Thrifting (in-store and online) – environmentally friendly shopping

I don’t know about you, but I am sick of hearing so much about all these trending fast fashion companies that produce unimaginable amounts of waste each year. In fact, according to a Business Insider post from 2019,

“Fashion production makes up 10% of humanity’s carbon emissions, dries up water sources, and pollutes rivers and streams. What’s more, 85% of all textiles go to the dump each year. And washing some types of clothes sends thousands of bits of plastic into the ocean.”

Thankfully, we do have better (and in my opinion, more fun) alternatives to fast fashion and overall textile production. One of these alternatives is thrift shopping.

What is thrifting?

Thrifting is nicknamed after thrift shopping, which is shopping at a secondhand (used) item store. Often times, these thrift stores sell all kinds of secondhand goods such as clothing, furniture, decoration, shoes, books, blankets, cookware, and more!

For many, the fun of thrifting lies in the mystery and wonder… you never know what you might find. It could be a trending reusable water bottle that you just didn’t want to pay full price for. It could be a vintage table that fits the exact vibe of your home. It could even be an old sweater that reminds you of the ones your grandma used to knit you.

A great alternative if you don’t have a thrift store that you like near you is online thrifting. Online thrifting provides a similar experience but with more options to filter the available options to your size, color, and brands of choice.

Tips for thrifting…

It can be kinda daunting to walk into a thrift store or click into a thrifting site without any idea or expectation for what you want to get. There’s so much stuff that it would be impossible to see everything even with several hours on your hands! Well, here’s some tips for those who want to know where to look:

Do your research for in-store thrifting – thrift stores with 4-5 star ratings on Yelp or Google Reviews are much more likely to be clean, organized, and easy to navigate.

If you’re thrifting online, I recommend… – my two favorite thrifting apps/websites are ThredUp and Curtsy. Both have various filters you can utilize to find items you’ll love and the prices are reasonable, too.

If you’re looking for high quality denim or leather, check the thrift shop – often times thrift stores have high quality fabrics for a fraction of the price to buy it new. Sometimes even 80-90 percent off.

Scan the racks/categories and pick any items that stand out – put those items in your cart (whether a physical or a digital cart) and wait until you’re done shopping to decide which items are worth picking up. Avoid buying stuff just because it’s cheap.

Check the thrift store before you check the department store – thrift stores have everything so try to thrift as much as you can. It helps the environment and you can find so many treasures. “One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.”

Go thrifting with friends – because thrifting is much more of an adventure than traditional shopping is, going with friends is a great way to make a day out of it. Then your bestie can judge you for all the “ugly” pieces you pick out.