First Outing into the World of Used
Deeeeeepresssing. I thought I would find funky…different…unique…and cheap. Nope. I found last season’s Gap crap at about the same price it was in the store. If I were looking for outdated turtlenecks I would just dig through the back of my drawer, thanks. Now there are vintage shops in NY that deal only with the high end…but I’m not willing to pay 300 for a used pair of shoes even if Jimmy has carved them himself and hand carried them to the store. I’ve heard Brooklyn might be keeping some good dirty secrets. Fellow NYCers help me out. This resolution may be a lot harder to stick to than I thought.
I’ve encountered the same thing at Goodwill– cheap used Target clothes selling for the same price as new clearance stuff. I want to keep things out of the landfill, but come on. The Garment District, for the Boston area folks, is much better; more expensive, and not a charity, but you’ll find decent used clothing for a reasonable price. Why don’t I go there more often?
YOu must be shoping in the wrong stores. Truly. Not a NYCer but Goodwill isn’t much luck for me here in CA. The smaller independent stores seem to be better as does Savers if you have it though it is not cheap. Any consignment shops? We have a few that are awesome. Good luck.
CT…I have heard Boston has some awesome vintage shopping. In fact, when my friend who I went on the outing with called her friend, a vintage expert, for a list of places to try she told us to forget NYC and get in the car and drive to Boston.
We tried about 6 shops…all sucked. There are consignment shops that deal only with high end designers, but pieces still run in the hundreds. I was hoping for more everyday pieces and prices.
I think the problem is with cities – the good stuff goes away quick esp if the store is public transit accessible. I found this to be true in every city > 1M people. Small towns or some backwater store in a dumpy neighborhood has gotten me some real fantastic finds.
[...] the word balance needs to come into play here. Plan: Keep thoughtful about purchasing and try AGAIN to find more used goods. Also, rethink our entertainment [...]