” and that might be true in some situations, like a hole or a rip, but no one wants to have to live with a mystery stain. Mystery stains are forever. If you’re dealing with a mystery stain, it's time to kiss it goodbye, girl. Just kiss it goodbye.

Fit: Does it Like You as Much as You Like it

This photo is me showing you how the extra small definitely didn't work for me even though I really wanted it to. If you see me unable to move my arms while wearing this jacket, just ignore me.

I've never been an xs but everything else about this jacket was perfect! And I found 3 Pokemon cards in the pocket! Now that I think about it this might have been a child's jacket.

Now, if you know me, you know that a size on a tag rarely deters me from making a purchase. THAT BEING SAID if you put something on and there’s just no possible way you can finesse it into working for you, don’t fool yourself. This applies more to smaller pieces than larger pieces. It’s much easier to crop a giant tee than to add length to a dress. Think about all your options before ruling something out, like rolling, tucking, cutting or sewing, but if it's just too far gone, leave it for another style icon like yourself.

Thrifting Unicorns

One of my most triumphant thrift finds. Yes, it was probably someone's grandpas. But it's mine now and it's perfectly over sized so I don't wanna hear it.

The really fun and cool thing about thrifting is that it gives you the opportunity to get pieces that you might never be able to find (or afford) anywhere else. With a vintage-inspired fashion coming back into style big clothing brands just love to jack up prices on certain vintage styles and brands. Thrift unicorns are those things that every thrifter is looking for, but few find. Some of these include higher-end name brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Eddie Bauer, and Calvin Klein. Some other thrift unicorns are things like vintage denim (that fits), denim jackets, vintage band tees, and high-quality shoes.

Wearability: Does it work for you or do you just really want it to?

Going out of your comfort zone is crucial to finding new favorites, but if you feel deep down that it will take a lot for you to reach for it, just move on. You know yourself best, so pay attention to how it makes you feel and make sure you have the pieces to style it with. Just because it's an amazing piece, doesn’t mean it’s an amazing piece for you! Leave it for another girl on the hunt who will give it a more loving home and won’t just let it collect dust in the back of her closet and make her feel guilty every time she sees it because she’s never worn it out of the house (speaking from personal experience here).

---

All of these tips you can adjust to what you feel comfortable and happy with of course. I just find that there are certain things that almost always work for me and certain things that almost never work for me. In the end, the most important key to making a thrifted piece work is feeling confident (I know it’s cheesy, cue the full house sappy music). When I ‘m wearing pieces that I am proud of in an outfit I thought about a lot, people notice. So go forth, and find that “X marks the spot” or whatever.