How to Thrift like a Pro | Second Hand Shopping Tips + Haulternative
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- Опубліковано 15 вер 2024
- Thrifting is such a fun, sustainable, ethical, and affordable way to buy clothing! These are my secondhand shopping tips and also a mini haulternative :)
I'd love to hear your thrift shopping tips in the comments!
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Totally a year late, but yes, Vodka mixed with water will lift smells from fabrics. We do it in theater all the time with costumes we can't wash, or even just in between washes.
Oh my gosh I needed this tip!!!
Submerged or spray?
I carry a tide to go pen (a little stain remover pen) with me and try to get out the stain out while in the dressing room and if it doesn't come out, I don't buy it. just a tip :) thanks!
What a great idea!!
If the garment is super musty/smelly, I found soaking the item in the sink with lots of white distilled vinegar works wonders. After soaking and rinsing, air dry the item and do a sniff test. Whatever you do, don't use the dryer because the smell can transfer to other clothes and "bake" the smell in. As far as the vodka spray is concerned, I find that it's a nice way to refresh things that aren't laundered frequently, like coats, sweaters and bras. I make my spray bottle using a combination of 1/3 vodka or rubbing alcohol, water and a few drops of my favorite essential oils. It helps me extend the time between washes.
These are amazing and incredibly smart and helpful tips! Thank you! I dress a specific way when thrift shopping. I don't wear jeans or button up shirts and make sure to wear flip flops, boots, or something pull on/off, no ties! Easy to go into fitting rooms 5 or 10 times ;)
honestly, ma'am all of your videos are helpful. you're enunciating everything well, and have character. please keep doing what you're doing
Thank you so much! :)
Love this! I live in a really big town for thrifting, and had been disillusioned with our vintage/secondhand stores, but today I felt like wandering and found a perfect denim vest. I've tried on countless new ones and never could bring myself to buy, and of course I waltzed into one of our local buy-and-sells and it was there singing my name c:
I have found so many unique high quality items while thrifting. Best way to shop!
It feels so great to find good thrift store clothing items. Nice to update my wardrobe at a fraction of the cost.
Got a really nice Schott Pea Coat from a thrift store in New York (I live in England) for $35 - it was really huge but I got it tailored really nice to fit me exactly and now it looks great - thanks for posting!
I found a nice skirt that I dated to the 1950’s (I was a history major in college and really got familiar with research) at my local Goodwill. The company that made it went under in the early 60’s, so odds are it’s from the 50’s or was one of their very last pieces. There are some definite gems at the thrift store.
That skirt is my favorite piece of your wardrobe!
Such great tips! I always get really high quality, wonderful pieces secondhand from family members and friends of family- mostly from my grandma, who wears very similar sizes as me and has wonderful taste.
However, I'm having a hard time defining my style since all these pieces are usually quite different and it's difficult to say no to a wonderful shirt that you wouldn't necessarily have purchased yourself, but it's definitely pretty and it fits you! I also have a limited budget for buying clothes; I would say 90% of my closet is secondhand gifts, that I never would have been able to afford myself!
Awesome video! I hate buying shorts in regular stores because they often cost as much as a pair of jeans!! So ridiculous. I have a hard time finding pants/shorts that fit so I will sometimes go to the thrift store and find pants that fit and turn them into shorts :) I think about 75% (if not more) are thrifted, gifted, other something I found in my mother's closet. Those are usually the pieces I wear the most and get compliments on more often, which is nice! :D
Great information. That skirt and sweater are both gorgeous.
In the movie industry we actually do this thing where we spray some water+vodka on clothes (well, on the actor's costumes) when we don't have time to wash them between to days or so. That's really great because actors spend a lot of their time under the big bright light and it's really warm on a set :)
I love thriftshops, but now i've been shopping this way for years, I find it really hard to buy for "normal" clothes or from not-so-amazing brands, you now :)
Another great time to go thrifting is a few days following the 15th and the 30th/1st of the month. People are moving and getting rid of things, and also they've gotten paid and will be getting rid of things to make room for newer purchases!
