16 Nov Thrift Stores: A Mother’s Gift

I had only been a mom for about five seconds when I was clued in by some neighborhood moms about our local thrift store. I think my discovery went something like this:

Me: “Oh I love that outfit on your baby! It’s adorable!“

Mom A: “Thanks! I got it at Value Village.”

Me: “Where’s that?“

Mom A: (Proceeds to clue me in as to where one of my favorite stores for buying kids clothing will be for the next decade).

Me: (almost in tears) “Thank you.“

I wasn’t always a thrift store shopper. There was only one thrift store in the town I grew up in and let’s just say that the only things I found there were someone else’s old t-shirts, which turned me off to thrifting for awhile. Then I became a mom and was introduced by the sage mothers to the art of thrifting.

I remember when I first started thrifting, I found several outfits for my baby girl with the tags still on them or in great condition for just a few dollars each. I was hooked.

If you aren’t a regular shopper at your local thrift stores, here are just a few reasons to give them a try:

– Kids clothing and shoes often wear out easily due to the nature of, um, kids.  Due to the fact that my kids are very active and sometimes muddy up or tear their jeans, it’s great not to feel badly about tossing a pair of their jeans I got for $4 instead of $30 when they inevitably tear them climbing trees.

– Kids outgrow clothing and shoes at lighting speed. For instance, I went thrifting last week for winter boots. “What size are your shoes now?” I asked my ten year old. “Size 7,” she replied. “What?! – you were just a size 5.5-6 three months ago!” Yep. They really do grow that fast sometimes! It is a great feeling to buy a good quality pair of boots for $10-15 instead of $40-50 or even more when you know that your child is going to likely outgrow them within a year or less anyways.

– You can find high quality treasures at thrift stores! Think of thriving as a treasure hunt. Once you get to know a store and the types of items that usually come in, you can plan a little better. For instance, one of my favorite nearby stores, Village Thrift, has always served me well for kids shoes and boots. It was in that store that I found a vintage 1950’s blue winter coat with fur collar in fabulous condition for only $50. Almost all my kids have worn Ugg Boots from thrift stores. I once found a pair of designer navy blue pants for $5 that fit me like a glove. I couldn’t help myself and googled the brand and pant type when I got home. They were selling for $280 online!

– As I’ve mentioned, you can find brand new items with the tags still on at thrift stores for just a fraction of the original cost. Enough said.

– You can save a lot of money that you can put towards other needs or causes. Also, if you simply don’t have much extra cash to spend on clothes or shoes, a smaller budget can go a long way at a thrift store!

Tips for Thrifting

Now that I’ve shared just a few great reasons to shop in thrift stores, here are a few tips I’ve learned from a decade of thrifting:

1. Go on Discount Days. Most thrift stores have 50% off days or discounted days. It is worth a little planning to go to your favorite stores on these days, especially if you know you’ll be buying clothes for four kids for the fall and winter (like I just did). I just went to one of my favorite stores on Veterans Day, for example, and got about 25 items (pants, sweaters, boots) for my kids for a total of $75. My total would have been $125 on a regular day (which is still a good deal), but that day everything was half off.

2. Don’t just buy to buy – if you caught my post on Simplicity Parenting last year, you know I don’t like a bunch of extra stuff in my house. It can be easy to freak out over the great deals at thrift stores, only to return home with items you don’t really need (trust me, I’ve done it more than once!).

If you need three more pairs of pants for you little boy, three will do. Try to come with at least a rough list in your mind of what you are looking for and what you need and shop specially for those items first. Then take a look for any great deals in shoes, coats, etc which you know your family could use in the future. Finally, I always weed out anything I’m not totally sure about at checkout.

3. Look for quality items – avoid any items with rips, stains, too much wear, or small holes (which always get bigger!). Look for brands that you know are durable, since the item has already been (likely) worn before. Even though things are cheaper, you can still be selective.

4. Know the rules – most thrift stores have a stricter return policy or no return policy – make sure to know these policies before purchasing pricier items!

5. Donate! – Almost every time I go to the thrift store, I bag up clothes my kids have outgrown and donate them. One of the stores I go to gives 30 percent off coupons for donating, so it’s a win -win!

Do you shop regularly at thrift stores? If so, what are some tips you could add to my list? I’d love to hear from you!