Anyone who knows me knows that I am obsessed with second-hand shopping (charity shopping/op shopping/thrift shopping). Well actually, really I am obsessed with shopping altogether (sadly) but it is second-hand shopping I love the most and as I shared on Instagram lately, after being obsessed with it for many many years, I’ve found a few tricks for doing it successfully.
I have to say, I have been a bit disappointed with the second-hand shopping opportunities since moving to Wellington. A lot of the second-hand shops in the city are consignment (which means the shop sells on behalf of the owner) and although these can be great, the price is super high and the city’s actual op shops can be a bit disappointing and high priced too. BUT, I have found that following my little tricks outlined below is a sure fire way to get the good stuff.
(If sustainable fashion is something you would like to read more about, you might like my post: NZ Ethical Fashion Brands you will LOVE)
Second-hand shopping is great for many reasons and I really believe everyone should be doing more of it. Here are the main reasons why it is great:
- Its cheap
- The money is often going to charity
- It is RECYCLING
- It is also REUSING
- its child labour and exploitation free
- Its REDUCING Waste
- You can usually find really good quality items
- You can find one-off items that no one else will have
- It is like a treasure hunt – so much fun!
To give you an idea of what I think counts as successful op shopping; I recently had a day with a couple of friends in Otaki and Levin on the Kapiti Coast and was so happy with my finds! For $90 I got: 1 wool coat, 3 trousers, 2 skirts, 2 wool jumpers, 1 x shoes, 2 x bags, 2 mugs, 4 wine glasses and 5 tiny paintings. All of these were natural fibres, great quality and uber stylish (in my opinion!).
Like I said, there are just a few tricks to finding the stuff you want when second-hand shopping to make it worth your while, these are true for any town you are in, so here goes…
Tips for Successful Op Shopping:
1. Travel
If you live in a town like Wellington then the key to finding the best stuff is to travel a bit further afield. This is definitely the NUMBER ONE tip for successful second-hand shopping. If you go to the central city Op shops; 1. there won’t be as much good stuff because so many people visit them and 2. they tend to be priced higher for the same reason because they are visited a lot. The best second-hand shops, no matter which city or even which country you are in, are the small, local ones in the provincial towns. This is almost guaranteed that you will find some good stuff! They are like untouched gold mines.
If you are in NZ, this awesome guide to NZ Op Shops will help you find which ones are around where you are.
2. Think Fabric Fabric Fabric
Sometimes second-hand shopping can be overwhelming because there is such a lot and it can all look like a pile of useless old stuff. BUT there will be a diamond in the rough and the key to finding it is to have your fabric radar on. Having grown up with a mum and a grandmother who only ever wear natural fibres and are super advanced at sewing, I automatically know what a quality fabric is. But to break it down, you are basically only looking for natural fibres. As your scanning the rails, look out for the real wool, the silk, the cotton and the linen. Then once you’ve spotted these you can see if it is something that you can wear.
My theory is that anything worth wearing is usually a natural fibre fabric, so if you pick these out first, that is the first point of elimination. It works for me anyway! Polyester and plastic fibres are a no-no, and although much of these end up in charity shops, they were usually cheap, to begin with so are not really a great find in an op shop. Its a cliche but those second-hand wool knits are great finds because woolly jumpers when new are expensive!
The same goes for home things, look for the nice glasses, the handmade pottery and the brass candle holders. These things would be expensive to buy new so getting them in an op shop os a good find. Avoid plastic and veneer furniture, look for the solid wood and the glass, even if things look a bit shabby they will usually be better quality, last longer and look nicer.
3. Scan Twice
You’ve looked around the op shop once and didn’t find anything? My tip is to look again. Often you miss things on your first scan. Take a different route! This probably sounds really silly but trust me, its worth a second look!
4. Have No Specifics
If you go second-hand shopping and you have in your head, I need some black trousers, a green belt and a measuring jug (?!), it’s very unlikely you will find it (although weirdly sometimes you do find the exact things you want). If you go with a completely open mind as to what you might be able to find, amazing things that you never even dreamed of will just come to you. Ahhhhh… it’s amazing, keep an open mind.
5. Look for Labels
Although I am not really a labels person, I do keep an eye out for labels when second-hand shopping. For the pure reasons that I once found a real Versace T-Shirt in a shop in Manchester for £1 and a Chanel cashmere jumper in a second-hand shop in York for £10. Both of these I since sold on for more, but also kept for ages because if the pure thrill of finding such expensive stuff for super cheap. You don’t have to be rich to wear designer clothes! Look out for labels!
6. Take a Friend
Four eyes are better than one. With two of you scanning, you can recommend things to each other and see things you think they would like that they may have missed. They are also really useful if you are thinking about buying something really wild and crazy they can hone you in a little bit. Or even encourage you to buy something you might need a little encouragement to purchase!
7. Don’t be Scared
A lot of people often say to me that they wouldn’t want to wear second-hand clothes because they think it is kind of gross. But remember you can wash it. Obviously look for condition and quality, don’t buy anything with massive stains on, but you can usually get something to a perfectly wearable condition by just washing it.
8. Think Outside The Box
The most fun op shopping happens when you are thinking outside the box. Be creative and you can find some amazing and beautiful one-off things. Don’t be restricted by current trends!
9. Remember It’s For Charity
If you buy something and then you decide you won’t wear it or use it, don’t worry because you have given some money to charity! Or even if the shop you bought it from is not a donation shop then at least you have recycled. and the likelihood is you had fun doing it. Don’t beat yourself up if you have to re-donate.
10. Take Your Sweet Time
Second-hand shopping is not something to be done in a hurry. Aside from popping in every now and again when you see one, the best thing to do is to dedicate a morning or an afternoon to it, to check out a few shops in the same area. This way you have a good amount of time to really look at things. There is nothing worse than looking through and trying to rush because you can’t do it justice.
Second-hand shopping is really one of my greatest pleasures. I LOVE hunting for the treasures and to be able to gather things that people sometimes pay a fortune for! It is creative and cheap. It’s great.
I hope this was useful; if you have more tips – as always, comment below and let me know.
Have fun 🙂
Thanks for reading and please come back soon.
For more posts about Wellington and sustainability, you might like to check out these posts:
10 NZ Ethical Fashion Brands you will love
19 Easy Ways to be more Environmentally Friendly in Wellington
Where to buy NZ natural skincare in Wellington
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Josie x
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