HOW YOU CAN START THRIFTING TODAY

A post about why we starting thrifting and how you can start

Deciding to start thrifting can be a daunting task. Where should I go? What should I get? How do I know if what I find will actually look good? These are all questions we asked too but once we got over the hurdle and understood what to look for we never looked back!

Why We Started Thrifting

“ The majority of fast fashion retailers like Zara, Miss Guided and Fashion Nova put out over 20 collections a year containing hundreds of new products released weekly to keep the consumer wanting more. The clothes that don’t sell get thrown into landfills or stored away in facilities to potentially be reused at a later date.”

The reason I started thrifting was mainly because I wanted a more sustainable way to add items to my wardrobe. Simple items like t-shirts, sweaters, turtlenecks never go out of style and can always be found in the masses at thrift stores. The other reasons was to try and sustainably follow trends without supporting fast fashion retailers who make cheap and poor quality clothing that only really lasts one season. The majority of fast fashion retailers like Zara, Miss Guided and Fashion Nova put out over 20 collections a year containing hundreds of new products released weekly to keep the consumer wanting more. The clothes that don’t sell get thrown into landfills or stored away in facilities to potentially be reused at a later date. Recently, brands have been trying to change these standards and have begun selling dead stock fabrics and items at discounted prices as well as donating clothes to charity. This constant cycle of buying and throwing away trendy clothing was getting unreasonable and I found that there were so many ways to recreate these trends using thrifted clothing.

How You Can Start Thrifting Today and Reduce Your Consumption

Thrifting is one of the easiest ways that you can cut down on consumption while also expanding your wardrobe. The average Canadian throws away 81 pounds of clothing a year with 85% of this still ending up in landfills. As well the environmental impact of manufacturing new clothing items is huge with 700 gallons of water going towards making a single t-shirt or 1800 gallons going towards making a single pair of jeans. When clothing is thrown away so to are the natural resources used to make that item.

Consumption has gotten so out of hand that even Thrift stores are having to throw away unwanted clothes. The average thrift store keeps items for four weeks before having to throw it away and replace it with the next wave of donations. It is estimated that only 25% of items in a thrift store will be sold, but we can change this and heres how!

Step 1: Find Stores in Your Neighbourhood

“ Start by picking out an area that you are able to easily travel to. Search "second hand stores", "thrift stores" or "consignment stores" followed by your city. Filter through the results to choose stores that are appealing to you.”

Every city has numerous second hand clothing stores with the most common would be value village followed by salvation army stores. These are the most easily found in any neighbourhood and often have a lot of donations from people within the area because they make it the easiest to drop off old clothing. The second place to look would be to find smaller boutiques or consignment stores that sell used clothing. These stores often have more curated selections as owners are pickier about the types of clothing they accept for donations.

Start by picking out an area that you are able to easily travel to. Search "second hand stores", "thrift stores" or "consignment stores" followed by your city. Filter through the results to choose stores that are appealing to you. Some follow a certain style, price point or aesthetic. It's up to you to choose a store that is right for you and one that you would feel comfortable visiting. If it is your first time, you may feel more comfortable in a smaller store as it is easier to sift through the clothing, the items are more curated and the atmosphere may be less daunting. The downside are that these stores may have higher price points then the big box stores like value village or salvation army. Moral of the story is, do your research and pick a place that speaks to you and what you are hoping to get out of your visit!

Step 2: Make a Plan

Once you’ve found a store, what’s next? Planning your trip. Thrifting becomes easier when you go with a plan or types of desired items in mind. It can be overwhelming to step into a store filled with racks and racks of clothing and not know what you are looking for. Take it from experience, you’ll end up just going through the racks and not buying anything for sheer lack of vision about the items in front of you.

“ Start by thinking about whether you want basics or trendy items, look through Instagram and TikTok and pick out items that you would love to have in your wardrobe. ”

Start by thinking about whether you want basics or trendy items, look through Instagram and TikTok and pick out items that you would love to have in your wardrobe. Go through videos of what other people found thrifting to get inspiration for what your clothes could potentially look like after you bring them home. Pull inspiration from your favourite celebrities. What are they wearing? What basics could you add to your wardrobe to elevate your style?

Depending on the size of the store make sure you have enough time in the day to get through it. Don't head to the store if you are on a tight timeline. Sometimes you can be in the store for a few hours looking through items and getting lost in the racks. Thrifting is a marathon and you need to make sure you don't feel rushed when looking to take your first trip. Also think about whether you want to go to multiple stores in one day. If a few are located in the same area maybe make a day out of it!

Once you've decided on your locations, list of desired items, vision and allocated enough time in the day, it's time to head out!

Step 3: You're in the Store, Now What?

“ Looking at the racks of clothing in front of you and depending on where you've chosen to go, the sheer size of the store itself may start to get you feeling overwhelmed. DON'T! ”

Congratulations! You made it to the store, you've taken the first step to adding sustainability to your wardrobe. Now what do you do? Looking at the racks of clothing in front of you and depending on where you've chosen to go, the sheer size of the store itself may start to get you feeling overwhelmed. DON'T! Look at your list and start simple. Go over to the t-shirt section and shift through the items, check off those easy items first. Gain confidence in your ability to look through items. Use this time to get familiar with the way the store sorts their clothing. Is it by size? Colour? Style?

Now keep going. Go for sweaters, jeans, jackets and more. Once you understand the layout of the store it becomes easier to understand where potential items on your list may be hiding. Start looking at items that may seem odd but have potential. Look at colours and styles that may be out of your comfort zone but are in style or one trend. Think about the way that you may be able to alter clothing to fit the current trends. The possibilities are endless. Have fun!

Step 4: Don't Panic if Things Aren't Going How You Expected

You’re at the store, and you’re not finding anything, The first thing to do is not get discouraged. Thrift stores are constantly cycling through new clothing, just because you didn’t find anything today, doesn’t mean you’ll never find anything at this store again. If this is your first time going thrifting you may not have developed an eye for pieces yet and this is ok. The more you thrift, the more you will be comfortable taking risks on items that have potential.

Now that you have gone once, sit back and think about our experience. Was the store too big? Too small? Not the right style of clothing? Not enough selection? Too expensive? Ask yourselves these questions and think about what you can do better next time. Maybe watch a few videos online to see what other people have found and thrift stores and how they have styled them. Chances are you may just not have had enough vision or inspiration before your first trip. Take a few days and try again following the same steps as before and see if you have a different experience. Everyone is different and thrifting can be a ton of fun once you get the hang of it so grab some friends and fun!

Overall, Your Decision to Start Thrifting is a Great First Step

Thrifting is fun, economical and a sustainable way to add new items to your closet. A decision to start trying to reduce your own consumption is a great step to lowering your environmental footprint and is a great way to signal to fast fashion brands that you don't need to support them to be in style. Remember to keep an open mind and always have imagination when looking at items. All clothing has potential and you have the power to transform old outdated pieces into the next big trend in fashion.

For more inspiration, check out our post about how to build your capsule wardrobe to get some ideas on easy items you’ll be able to find in every thrift store!