Vintage shopping is definitely a skill that takes time to perfect. If you haven’t quite mastered the art of vintage shopping just yet, keep reading on for some helpful hints on how to score the finest pieces, deals, and more.
The Benefits of Secondhand
Before we can get into the nitty-gritty of thrifting, we have to talk about why it is so important first. You probably know by now that secondhand shopping has become a huge buzz term in the world of sustainability. But what are the environmental benefits of shopping secondhand, really? Well, there are several.
For starters, it helps reduce waste by keeping clothing out of landfills. Around the globe, the fashion and textiles industries produce some of the highest levels of waste due to fast fashion trends and improper recycling of old materials.
It has been proven that the average consumer throws away nearly 70 pounds of clothing a year, which means 13 million tons are discarded around the world annually. To make matters worse, textile companies add their own waste on top of ours. According to the EPA, textiles make up about 5% of all landfill space. Only 15% is recycled, leaving 85% of textile excess to rot in a junkyard.
Moreover, this may come as a surprise, but secondhand shopping helps preserve water in a major way. Water is a huge component in the clothing production process from start to finish. One tee shirt requires 713 gallons of water in order to grow cotton or 2,700 liters.
To put that into perspective, one person can survive on 2,700 liters for 900 days. Add that to the amount of water needed in the remaining stages — processing, printing, packaging, and transportation — and you’re looking at thousands and thousands of gallons wasted on just one single article of clothing. Not only that, but textile companies are accountable for one-fifth of the world’s industrial water pollution as well, due to chemical dye runoff.
Finally, when you consider just how much carbon is used in all of this, it becomes undeniably clear that sustainably sourcing your clothing can help make a significant difference in the fight against global warming.
Start Simple
Nothing beats the basics. Ease yourself into the beast that is secondhand shopping by looking for pieces that go with everything already in your closet. Jeans, leather boots, denim jackets, and graphic tee shirts are just a few examples.
Plus, stacking up on basics will make it easier for you to incorporate older pieces into your wardrobe without looking out of place. As time goes on, you will hopefully acquire more unique pieces that are meant to stand out, but for now, worry about getting your toes wet first.
Go in With a Plan
Just like the Girl and Boy Scouts, we believe in always being prepared. That’s why everyone from rookie thrifters to seasoned pros should always go in with a plan of attack. Your plan can be as specific or nonspecific as you like, but it is extremely helpful to have at least a baseline understanding of what you should be looking for.
Need some warm weather gear for your winter vacay? Sweaters, turtlenecks, hoodies, and jackets are a good place to start. Looking for something office appropriate before starting your new job? Button down shirts, skirts, blazers, and trousers will be your best bet.
Compartmentalizing your wants and needs into goals will most certainly take the intimidation out of the process and will result in better purchases in the end. That being said, be open to being surprised by a totally unique find. With vintage fashion, hidden treasures are lurking around every corner.
Stay True to You
Fashion is all about individual expression. Sometimes, it can be easy to feel pressured to follow the latest trends you see on the covers of magazines at the grocery store checkout aisle.
Everyone, regardless of gender, can probably pinpoint a time when they were pressured into buying something they didn’t love because a well-meaning friend or acquaintance pushed it on them.
With vintage fashion, it is easier to pin down the specific aesthetic you dream about at night or fantasize about during the workday. Maybe you love the 50s fit and flare? Maybe you love the ties of the 70s?
Just make sure you really love your purchase. Why buy something that will sit in your closet and never be worn? One of the biggest, most important rules about shopping secondhand is that you should never let what other people think guide you or deter you away from your purchases.
Pay no attention to the wandering eyes around you — if you want it, it’s perfect for you. And, most likely, you may never find it again.
Tailors Are a Girl’s Best Friend
To some people, tailoring vintage clothing to their own measurements is considered sacrilege. They view making alterations as compromising the original integrity of the designer’s vision, but the fact of the matter is, one of the beautiful things about being human is that no two bodies are the same. A dress that is too long on you could be just right on the next person, and so on.
So if you find something that speaks to you, something that you want to see have a second life, then there’s no reason why you shouldn’t invest now and bring it to a tailor later. Tailoring opens up a world of sizes and shape possibilities and saves you time looking for an exact piece in your specific measurements.
Of course, you should refrain from buying pieces that are three sizes too large because altering that much fabric will most likely ruin the garment’s design. But items that have one more belt loop than needed can certainly be modified to fit your body and should not be written off so quickly.
Get Creative
You know the old saying, “It’s always in the last place you’d look?” Okay, yes, it is a saying about misplaced items around the house, but it can be applied to vintage shopping just as well. Sometimes the best vintage pieces are hidden in the most unexpected places, so it is important to always think outside the box when shopping secondhand.
That could mean expanding your search to the men’s section, the lingerie section, or venturing outside of the decade you love the most. Your hidden gem is out there, so don’t be afraid to cover all your bases!
Keep an Eye Out
A large subsection of secondhand shopping revolves around finding vintage designer pieces at great prices. Still, when there is a name brand attached to an item, it will obviously come at more of a cost than an off-brand dupe.
Because of this, it is crucial that you triple-check your item’s authenticity before dropping a substantial amount of money that you can’t get back. The best way to do this is by closely inspecting the logo for any flaws or minor adjustments. If you can’t trust your memory on what the trademark should look like, just pull up a picture online (some logos have changed over time) and compare it like the supersleuth you are.
However, some logos are so subtly altered that they can go completely unnoticed by an untrained or unconcerned buyer, so if you can’t make a solid distinction, look around for a label of authenticity. These are much harder to replicate, and the quality will most likely speak for itself. The best way to find honest-to-goodness real vintage fashion is from a trusted and verifiable source.
Finding That Thrilling Find
Vintage shopping is a practice that is here to stay for many reasons. Shopping secondhand does a tremendous amount of good for the environment, and it is an excellent way to find the perfect pieces to fit your personal style instead of buying whatever is on trend for the season.
Secondhand and vintage shopping is single-handedly reviving the notion of expressing individuality through fashion, thereby helping to create a better world in turn. Hopefully, these tips have inspired you, and you feel ready to take the world of vintage shopping by storm. Thrilling is a good place to start.
Sources:
Textiles: Material-Specific Data | Facts and Figures about Materials, Waste, and Recycling | FDA
Water & Clothing | The Conscious Challenge
NRDC Encourage Textile Manufacturers to Reduce Pollution | NRDC
