Prada, Thomas Pink, Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Ann Taylor, Tommy Hilfinger, Polo Ralph Lauren, Gucci, Ferragamo, Kenneth Cole, Lily Pulitzer, Pucci…am I getting all wistful about walks down Rodeo Drive, the Champs Elysées, or Fifth Avenue?
Not on your life. These brands are all trophies I’ve scored during secondhand shopping safaris, with stops at stores including Goodwill and Salvation Army.
Eww. I hear noses wrinkling. Before you let them freeze there and resign yourself to paying retail, consider this:
1) The designers who work to create the top end stuff either troll and/or send out crews to secondhand stores all the time, in search of inspiration. Kind of like pearl divers looking for treasure beneath the barnacles. Sometimes you need to hold your breath for a while, but the payoff is pretty nice.
2) What you find here will most likely, never, ever, be seen on anyone else attending the same party.
3) With vintage pieces score pieces of fashion history …and you can make up an enchanting history for them. “This is what Gran wore to the Easter Egg roll at the white house during the JFK years….”
4) The places you’re shopping probably aren’t owned by a giant, global conglomerate, but, instead, are local and often charitable, which gives you the rosy glow of helping your community.
5) By reusing and repurposing clothes that are already created, you’re an eco-warrior – but with stylish clothes.
6) You won’t just find vintage treasures…I’ve picked up many an item from a season ago, some with tags still attached. Stores and dry cleaners often distribute their extras to non-profits for the tax write off. Right on!
7) For the price of lunch and a sweater at soulless mall you can come home with bags of stuff… treasure that will cause people to stop you on the street for compliments.
Stay tuned for the secrets of savvy thrifting....
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