Would you dress yourself or your kids in thrift store clothing?

[DivaJen]

a comment on another thread got me curious about this....

I voted for "all of us" - I have no problems buying used clothing. My MIL is one of the sharpest dressers I know, and almost everything comes from thrift stores. You'd never know it - she looks fantastic.

Oh - if you don't have children to buy for, answer anyway and pretend you do.

[getforfree]

I would buy it only if it looks almost new and costs 2x less than the new clearance items would cost me.

[DivaJen]

When DD was younger I used to find awesome deals on great looking name-brand clothes - Old Navy, Gymboree, Gap for $3 or less per item. It's harder now that she's older, but I still find things here and there. One of her favorite tops for a while was a 25 cent garage sale find. She gets great hand-me-downs now, too, so that really helps. Free is good.

[LuxLiving]

I'm not too proud!! You bet your sweet bippy I dress us all that way. Spouse and 5 kids - 2 still at home now. On one salary it was imperative that we do that or go nekkid!! Now, to see me nor my children you wouldn't think so -- we are often the best dressed whereever we go! I think the reason why is because I buy classic, solid color items for the most part. We are pressed and neat when others are perhaps more comfortable w/a tee just out of the dryer. Our buttons are intact, freyed strings clipped, etc. Button downs buttoned down etc.

For myself as a SAHM my wardrobe needs aren't much. For church I wear what I call my uniform. Black shell, black skirt and often times vibrantly colored high-end designer jackets culled from careful shopping. For going out I wear black shell, black leggings and those same jackets. I'm not the ugliest duckling in the room and even fluffy I often turn heads and receive many positive comments on my wardrobe with people asking me where they can find similar.

At home I wear shorts and tees year-round. My weakness is shoes... The Hubster doesn't exactly understand the finer points of why I need 16 pairs of black shoes, but he misses some of the finer detailing points! ie gold trim, rhinestone trim, silver studs, summer sandals, winter suedes, high heels, low heels, etc.

I was taught by my mother to be a very careful clothing shopper. What I buy lasts and is classic from season to season, year to year. For fads I might run a 1/2 season or so behind and usually do my itsy bit of fad shopping in the purse department of the resale shop.

Clothing is a VERY VERY small part of our monthly budget with most clothing coming either from family gifts at Christmas or us buying it for each other as birthday or Christmas gifts. Teens here saved $'s from their own earnings to purchase their 'Mommmm I have-to-have it!' fad items.

[Mabuisakura]

I love thrift stores. My husband is a manager and has all of his nice work shirts from there. Plus they have great baby clothes.

[Koppur]

No, and here's why:

It is icky to me. There are some things that really skeeve me out, and used clothing is one of them. Clothes from a friend or family member I can do, but from a stranger reaaaly grosses me out. I also can't eat of dishes, use glasses or utensils that I know are antiques and came from an antique store. Some antique stores make me feel icky and I can't touch anything in there. Some I am ok in.

I'm odd.

[Saving in So Cal]

I don't think I can legitimately answer the poll because I have only tried thrift store shopping a couple of times and only recently. My experience so far suggests that you really have to cull through the stuff and it will take some persistance to acquire a whole wardrobe for someone. So far, I have found nothing suitable for my husband and only two things suitable for my daughter. I have found several tops suitable for me but no jackets, bottoms, or accessories. The things I have found have been, for the most part, stellar deals.

I agree with the other posters that you need to be selective and aware of retail prices. The thrift store chain I go to has a set price for tops, bottoms, etc. regardless of who manufactured the item and what condition it is in. In some cases, especially in the children's section, it would cost me more to buy the item used, than to buy it new or on clearance.

[PrincessPerky]

Not shoes, not underware, and not often...mainly because I hate to shop..and I NEVER find what I like at goodwill (or anyother) not that I tend to find what I like anywhere else..but I do find thingsin hand me downs..dunno why but I see lots of nice things in hand me downs that I like, or more often that either of my kids like. Even on the rare occassion I do see something I find the price to be about the same as new on sale...so why bother with all the looking?

I often wonder if anyone ever bought jeans from the good will and tunring them into a bedspread though.....or corduroys...or velvet...I think you could make a really cool one that way..

[DivaJen]

I only buy tops and pants for myself - no undergarments, socks, shoes, anything like that. I think the quality of goods varies a lot from store to store and city to city. I've found Ann Taylor pants, Old Navy, Calvin Klein. We have some good ones in a nearby city that I go to once in a while, and a few in our downtown as well.

[Bookie]

Well, I live on the fringe of the high-rent district. Our local Goodwill store is richly endowed with cast-offs from the gilt-edged neighborhoods to the west. Twice a year I drop off discards from my semi-annual winnowing, and I always wander through the retail side.

Most of the clothing I wouldn't wear to a dog fight (and I go to some pretty casual dog fights), but every once in a while . . . A Harris Tweed herringbone jacket with the inspection ticket still in the breast pocket. Khakis from our local high-zoot men's specialty store. A three-season windbreaker. . .

Sure, I'll cheerfully wear thrift store clothing. Like others have said, one needs to be discriminating and knowledgeable about quality and prices, but I've no qualms about buying some items used. I do have things commercially cleaned and pressed, but that's mostly a matter of aesthetics.

[TinyFish]

Luxliving, please teach my husband to button his button downs! lol

I've bought quite a lot of clothes at thrift stores. I think it is easier if you are a smaller size, and female. It also varies from place to place, I'm sure. Here in the Bay Area, you can often get designer things that have scarcely been worn, or maybe even still have tags. I won't say I buy everything that way, but I could probably get everything but underwear and socks there if I was willing to put the time into it and I really had to save the money.

