secondhandwardrobe.com » Secondhand Wardrobe

Secondhand Wardrobe Week, Day 6: Cleanliness and Regular Retail

Cheryl — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:40:15 +0000

March 2, 2012: Most people think of stores that sell new clothing as being cleaner than the thrifts. In this video, I read what I think is a hilarious quote about cleanliness at regular retail stores. The quote was originally posted as a comment on a terrific blog by Sally McGraw that’s called Already Pretty. You can read the quote in it’s entirety here.

Shamefully Ugly Clothes, Part 7

Cheryl — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 11:36:39 +0000

This is Part 7, the final post of Ugly Used Clothing that Cheryl Suggests You Stay Away From.

Yikes!

Your Mistake, My Treasure

Cheryl — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 15:20:58 +0000

My New Treasure

Most of my wardrobe is secondhand, but I occasionally sew myself a new garment. Since I don’t have a lot of time to sew, I want these items to turn out wonderfully—but life doesn’t always work the way I want it to. I once spent forever altering a jeans pattern, thinking I could make it fit perfectly. Unfortunately, the finished jeans looked like they were sprayed on. I could barely breathe in them, even though the addition of lycra to the fabric blend made them stretchy. I also once made myself a jacket that I painstakingly hand quilted only to find that all those stitches made the material so stiff that it hung on my body like cardboard. I donated those two garments to my local thrift store. That way somebody else could enjoy my work.

But sometimes the tables get turned. Just last week I became the one who gets to enjoy somebody else’s work. I paid two dollars for a hand crocheted sweater that looks like it’s never been worn. Could it have been an unwanted present, or did the person who made it find that it just wasn’t right after they sewed on the last carefully selected button? The sweater isn’t revealing its origin, so I’ll never know. I’ll just have to wear it and enjoy.

August 25th, Secondhand Wardrobe Day

Cheryl — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 16:06:26 +0000

The purpose of Secondhand Wardrobe Day is to celebrate the joys of creating a wardrobe from secondhand finds. I’m going to mark the day is by donating the clothing that my family no longer wears to my favorite thrift store charity. We have bags and bags that need to go.

I try to make only excellent choices when I buy clothing, but sometimes it’s only after I wear an item a few times that I realize that it isn’t the most flattering. I could toss it into the trash, but it’s so much more satisfying to take it someplace where it will be used and appreciated. Sending my clothing off to the thrift store is a fine way, I think, to enjoy Secondhand Wardrobe Day.

Secondhand Wardrobe Day is Almost Here

Cheryl — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 19:40:38 +0000

The above photo is of my Marino Orlandi Italian handbag that sells for $350.00 and up. The price I paid at my local thrift store was three dollars. With bargains like these, who wouldn’t love shopping secondhand? The fact is that many people wouldn’t, and that’s because there is such a stigma attached to buying and wearing used clothing. I created Secondhand Wardrobe Day, which is August 25^th of each year, in order to fight this stigma.

I have begun laying the groundwork for a Secondhand Wardrobe Day celebration in 2009, including contests and competitions which will be posted on this blog. For now, I’ll keep writing about finding the bargains, and hope you’ll continue to join me.

Members of the Press: Leave a blog comment—it will remain unposted and will go directly to me.

Secondhand Clothing Stores: If your organization would like to sponsor a contest for 2009, please leave a blog comment.