Consignment store shopping adventures
Posted by: SueGrowing up, I never had any exposure to consignment stores, thrift stores - let’s put it this way, I had never even been to a yardsale until I was in my late-30′s (talk about late bloomer, frugally speaking). Consequently, the idea of buying gently used clothing never occurred to me until relatively recently. And this is something that I’m underground and secretive about around my family. My mother would (a) be mortified (b) think we were in dire financial straits, (c) press money on me (d) all of the above.
As for me - I only wish I had gotten into the second-hand shopping sooner! When I think of all the money I spend on BRAND NEW clothes for my son when he was growing up, I see dollar bills sprout wings and fly. Fives, tens, and twenties, too. My son often outgrew the clothes after a few wearings. A woman I worked with was always on the lookout for kids clothing for her church missions, and she would ask me if my son ever wore the clothes, because they looked brand new. I take solace in the fact that the clothing was put to good use, and probably got a lot of wear after it passed out of our house.
Oh, look, I went and got sidetracked again. There’s a surprise. The topic is consignment store adventures. Must. Remember. This.
This past weekend, I went to my favorite consignment store. Consignment stores can be a bit - or even a lot - more expensive than thrift stores. This one certainly is. But the clothing is all current style, and must be cleaned or dry cleaned before being brought in. This store has become my store of choice for dress-up clothes, over the years.
I wear khakis and shirts or sweaters for work every day, so my dressy stuff is usually lacking. And I need dressy clothes once a year, for a business convention that my husband drags me (willingly, I admit) to. A little over a year ago, I went on a medication that had the undesireable side efffect of packing 20 pounds on me. 20 pounds that have taken up permanent residence, apparently, at least while I am on this drug. I mean, puh-leeze. I was sick with a stomach bug earlier this year, and did not eat for 3 days. Did I lose weight? Oh, no, I GAINED.
Again, sidetracked. Point being, those nice size 8 dresses that I wore to the last convention DO NOT ZIP anymore. And if they did, I’d burst the seams. So, last weekend, it was off to the consignment store. Not as happily as in the past, though, since I would be buying two sizes larger than I used to wear. Which, in turn, was another reason I did not want to pay retail - I keep telling myself that when I am off these meds, I will lose the weight (actually, my doctor agrees). Maybe, maybe I can lose the weight before that time (not as sure of a bet.)
I love name brand and designer labels. And I always find them at that consignment store. This time was no exception. I found a gorgeous, designer label little black dress with beaded front, that actually looks good on me (even better, with the help of a body shaper). NEW WITH TAGS, it cost me $31. Retail, it would be a couple of hundred dollars (sorry, I don’t pay that much for a dress, even if I’m in great shape). I was also on a mission to find a white jacket or blazer, that could be worn with summery clothes, and I found one of those - again, designer label and new with tags - for $25. While I was at it, I picked up a couple of cute, summery dresses for $12 each. I am good to go for this trip.
Now, there is a thrift store that I love (and will be the topic of a subsequent blog), where most clothing items are $2. And I’ve found some great casual stuff there. But dressy items were lacking, or very 5-years-ago (or more). These conventions are much less casual - I remember many years back when we started going, one particular night many women were in floor-length evening dresses; luckily it’s less formal now (and that’s the third time I’ve gone off on a side-tracked ramble, isn’t it? I guess I need to blog more often!) Let me just sum up my ramblings by saying this: I’ve found that for those more “dress-up” occasions - business or banquet, it’s very hard to beat the great deals on great clothes at good consignment stores!