I soak all my second hand clothing in vinegar before washing. it works well:)
You can also add some vinegar to the washing machine to save time.
wow the skirt looks amazing on you!
I do not hesitate to buy items that need dry cleaning. Often the piece can be gently hand washed in cold water. Then place in the spin cycle to remove excess water then lay flat to dry. This works well with cashmere sweaters. Once mostly dry, iron with a warm iron or lightly steam if needed.
Loving these Haulternative videos! New subscriber!
You can also mix white vinegar and water in a spray bottle, one part to two parts, or half and half as a fabric deodorant spray. The vinegar evaporates and won't leave it's tell tale smell, I promise. I also put white vinegar in my clothes washer with smelly workout clothes to cut odors and with towels as a natural fabric softener; add to your washer's fabric softener dispenser and/or pour an extra 1/4 to 1/2 cup of vinegar onto clothes in washer when filling.
The vintage pencil skirt you showed is beautiful print and so awesome it was handmade. I too have a thing for vintage skirts and kinda need to monitor how many of them I am collecting but for now I have the room and will always tailor them down if my sizing changes. Love it! 😍 🥰
My favourite piece of clothing is a camel coloured duffel coat for £1 and I love it. It's such good quality and its nice to see its made britain. Had many comments too
I love that you call it a haulternative! Another great video! Very inspirational!
I loved this video so much! Your tips are on point :) I just went thrifting yesterday to find a pair of jeans to add to my F/W Capsule wardrobe and I had the best of luck! I always say, "The thrifting Gods are on my side today, lol" I really think it's important to go through every single item on the rack, because what you're looking for may be hidden between items you would never like.
That's exciting you found some jeans!
Also great tip! The best things are often hiding behind the worst. In particular I find with prints - there will be a ton of terrible prints all together and then some beautiful ones in-between :)
My favorite item recently was an off white ultra light down coat. It is so comfy and goes with denim really well. It still had the original tags! 😀
Good find! White clothes especially can be tricky to find secondhand :)
I'm happy I found you!Best advice!
Thank you so much! :)
I love second hand clothing! You can find amazing things! Great video!
It's the best! Thanks :)
interesting! as a knitter, I can tell you that if it has no side seams, that's just an indication of the type, of pattern, not that it was hand knit. In a complicated sweater pattern, the knitter is also probably good enough to seam without it looking hand done. Also to keep wool items like sweaters soft use Eucalan soap, which actually has a bit of lanolin in it, and doesn't need rinsing. You can definitively tell a fiber by getting one small thread and burning the end. You can google how different fibers burn/melt. It's an old knitters trick. Another great DIY that I have seen some knitters do is to take a thrift store sweater of good quality yarn, unravel it and reuse it. It's worth it for expensive fibers like cashmere. Or felt old wool sweaters and turn them into other items. Great examples are felted mittens, or bags. Can you do a video about transitioning between capsules, as the weather often shifts around in some areas. Also some suggestions for pre planning your capsule would be great :)
Good points! In terms of the seaming, I've never seen a cut-and-sew sweater without side seams (maybe a cardigan but it seems very rare) and they tend to be clearly sewn by a machine. It's probably not perfect, but I've found it to be a very reliable way to quickly tell machine made from hand-knit.
I used to use Eucalan all the time, it's so great! Unfortunately I can't easily get it here. :(
Also I had the tip about burning the fibre in the video but I edited it out, I decided it probably wasn't good to recommend lighting things on fire at a thrift store haha
I've been really interested in unravelling sweaters, but it seems like a lot of work. It would be good to try though and see how easy it is. Have you ever done it?
Those are really great video suggestions, I'll definitely write them down for the future, thanks!! :)
Great Stuff! I want to minimize my footprint on the earth and careful thrift shopping is one way to do that!
What is your favorite item of clothing you got secondhand?