Jeans that fit just right and plain t-shirts are sometimes hard to find there. I think because people tend to wear them out I usually buy those new and we wear a lot of them. You can get very good collared shirts, blouses, skirts, blazers, dress pants, and dresses. I have a sundress that was apparently made by hand by someone that I paid $2 for in the mid-nineties. I still get compliments on it. I had another dress that I paid $4 for, same deal. I also had a pair of Eddie Bauer jeans that I wore to death that I think I paid $4 for.

If I had kids they would certainly be largely clothed from the thrift stores. Think of how they ruin clothes and grow out of them!

Not only is thrift shopping economical, but it is also recycling, which is a good thing, no matter what your income.

We also have a $2 waffle iron from the goodwill. Works great.

-E!

[Kris10Leigh]

I love our thrift store! One of my favorite thing to do is stand in line on holidays at 7:45 AM to get in line and rush the store for 50% off! LOL! It's a riot! I can load my cart full to over flowing and I have never spent over $80. It's wonderful! And my thrift store has many, many brand names. There's junk, of course, but if you can weed through the junk there are some terrific buys, especially in jeans! My kids are very well dressed and we come across as wealthy because I shop at the thrift store. I figure that if I bought something new, it is only "new" for one wear. One wear! Then it is used, just like the clothes at the thrift store.

I'm more particular about my kids than myself. My mom tends to cast off her clothing to me, so I never really need anything for myself.

No underware or shoes for me though. And jammies only for the kids, not me. I don't like to think about adult jammies...blech!

[DivaJen]

Originally Posted by TinyFish

Not only is thrift shopping economical, but it is also recycling, which is a good thing, no matter what your income.

Great point!

[PRICEPLUS]

My patches had patches when I was a kid. I would do without to make sure my kids have better.

[BCHGRL]

OF COURSE! On my last visit, I scored a pair of Gap jeans for $12 that fit PERFECTLY. Probably saved $50 or more from the original purchase price. I also bought a pair of really nice brown sandals for $10. I wear those things probably 2 times a week or more. I recently bought a very nice end table for less than $40. Earlier that week, I looked at Target where a low-quality end table was going for $50-$60.

I don't have any kids, but if I did, I'd buy their clothes consignment/thrift too.

I believe the most important factor in consignment or thrift shopping to shop at stores are very particular as to the quality of items that they will accept. For instance, the furniture consignment shop I enjoy shopping at really looks like a new furniture store. Any flaws in the merchandise were minimal. I've been to other furniture consignment places that accepted lower quality merchandise and just couldn't find anything appealing.

[LittleGopher]

With four girls, how could I not?!!

Seriously, my older girls like pulling together outfits all their own style, and not like anyone else's. We frequent two thrift shops - a nice big general shop that receives high quality donations (many items are new with tags) and Plato's Closet (caters to teens and the younger crowd with nary a waist-hitting pair of jeans on their racks.) I love the prices!

Underclothes and shoes we buy new - though we pass down shoes within our family when not too worn (dressy or fun shoes) or outgrown too quickly (due to amazing growth spurts.) We also accept all pass-along clothes from friends and coworkers (and we pass our discards right along too.) We fill in the wardrobes at clearances and sales as needed too, as we aren't always able to find everything at thrift shops. I've yet to send a girl to school without clothes, or with clothes too embarassing to be seen in!

[Ima saver]

Sure I would. I worked in one as a volunteer, and we tried to throw out everything that was really old, stained, etc. Kids clothes went so fast, it was scary. I have not been in one for a while, but only cause i don't need anything and don't want to be tempted!

[pearlieq]

I fully intend to outfit my kids there and I wish I could buy myself things there, but I can never seem to find my size, plus my local Goodwill is not well organized by size and it becomes tedious and frustrating to sort through the racks.

I don't see anything "icky" about it. I would give everything a good washing, but otherwise, how is that any different from buying new clothes? If you think about it, how many people do you imagine tried on any piece of clothing you'd buy in the store? To each his own, I guess...

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Sometimes I see that donated items have the tags from a dry cleaners on them. I do think that the vast majority of people freshly wash the items they are donating before they give. I know I do. Sometimes I'll even iron them beforehand. I don't think many dirty items actually get donated. Even so, of course I wash what I buy.

I'm very overweight and used to rarely find anything that would fit. But as the rest of society has tended to gain weight, it has gotten much easier to find my big size.

My biggest problem is that the re-sellers all know the schedules by which various sorts of items are stocked into the various charity thrift stores. So they and their employees snatch up so much of the best stuff before the ordinary shopper gets a chance.Then they re-sell it in their own shops, at higher prices , of course.

I know one store out in the distant suburbs where a larger quantity of better quality stuff seems to be available, but I don't drive out that way often. I never schedule a trip out there just for the thrift store. If I'm in the area I will stop in. I've gotten some great deals there on clothes, furniture, and kitchen items.

Also, my young kids' shelves were stocked with great books from Goodwill!

[lrjohnson]

Originally Posted by Koppur

I also can't eat of dishes, use glasses or utensils that I know are antiques and came from an antique store.

I wonder if that affects going out to eat?

I worked in a fitting room, and people try stuff on all the time. It seems odd to me that used clothes are that much different to people...or are they not realizing not all new clothing is unworn?

A used piece of clothing that looks good is something you can count on. You already know it's held up through washings, and seams and buttons have stayed, material hasn't pilled, it won't shrink any more, etc. I think that since higher quality clothes last longer, they are more likely to end up in thrift shops.