By: Nora Scarbro 

Are you someone who has always wanted to get into thrifting, but feels a little lost on how to get started? Here is a guide to help you begin your thrifting journey. 

The first step to being successful in thrifting is to make a list of things you want to find. This makes it easier to focus your search and actually find pieces you will actually get use out of. When making this list, it’s also important to acknowledge the kinds of fabrics or patterns you are looking for. I am personally a huge fan of earth-toned pieces, so scanning through a rack looking for only those colors makes thrifting a lot quicker of a process and more effective. 

If you want to take it further, you could make a Pinterest board with items you want to look for. Pinterest is an app where you can look at outfits put together by others and use them as inspiration for how you want to dress. You can then put all the outfits you like together into a little folder so you can look back at them when needed. Personally, this is how I’ve always thrifted. It gives me outfit inspiration while creating a list of things I want to look for. 

Thrifting is a lot more fun when you’re in good company, so the next step is finding someone to thrift with. Maybe that’s a best friend, a parent, or a newer friend you want to get to know more. If you are not someone who thrifts regularly, ask a friend who thrifts often. 

 One of my favorite things to do is thrifting with new people to learn about them. Recently I went thrifting with a new friend. “Thrifting was very fun because we were able to joke around and learn a bit more about each other,” junior Amy Peters said. 

The next step is finding the perfect store for what you are looking for. There are three main kinds of stores: vintage, consignment, and thrift. Each one has their own unique characteristics. 

VINTAGE

Vintage stores are stores that specialize in quality pieces from different time periods. If you are looking for specific decade pieces, then vintage stores will be where you will find them. However, vintage stores are by far the most pricey, since they are typically well-kept and sourced from ethical places. Some examples of vintage stores are Clash and Feathers in the Oregon District, both of which also carry vintage jewelry and trinkets. 

CONSIGNMENT

Consignment stores are places where people bring in their personal clothes to sell. The employees then go through the clothes and pick ones that are trendiest and in the best condition, making each piece curated to exactly the store’s target demographic. “It’s definitely the stuff that is in style currently,” Bellbrook senior and Uptown CheapSkate employee Gabe Woods said. “We are looking for micro trends like cameo and leopard print right now.”

Consignment is a lot cleaner than any other option and eliminates the search of traditional thrifting. It also guarantees that all clothes will be up to a standard many already look for when thrifting. Some stores are Plato’s Closet, Uptown Cheapskate, and Clothes Mentor.  

Another part of consignment stores is the age range for each store. An example is Clothes Mentor which is a store that specializes in clothing for mature women. 

THRIFT

Thrift stores are very straightforward. Clothes get donated and put out on the floor. But there are many to choose from, each offering a different experience. My personal favorite is the Salvation Army by the Dayton Mall. It is very organized, the workers are really kind, and they tend to have a very wide variety of clothes. The Salvation Army is typically where I take people who’ve never thrifted before and want to get into it because it is so organized. 

Another well-organized store is Valley Thrift; however, their prices can be inconsistent. They also tend to be crowded, specifically on weekends, so if you are someone who gets overwhelmed by a lot of people quickly, this might not be the store for you. 

Another basic thrift store is American Thrift. This store is very small and compact, and it’s either full of good pieces or completely bare. When it is a good day, the prices are incredible.

Somewhere I don’t typically recommend is any Goodwill as the prices do not match the clothing being sold and the ethics of the company are sketchy. They also tend to not have the greatest selection of clothing, making it a lot more difficult to thrift wearable pieces. 

Another part of the Goodwill company are the Goodwill bins. The bins are a place where all the clothes not bought at any store are put. They are just rows of bins full of clothing and the shopper has to go through every bin to find good things. As daunting as this sounds, it’s really not that scary. It can actually be rather relaxing, but I encourage anyone going to the bins to wear gloves since you never really know what will be in there.