+My Green Closet I recently found a white blazer with navy stripes and 3/4 sleeves originally from The Limited for only $16!
+My Green Closet I recently got this plaid shirt from Superdry. It's brand new with tags on, which shows the shirt was originally $80. I paid less then $20. On the other end of the spectrum, I got this black t-shirt for about 5 dollars. The tags have fallen off and I have no idea who made it, but it fits perfectly, as if it was made just for me. I love it. It's so versatile and comfortable. It can be dressed down for the weekend, or dressed up for work.
A $100 Calvin Klein dress for $8 at goodwill, tags still on!
+My Green Closet a grey vintage J Crew tshirt that is PERFECT. I also love all the scarves I have gotten second hand.
+My Green Closet
A blue red Arizona jeans shirt. When I presented it to my mum, she was like I was wearing that same shirt 20 years ago!
My favorite item of clothing was a pair of new Armani heels retail for $90 and bought for $6. The best part is that they are so versatile and they are so comfortable. I can actually wear them to work and my feet will not be sore!
Ooo amazing find!
Thank you for the tips... especially about handmade sweaters. I never knew the info you shared! :)
Wonderful! Do you have a video on tips and tricks for finding a good tailor?
Great tips. That skirt looks amazing on you. I've given myself a mission to find a good Winter jacket this year.
Thank you!! Good luck finding your jacket! :)
This is sooo helpful! :D and that pencil skirt ♡.♡ it fits you perfectly!
Thank you for yet another super invormative video!
I especially loved the info about sweaters, so interesting :)
Sadly we don´t have any good thriftshops where I live, so that I do most of my thrift shopping online, which I find can be quite difficut since you never really know what you are going to get.
I still owe you an answer about how I like "kleiderkreisel".
I never bought any used clothing from ebay so I can´t compare, but I used Kleiderkreisel quite a lot because I like the layout of the site and the personal contact with each other.
To buy something you simply message the seller and you can always ask a lot of questions about the items. I also think the rating system is nice.
However Kleiderkreisel recently started to charge for purchases, which I don´t know how to feel about yet.
That's really good to know, thanks! I love being able to ask lots of questions :)
Spraying clothes with vodka is definitely a thing. I work in theatre, and we do it all the time to remove any smells from costumes. =)
That's really good to know, thanks! Also working in theatre seems like it would be so much fun!!
I carry diaper wipes to test stains. If they don't budge most likely it won't wash out. I have no idea about a vodka spray for smells but a vinegar/water spray does. The vinegar smell dissipates taking the funky smell with it.
REALLY HOW?
most of my wardrobe is thrifted, I love it too! Sadly since so many love it, the thrift shops around here have drastically raised the prices and I can't afford it anymore. It's annoying. It's now around $7 USD for shirts, and I remember when they were 2.99
Don't trim sags, pull them through to the back. You can use a very small crochet hook or they sell something similar in fabric shops.
I'd recommend first trying to slowly massage them back in if possible before pulling them.
Not sure about vodka, but adding baking soda to the wash or pre-soaking in baking soda will definitely help neutralize odors. That pencil skirt looks great on you. Perfect fit! Nice job altering the lining. Great hand knit sweater. Do you ever knit things yourself? I've never done a sweater, but I love knitting my own cozy socks.
Baking soda is so amazing :) I do knit, I'd like to do some socks this winter, I've never tried them, are they pretty easy to do? The heel has always seemed intimidating to me..
I thought you might 'cause I know you sew. They're not hard. I love knitting in the round, and they're small, so it's a pretty comfortable and ergonomic project. There are a bunch of ways to do the heal, but the socks I do are knit ankle-to-toe, and you just go back and forth on two needles to create a kind of rectangle for the back of your heal and then pick up the sides of it on your needles and join all three sides with the rest of the sock, decreasing to create triangles along the sides of your foot. It seems weird at first, but nothing about it is actually difficult.
How often should I go shopping for new clothing? My parents are divorced so I have two houses which makes it harder to know how much clothing I have. What do you suggest? Thank you so much and I really like your videos.
