Julie Gumm - Author

Frugal Fashonista

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Want to know one of my best tips for sticking to your clothing budget?

Thrift stores! Well that, clearance racks and Ross 🙂

There are at least three “chains” in our area – Salvation Army, Goodwill & Savers. Salvation Army (at least here) is my least favorite. Not organized as well. Goodwill is good – depends a lot on the store but we have a fairly large, newer one. My favorite though is the Savers chain. I don’t know why but they ted to have a bit nicer stuff.

Here’s some of my tips for successful thrift store hunting…

  1. Know what you’re looking for before you go – either specific pieces or specific colors. Each season I like to see what the “in” colors are and find just a couple key pieces in those colors that can be mixed in my wardrobe. This season I was on the hunt for gold and teal.
  2. Know the stores discount system. For examples, are there days where a specific color tag is half off? Do they have dollar days? Most stores have one day each month that EVERYTHING is half off. As can be expected, the stores are kind of crazy those days.
  3. You probably don’t need to sift through every piece of clothing. I kind of scan the clothes to look for colors, patterns and fabrics that jump out at me. It takes some time, but you get better at it the more you do it.
  4. Try stuff on. Returns at thrift stores are a hassle and you usually only get store credit.
  5. Don’t search in just your size. If I have time (and no kids with me) I will usually take the time to scan one size up (and sometimes down). Depending on the time and fit I get some great items this way (see below).
So here’s the result of a recent leisurely shopping trip. I was specifically looking for jeans to replace a couple pairs that I held on to through the no-shopping year despite them not fitting well. I also wanted to look at sweaters, particularly ones that could be layered or that were a tunic style.
On this day both the blue and green tagged items were 50 percent off. I also had a coupon for 25 percent off.
Here’s my score:

Teal (Yay!) sweater, still had tags from Kohl’s ($36 retail), this was a “size up” find. $14.99 but BLUE tag so $7.50!

This one was a size down but fits perfect and is super cute. $8
This is kind of a bulky knit but I loved it because it’s unusual. Those big puffy sleeves, belt. Super fun! Again, one size up. $9

I don’t generally do turtlenecks but this one isn’t super tight and I like that it’s long and will go over leggings. I liked the bottom of the sleeves too. It’s a loose weave so it will be nice for the Phoenix winters. Plus it was only $6.

My wardrobe has 4 base colors – black, grey, creme and brown. So when I’m doing those “scans” I always pay attention to those colors. Saw this one – cute cotton sweater to layer. Again perfect for Phx winters.
Plus I scored…
  • 2 pairs of really nice dark trouser jeans (LOVE these) $6 & $8
  • pair of black Calvin Klein skinny jeans $13 (more than I might usually pay but it was CK and I’d been looking for a pair of black skinny jeans FOREVER)
  • pair of straight leg medium wash jeans $4 (was a blue tag)

Total after my discount coupon? $60 for 5 sweaters and 4 pairs of jeans. That’s an average of $6.66 for each item.

Now I just need it to get cold 🙂

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