Thrifting

Don’t know what to do this summer? Go thrifting!

Summer is a great time to thrift, since you’ll have free time to visit more often. Also, thrifting is a great way to get summer clothes that are not overpriced.

Thrift Tips

Veronica Rodriguez, who is an expert at thrifting, said, “Tips on thrifting–you have to look at every rack. It’s not necessarily that you find one good thing. I just look for every aisle — even if it’s a random aisle — you just have to keep on digging!”

Kayla Ortega said, “Thrifting? It takes a while, especially if you’re new to it. You should go with a friend, find easy places to go. If you go to the bins first, that’s really hard, because you have to scavenge and stuff. Go to easy spots like Goodwill or little home places. You can take your time and skim.

“I would look at everything individually, because, although it says the size, you can’t really trust the size. When you do go thrifting, make sure you wear easy clothes — wear leggings and a tee so you can easily try things on. One of the downsides of thrifting is getting things that are already damaged. Like I said, it’s already used. It can be damaged–stretched out, and that’s why the sizing isn’t always true. And just keep in mind that it’s time consuming!”

Nex Domondon adds, “For thrifting, definitely go without a plan, like don’t have a set idea of what you want, because you’re definitely not going to find it. Obviously, check your local Goodwills, and also going to the city, like San Francisco. There are some good thrift stores there since a lot of people can donate a lot of things.”

Similarly, Devana Conklin said, “You’re not going to always find something in one place. Don’t go to one thrift store. Make sure you go on a free day and go to three stores.”

Where should you thrift?

By now you should realize that you should be going to multiple thrift stores, so you need to know where to go! Here’s a list of recommended stores by several Armijo students:

• Opportunity House in Fairfield
• Goodwill
• Anastasia’s Vintage Clothing
• Savers
• Plato’s Closet

Why should you thrift?

There are many reasons why someone should thrift: to save money, to find unique clothes, and so much more. If you’re still skeptical, consider why these following students thrift!

“I thrift because I don’t really like how modern day shopping is,” said Conklin. “It’s just not me. I don’t like the new trendy things, I like the stuff from back then. The importance of thrifting is to look cute, oh and it’s cheap. Why waste your money on a really expensive shirt when you could just buy a really cute shirt for like $5?”

Ortega dug deeper. “I think thrifting gives more of a horizon of what to see. Although you have an idea of what you want, you might go into stores and say, ‘That’s not what I’m here for.’ With thrifting, there are so many past generations of clothing, and different styles, so it opens up your eyes of what you can get.”

Ortega saw another aspect to the importance of thrifting. “It’s more of a recycle thing,” she said. “It helps stop fast fashion. You can just go to your car, get the clothes that someone else passed down. It’s like an eco-friendly thing.“

Rodriguez thrifts because it’s always been a part of her life. “I thrift, because growing up, I’ve always thrifted. My mom thrifted for me and it’s always been a part of me to thrift. Thrifting saves money, and it helps finding unique pieces. Thrifting finds your own style,” she said.

“Also, my sister was my biggest inspiration to go thrifting because she truly taught me all the tips, and helped me find my personal style by showing me different unique styles of fashion of different genres.”