I am always thrilled when someone compliments what I’m wearing to tell them it’s thrifted! Like the above outfit, the blazer, jeans and purse are all thrifted pieces that I spent no more than $5 on in total. After years and years of thrifting, I think I have mastered the art of thrifting.

I remember the first time I went thrifting, my freshman year of college with my mom. She was acting completely bougie at the first Salvation Army we went to; “I don’t wanna wear something someone else wore!” I think that’s the first thought that pops into people’s head when thrifting is brought up. However, by the second store we went to, she was purchasing a nice red blazer. I know it’s cliche to say, but one (wo)man’s trash is another (wo)man’s treasure.  Once you get over the initial fear of purchasing previously worn clothes you’ll begin to love thrifting as much as do.

Here’s some tips to follow when thrifting:

Plan of action. I can and have spent hours in the thrift store. It’s always good to go with some sort of idea of what you’re looking for. You can easily get lost in the maze of clothes and end up buying way too much and items you don’t need just because it was cheap. Based on my style preference of streetwear and casual fitting, I head immediately for the men’s section particularly t-shirts, sweatshirts, button downs and jackets. Next is women’s jeans, blazers and dresses. I occasionally may look at women’s tops but I never have the best luck. Figure out the looks you want to put together in your head before heading to the thrift store. Sure you’ll find some items you weren’t even thinking of, but the goal here is to shop smart and efficiently.

Wear comfortable/easily changeable clothes. I think the worst thing when shopping is wearing clothes that are hard to get out of/put back on. I hate having to struggle in small dressing rooms. When I go thrifting I usually opt to wear leggings with a t-shirt and a jacket. This way you can easily try on pants over the leggings. As well, wearing a t-shirt makes it easier to try on blazers and jackets without having to haul everything into the dressing room. Whenever I am trying on something that may be really oversized I make sure to grab a belt from their belt section. A belt can make the world of a difference to an item. I also try to wear a crossbody bag whenever possible; this way you’re completely hands-free to grab as many great finds as you can!

Weeding out the good and bad. Whenever I go thrifting I try to steer away from purchasing whites. They are often dingy and may have yellow deodorant stains that are impossible to get out. Take some Shout wipes with you, there’s often times you’ll come across items that have a small stain. I would hate for you to miss out on a dope piece that just needs washing. For items with missing buttons, but don’t be discouraged; get it! You can easily go out and buy new buttons and create a piece that’s unique to yourself. If an item has a very weird and heavy smell, I will sometimes put it back as some smells can be permanent from the environment in which they were kept. Looking for a vintage shirt? Look for single stitching on the sleeve and hems — most t-shirt manufacturers switched from single to double stitch hems in the mid 90s.

Getting the most for your money. A lot of thrift stores have sales that occur on certain days/times. Especially Salvation Army and Value World stores, I’ve been there numerous times where all items in the store were just $0.50! Stores do this to remove items off the floor in order to have room for new donated items. So if your local thrifting store has an email list, sign up for it. Or ask an associate when they have sales, I’m sure they would be able to tell you. I signed up for Value World’s email list and constantly receive coupons including a coupon for my birthday month that I can use repeatedly throughout the month.

Arriving home.Once I get home I immediately go through all of my purchases and decide what needs to be dry cleaned and what can just be thrown in the washer. In some cases where I don’t want to hassle with the cleaners, I have used Dryel. Lastly, have your own fashion show & try on all your pieces with items you already have in your closet! Don’t like how something fits once you get home? Throw it up on Depop or Poshmark or donate it back.

Wearing American Apparel cropped sweater, Nike Air Uptempo sneakers, Urban Outfitters Pisces zodiac necklace, Shinola watch and thrifted jeans, blazer and purse.