I am a huge fan of shopping at the Salvation Army, Volunteers of America, and just about any other second-hand shop you can name. For one thing I like to experiment with clothes and costumes that I’m making. I don’t feel as bad if something gets wrecked when it was a used item I picked up for a few bucks at the local second-hand shop. Another reason I love such thrift shops is that the selection is so much better than in regular stores.

Large Selection

Second-hand shops have all types of clothing, not just the latest trends or what’s currently in season. (I usually don’t like the latest trends anyway, so it works for me). The clothing are from all trends, all brands, and all seasons, and of course, you can’t beat the price. I also have a particular penchant for vinyl records (Yes, I’m one of those crazy young people who thinks records sound warmer, but play an Animals CD and then play an Animals vinyl and tell me the vinyl doesn’t totally rock!) and I love finding them for a $1 in the second-hand shop (itunes eat your heart out).

There does, however, seem to be a certain stigma attached to buying second-hand, as I know several people who hesitate to shop second-hand for fear that someone might see them there. My question is: so what? Let’s not forget, if someone sees you buying items in a second-hand store, it means they’re doing the same thing. How can they really judge you?

Good Quality Items

More to the point, second-hand clothing is not necessarily second rate. Most of the clothing you find in a second-hand store is very good quality, and many times you can even find items that still have tags on (for a fraction of the price of buying new in a store). Buying second-hand not only makes sense economically, but also environmentally (environmental being a big reason why I prefer to shop at second-hand stores).

Second-hand shops are a great source of recycling (or upcycling if you’re on the creative side). If there weren’t second-hand stores, all those clothing items would end up in some local landfill. Buying second-hand also helps reduce the amount of processing material that ends up in a landfill. 15-20% of material from clothing being made just ends up in a landfill. By buying used, you reduce the amount of new clothing being made (it’s probably being made out of the country anyway), and therefore reducing the amount of processing waste material that ends up in the garbage.

Instead of being looked down upon, buying second-hand should be something that is encouraged. Why buy new when you can buy second hand?

By Amber Reifsteck, The Woodland Elf

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