Yes, I love popping tags! You know the song? Of course I wash them first. I thrift carefully and I have some tricks for garage sales as well-comes from lots of experience so I will share. Share some of your findings below and enlighten us all.
First I will say I don't like paying full retail. Yes there was a time when I would shop retail but it was mostly on sale, unless I had to have it. You know what I mean. Shopping in my favorite stores, having to have the latest look or item they were bombarding me with in advertisements, that brand name, that little tag on the inside of your garment, or on the outside so everyone could see that I had been sucked in. Retailers add a lot of things to our environments processing garments, not to mention feeding our insatiable appetite fore MORE. Can we ever have enough. Then out of our guilt of having so much stuff, perhaps there is no more room. If something comes in, we rationalize something must go out. This helps us to justify another purchase. Now I am not telling you to refuse retail entirely, I am just planting a seed, if you will, to consider buying resale or rethinking what you already have. Is it really worn out, can anything in that garment be used again? If you liked it enough to buy it one time, something about it caught you-fits you. Maybe it never really worked when you got it home or you wore it a few times and its not your favorite really. Before you scrap what you already have, put it aside with the others and let it become part of your upcycles. Or, put it aside and just think outside the box for a few days until it comes to you, or at least try to consign it and make a few bucks.
Thrifting means you have to hit the location(s) on a regular basis. What is super may not be there the one time you visit. If you become an avid upcycler, you will get to know the staff so set aside a few moments to check in with them, they will want to know what you are up to. Building these relationships can lead to them keeping their eye out for something special you are looking for. Perhaps it is a certain brand or item, hey, I got three sewing machines this way that they set aside for me and gave me a call-no kidding.
When shopping I look for particular labels. I like using fine materials and I tend to gravitate to the "look" of certain brand names-I can, after practice, spot them in the racks. They usually sort them by garment (long-sleeve, sleeveless, pants, etc.) so look this way, but browse by most racks for something unusual that catches your eye. Maybe it is the material or pattern not the garment itself. And always look for skirts, they are great to upcycle on shirts and other items-many have a lot of material. Don't worry about size unless you are using it as the bodice or the beginning of an upcycle and need it to fit a particular measurement. Look for stains and rips if you plan to use whole garment. But if it has a flaw, remember you are upcylcling and you can easily solve the problem with your sewing and design.
Look for natural fibers. Yes, I buy items that are not all natural but natural fibers like cotton, wool, silk, linen are great to work with, they accept dyes well, and they tend to wear better, therefore, they are usually in better condition when you thrift. You will be surprised when you get going how you will be inspired just going to the thrift, or you may find yourself knowing just what you are going to do with that garment when you get home, and may leave the store ready to sew and create.
Ask your friends if they would toss their items to you prior to dumping them at a thrift store for donation. You can accumulate a good stockpile for upcycling this way at no cost. They will even start telling family members and you could end up with some really cool stuff for nothing but a thank you, although I usually create a "little something" as a thank you if it is a considerable amount of stuff or something super cool.
Garage sales will be something I blog about later. Thrifting is so much fun. If you regularly hit a store or five, sorry I love this part of my business, on a regular basis, you will find some really cool stuff. And if you shop a consignment store, they will hold stuff for you to come see if they know what you like and also can point you to what you are looking for in the racks. Oh the thrill of the shop! I can still shop but do not have to add to the planets demise, I am helping Her by reusing what is already here and ready for another life as one of my creations. Have a great day and hit a thrift and pop a tag! Later, Colleen
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