Hello guys, so today was a lush family day spent doing my favourite past time - thrifting! For today's look I opted for a masculine / work wear influenced ensemble. The trousers, jacket, bag & Beret were all thrifted pieces (so tie in perfectly with this post), the boots are old season Primark but these from Boohoo are basically identical . The oversized top is a H&M Men's Divided piece, which I can't seem to find on the website but this is a similar design: here I wanted something structured but also effortless and I think this look achieves this.
I thought alongside my look I would bring to you some tips I've learnt along the years about how to find the best buys at the charity shops / thrift shops (if you're American). Something to note about me is that this is my all time favourite way too shop! With my style being an ecclectic mix of all styles, especially that of earlier periods like the 60's, 70's, 80's and 90s, vintage pieces are always catching my eye (and heavily vintage inspired items too!). I feel like if you look at today's current trends they are paying homage to some other period, which means most of the time you will find pieces in the charity shops that are almost identical to what we are seeing in the fast fashion high street stores. I really love the idea of recycling fashion, you are adding a new lease of life to an item of clothing that would've just done to waste. I also love the idea that you are picking up items that no-one else you know will have, it makes your looks even more special. I am certain that 90% of my wardrobe is secondhand garments, and with the resurgence of thrifting / it being "cool" now a lot more people are hitting up the charity shops too! So I thought for any newbies to the game, or to anyone who just wants some tips I thought I'd share my top 5.
1. Don't shop in City Centres
The worst mistake you can do is try and shop here, the stores will be hella overpriced and most of the good hidden gems will be long gone. The locations which seem to be best are lesser populated towns, places that may seem a bit 'rundown'. Here you are much more likely to find more shops, and much more bang for your buck. Best thing to do is do some research, look into places near you on google maps and search for charity shops within the area - its the best way to find out without wasting a psychical trip out there.
2. Discounted Shops
Keep an eye out for these, they have them for a lot of charities but are mostly Barnardos, Age UK & Sue Ryder. They will have signs in the window that will say everything is either £1. £1.99 or £2. These shops are my favourite, as even though they are discounted they still get really good high quality items. So don't let the 'discounted' sign put you off, I have found most of my gems in these stores. Along with this look for independent charity shops that are local / not countrywide charities. These usually have very good pricing too.
3. Don't be afraid to ask
If there is something in particular you are looking for, or you have seen something in the back that you like the look of - ask! They will be more than happy to help, and more times than not you get your hands on something before it has even hit the shop floor.
4. Look through everything
The key to good thrifting is too look through everything, more times that not items are in the wrong area or are sized up wrong. I always shop in the men's section for over sized t-shirts, flannel shirts and band tees. If you are more petite I know people like to shop in the kids section as you can pick up some cool crop tops etc. Working in with this don't pay much attention to the sizing, if you have time try things on. If not, just judge it by the size of the item not by the size on the label. Older items run a lot smaller to our sizing now.
5. Volunteer!
If you want the top picks, the ones that no one else has seen (and you have some free time on your hands) then volunteer! Not only will it fulfill all your thrifting needs you will be helping out a deserving charity, as well as getting some experience that will look brill on anyones CV.
So, those are my five tips for successful thrifting, but something to note as well is that not every trip will be successful so don't be disheartened it you don't find everything you want straight away. There will be a part two to this post which features me styling all the items I picked up on this shopping trip, so keep your eyes peeled for that if you want too see what I picked up!
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