This video is a sign that I really should go thrift shopping today...As always, such a great video!
:D Have a great time!!
Thanks for the tips... I love thrifting
Awesome video! so practical and helpful as always. I loved hearing what you look for as far as wear and tear. What kinds of fabrics do you look for in your thrift clothes?
Thank you! I just generally try to stick with natural fabrics and avoid synthetics like acrylic, polyester, and nylon.
This was really informative, thanks!
The vodka spray works. It's how I, and almost every other dancer, cleans their belly dance clothes that can't go in the washer. If it can get out sweat and dirt from outdoor performances, I'm sure it will work for thrift store smell.
I use vinegar to get rid of smells in clothing.
I love that sweater!
Thanks! I'm hoping to wear it a lot this fall :)
I LOVE thrift shopping but, 3 things I will always buy new... Undergarments, swimwear & shoes. The first two should be self-explanatory but I also say shoes because everyone's feet are different & the shoes in any second hand shop are already molded to the original owners feet, baby & kids shoes especially, so yes, for shoes, unless you really want to buy your podiatrist a new car, boat or house, always buy new!
I agree on the underwear but I find most secondhand shoes are barely worn so can't see that being a problem and if you are concerned you could just replace the insole! :)
The thrift stores in my country are much smaller and the clothes are generally more worn out. There's not a big culture of donating things you get rid of and many towns don't even have thrift shops. Luckily there's three small ones where I live now. I bought a lot of things I shouldn't have in the beginning because I was swayed by the low prices. Now that I'm more interested in minimalism and have developed my own style I usually don't find anything.
All garment linings are cut smaller than the actual fabric. One of the "jobs" of the lining is to take the brunt of stress off the fabric.
It depends on the construction of the garment, for example in the back of a jacket you add extra lining so there is some ease across the back as the arms move. Often lining is a lot thinner and more delicate so not able to take the same stress as the fabric, like this skirt which has a very thin silk lining but is made from linen - the linen is much better at taking the stress. The lining should also never be pulling the outer fabric or constricting the wearer.
Can you tell me where I can find thrift shops in Berlin?
There's a huge Humana in Friedrichshain, the Mauerpark flea market has tons of stuff, Garments (vintage) and Made in Berlin are also good, just google "thrift stores Berlin" "secondhand clothing Berlin" or anything like that, there are tons of places! :)
You are one of my favorite you-tubers. You have inspired me in so many ways and Im slowly working towards a happier, simpler life. Im on a challenge now to only buy 2nd hand clothing for our family, and I have had so much fun doing it.
I would love to start you tubing in the future, what is a good camera to start out with ?
Wow that's so lovely to hear!!
ok cool, Maybe we can see a future a video on how you film with camera, lighting etc..
+My Green Closet what kind of phone do you have ?
love All of your videos. I feel so strongly about this. I have a video called my unpopular opinion about hauls lol
Thank you :) That's awesome! Fashion and beauty hauls usually just make me kinda sad, it's basically promoting and celebrating mass-consumption. That's why I really like the #haulternative movement, we need more "hauls" of sustainable, secondhand, and DIY clothes! :D
Great tips! I'm trying to be more eco-friendly and I want to buy my clothes second-hand, so this vid was very helpful. Thanks!
That's really great to hear! :)
I heard the vodka tip before but haven't tried it yet!
Vodka works great!!!!
For many things ;)
Hey Erin,
I love your videos and especially the capsule wardrobe videos. They made it a lot easier for me to declutter my clothings. And in the end it was so satifying to give away the pieces to a give away shop.
Though I still have about 40 pieces, I plan to get hold of some quality pieces from thrift stores to substitute some cheap worn out tops and some dresses, that I feel sometimes uncomfortable in, because they are a little bit too short.
At last I'm just curious because of the lettering at the second handstore. Are you from Germany? Maybe from Bavaria because they sell "Trachtenmode"?
