“I like your jacket,” said my friend as we left our poli-sci class.
“Thanks,” I said, straightening a button on the jacket in question. It was a white band leader inspired number which reminded me of Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. I looked around to make sure others were out of earshot.
“It’s from Frenchy’s,” I said in a hushed tone, as if I were passing on a piece of scandalous gossip.
When it comes to fashion, shopping at Frenchy’s (or Value Village, Jinglers and the like) is kind of taboo. Thrift shopping was briefly made cool last year thanks to Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, but fame is fleeting. Once again, second-hand stores are only visited when we need an ugly Christmas sweater. Or that’s what we tell people.
Admit it, thrift shopping is fun. Competitive types like the thrill of the hunt and brand loyalists like myself rejoice in finding designer labels for Walmart prices. Wearing J. Crew and Ralph Lauren is nice, but it feels even nicer when you’ve paid way less for it. So, why are we still so ashamed?
We avoid the term “second-hand” like the plague. Instead we use vague words like “vintage,” as if that makes it somehow acceptable. But fellow thrifters, it’s time to come out of the storage closet.
Have you ever been told to hang on to your old clothes, because everything comes back in style eventually? There’s truth in the statement, but keeping old pieces in the back of your closet seems more impractical than useful. Fashion is never set in stone.
Unless you’re best friends with Marc Jacobs, there’s no telling what’s going to be hot three seasons from now. You shouldn’t keep your old poncho just in case it becomes stylish again, but that doesn’t mean you need to buy into the brand-new trends after each Fashion Week.
Giving your wardrobe a facelift can be cheaper than you think. Second-hand stores are full of unique finds at reasonable prices. After all, aren’t we supposed to be “starving students”?
One common misconception is that the thrift shop is where your mom’s (or grandma’s) old clothes go to die. It’s a scary thought, especially in a world where becoming your mother has been equated with a death sentence.
Clothes which end up at Frenchy’s aren’t always out of fashion. With stores like Old Navy and Forever 21 mass-producing their items, they sometimes don’t sell them all. It’s not uncommon to find a brand spanking new sweater hidden within the mountains of clothes. You just have to be willing to look for it.
We already live in an over-sensitive, must-be-politically-correct world. Do we really have to throw fashion into the mix? Next time you’re working some Value Village couture, don’t be ashamed. It shows that you’re thrifty and stylish. That’s a killer combination.
