Uhm, YES you can afford a new Fall/Winter/Spring/Summer (whenever it is you are reading this) wardrobe! I'll be honest with you, I have little sympathy for someone who whines to me about not being able to afford to dress nice for work, has gained/lost weight and can't fit into anything so they won't go out, won't attend a special event because they have nothing appropriate to wear....blah, blah, blah. Here's what I got yesterday for $15.60:
That is two long sleeve t-shirts, two sweaters, five dress shirts and a pair of pants. And I did not steal them. I went shopping at a Thrift Store. (And I was lucky enough to be there on 1/2 price day!) You know, second hand clothing? It's all the rage. Seriously.
Back when I was a kid my Mom always bought her work suits from, what we affectionately call them, Junk Stores. The irony is that she worked in retail and was always being complimented on her wardrobe. Everything she wore was Designer! I jest a bit, but seriously, tons of her clothes were barely worn name brand items that would have cost and arm, leg and 1/2 a kidney if she would have purchased them at full price! So I obviously grew up knowing how smart it was to purchase gently used clothing. Of course I was a typical teenager ('GROSS, someone ELSE wore that???') and yet would borrow my friends clothing without a second thought....go figure.
Now there is a Thrift Store in every City and I guarantee there is one near you. So don't give me the "I don't have one near me...." And I won't listen to the "I can't afford...." excuse, either. I just showed you what you can buy with a couple of days lunch money. Sorry, but I'd eat ramen breakfast, lunch and dinner for two days to buy a couple of suits to wear to a job interview to get a better paying job....or ask for a raise....or to go to my Daughter's wedding. And here's the excuse most of you are going to fall back on (drum roll please) "I can't ever find MY SIZE". That's because you aren't willing to look. Thrift Stores are not department stores. They don't have five shirts in five different sizes. You have a giant store with thousands upon thousands of pieces of clothing, usually sorted by type (ladies t-shirts, ladies skirts, etc.) and most times even by color...but NEVER by size. And you have to look. And look. And look. But I saw everything from a size 0 to a size 28 yesterday and everything in between....and I wasn't even looking for those sizes. I wanted some long sleeve shirts for the Fall transition and probably touched every shirt in the store. So, yeah, it's work. And sometimes I don't even find anything I like. But sometimes (like yesterday) I hit pay-dirt and it's like Christmas in August!
Here's a couple of insider tips too - only because I like you. One, check your local stores to find out if they have discount (usually 1/2 off) days, or offer Senior Citizen discounts. Two, find some Thrift Stores in the fancy/schmancy parts of town. The folks in that area tend to give away more, well, fancy/schmancy clothes that haven't been worn very much. Shop around though - make sure you aren't paying more for a second hand shirt than you would for a t-shirt at Walmart. Some of these places price their clothes as if they don't really want to sell them, know what I mean?
I'm definitely a thrift store lover! You got some great finds, Whitney. Congrats! I hit up our local consignment store the other day and didn't find a thing...that's ok, like you said, some days you do, some you don't. My thought is that consignment/thrift shopping has become so popular that the good stuff goes fast!
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