Best wishes
Thank you! I'm so happy you've found my videos helpful! :)
I'm from Canada but moved to Germany a little over a year ago, I currently live in Cologne.
Yep, vodka for smoke smells works.
please can you tell me how to order you second hand clothing please I have interested about this.
How come you ste in one of my favourite thrift Shops in Germany cologne?
Very good tips
Could you explain what exactly vintage clothes are? Are they old-fashioned or actually OLD clothes?
Generally anything made more than 20 years ago is considered vintage so 90s and older. It's usually difficult to find anything made before the 50s though.
My Green Closet I see! Thanks for your reply
So I love your videos so far! Buying ethically is my newest passion and I am trying to educated my friends about it too. I have also always been a fan of thrifting. My biggest question is though, now that I am buying ethically made things, do you extend that to your thrift buys? The way I see it, the damage has already been done. The clothing has already been bought from a fast fashion store, etc. Is it just a free for all at thrift stores? This has been my latest dilemma. Thanks!
Thrifting is amazing! I consider secondhand purchases to be shopping ethically since it's not supporting the original companies, not using new resources, and preventing something from possibly going into the landfill.
However if you are concerned there are a few things I think it's good to be mindful of when shopping secondhand:
- Visible/obvious logos- I buy all kinds of brands secondhand but no items with obvious logos, since wearing a big or noticeable logo is still helping promote and support that brand.
- People who buy and re-sell- when shopping online be careful with trendy or luxury goods like handbags or anything that has a high re-sale value since some people buy those things only to use for a short time and sell, but this isn't a problem with thrift stores. :)
- If you buy from charity shops it's also good to make sure that you agree with the causes they support.
Also this is very rare, but I won't purchase anything where there are multiples of the same item in new condition in the store because this often means it was bought at a discount from a brand. If I see this I'll ask where those pieces came from and if they were bought I'll write to the store explaining why I shop second-hand and how I don't want to support a business that "helps" unethical brands by purchasing their leftover clothing. But again this is super rare...
Hope that helps a bit with your dilemma! :)
Thank you so much for the reply!! Really appreciate it!! And I completely agree, this was the conclusion that I was more drawn to but still wasnt too sure. Thanks now I feel much more confident!
ARE we related? Im a Kienzle ..Ive taught these principles to my daughter!
I find it a tad more difficult to find nice clothes at second hand stores given that I am a us size 12-14! Any advice
Have you tried shopping second hand online? On ebay, Etsy (vintage), and sites like ThredUP, Tradesy, and Threadflip (although I'm not sure if they ship outside the US) you can either search for or filter by different sizes.
Come to south Florida. Most of the stuff I see is L-XL.
Most of my favorite items have been from a thrift shop.
Superb.
It's tough. I'm vegan, so that is more important than "natural fibre". I won't wear wool, leather, silk, leather, etc.
Well if synthetic materials ruin the planet where are the animals going to live? We are meant to be an interdependent system, nature provides. Using synthetic materials is more cruel than sheering an animal for wool.
All my clothes comes from thrift stores 👍👍😍
I'm somewhat confused, I thought all clothes are handmade - aren't they?
It depends how you define handmade, the majority of clothes are sewn in a production line - lots of people each sewing a seam, which I don't see as falling into 'handmade'. For me handmade means that someone cut and sewed it all themselves and likely only made one of it. Sweaters are different, most store bought sweaters are knit with a machine and the seams sewn together after, whereas a hand-knit sweater was literally done by hand.
Are you ever worried about bugs in used clothes?
No, I always wash them and I've never heard of that being an issue.
@@MyGreenCloset that's great!
u can axport in India second hand women clothes
Vodka why????Just toss your new goodies in the washer on delicate with some lavender water and they ll lean out well and smell lovely
please
wwooww
Fourth video of yours I have watched and STILL haven't heard your name. Please introduce yourself in your videos.
The music is infuriating when trying to listen to you speak. its not needed.
I heard the vodka tip before but haven't tried it yet!