Posts Tagged ‘second-hand clothes’

Out With the Old in With the Old

Posted on August 7th, 2012 by Tonia 7 Comments

Mike and I went through our closet this spring, tossing anything we don’t wear into boxes to donate. I had already done this last winter, as part of the 30 for 30 Challenge, so I didn’t have very many pieces to donate this time around. I decided to be really strict with myself and even get rid of things I really like, but never wear.

For example, I had a beautiful gray wool dress from J Crew that I had never worn because it was a tad too big on me. I’d been saying I’ll get it tailored for the past two years. But there it sat, untailored and unworn in my closet. It was time to face the fact that I was never going to bother with it, so I may as well give it to someone who will use it.

That same week, a friend of mine decided to host a clothing swap at her house, ladies only. Perfect timing! I brought my small box of clothes and a six-pack of beer.

There were eight or nine of us total and, thankfully, a few my size! We chatted, drank beer, stripped down to our skivvies and played dress up. Our host had thoughtfully propped every mirror in her house along her livingroom wall. I was reminded of all the hours spent in the basement as a kid, digging through our enormous wooden chest of dress-up clothes {thrift-store prom dresses from the 1980’s} and putting on fashion shows. I convinced my poor little brother that “all the cool boys wear dresses” so that he would allow me to dress him up as well {I’m so, so sorry about that Danny…}

It was fun to see my friends enjoying my clothes- they looked damn good in them! And I found a couple things for myself:

This sheer blue top is so breezy and easy to wear on a hot day. It’s long enough to be worn as a tunic, with leggings or skinny jeans, or over my bathing-suit for going from the beach to town.

These Carhart overalls were a major score. They’re a little big on me, which makes them perfect for layering long-johns or pants underneath for working around the farm in the fall. There’s nothing better than a pair of already-broken-in Carharts. I snatched them up the second I saw them!

Next time I’m having trouble donating clothes because they’re “too nice” to dump on the curb in front of Goodwill, I will definitely host a clothing swap. In related news, I have been doing a great job at shopping for clothes a LOT LESS. And when I do, it’s for things like flannel shirts, a new bathing-suit because the old one was stretched out, and horseback riding breeches; things that will get used heavily and last a long time. I still love fashion, though. But I’m content to window shop for the most part.

Ruese Tues: Making Second-Hand Clothes Look Fresh

Posted on March 15th, 2011 by Tonia No Comments

This whole 30 for 30 Challenge has got me thinking about clothes like crazy. Making clothes, wearing clothes, swapping clothes, reusing old clothes in new ways, and giving away clothes I don’t wear anymore. When I started the challenge, I boxed up a huge amount of my clothes and sent them away with a close friend of mine who volunteers at a house for women and children who have lost their homes- helping them to get back on their feet. It’s nice to think about my clothes being enjoyed by those folks.

I have an outrageously cool girl-cousin who lives in Brooklyn. When we were kids, she would bring me huge boxes of her clothes when she would come visit in the summer. I got to pick through them and keep whatever I wanted. We didn’t have a shopping-mall closer than three hours from our house, so this was the closest I ever got to a shopping spree, and it made my little-girl heart skip a happy beat.

Aren’t second-hand clothes great? Whether you get them handed down to you, or you like to shop at thrift-stores, the thrill of acquiring something really cool for really cheap is a wonderful feeling.

My favorite secret spot to shop for second-hand clothes is Mike’s side of the closet. Shhhh! Don’t tell him! Ok actually he already knows about this habit of mine…I repeatedly get in trouble for wearing his flannel shirts and wool socks, and even sometimes his tighty-whites, which are huge on me and I have to fold them over like five times. He knew what he was getting into when he married me, though. I have a history of wearing boy clothes.

The tragedy here is that I never had a sister. I never had anyone to share clothes with growing up. My best friends were {and still are} three sisters, all with names starting with “C”. I would see the Three C’s sharing clothes with each other all the time, and it made me enormously jealous. The fact that they had each others’ closets to go searching in for something fun to wear when their own clothes seemed blah……but all I had was my little brother.

Photo credit: tomboystyle.blogspot.com

{Sorry brother, you know I love you. And I’m pretty sure you know the next part of this story…}

So what did I do? I took clothes from my little brother’s closet. He would catch me wearing an entire outfit comprised from his closet, and it drove him absolutely crazy. I told him fair’s fair and that he could wear my clothes if he wanted to….but he never wanted to….Oh, what the boys in my life have to put up with! But that’s the story of how I developed my tomboy-ish style.

One of my most favorite blogs, Tomboy Style, has a new series called Q&A in which real-life tomboys are interviewed. I love the questions and the answers. These are wildly independent and unique women to look up to and admire. In a world where it seems like all the worst human qualities are glorified and deemed as “cool”, it’s wonderful to see real, intelligent, brave women lifted up. They make me proud to be a woman. Also a great place to get outfit inspiration. Check it out!

Sometimes second-hand clothes need a little freshening up, though. I love this post with some really easy ways to alter clothes and make them fresh again. For example, this gingham blouse used to be red and white before a good dye-job. Much prettier now, and any stains from its previous life were covered up.

Check out the full post for more tips like this. And I thought of one on my own, too. Screen-printing! You could make a boring old shirt look awesome by screen-printing an original design on it. This is a pretty ambitious project if you don’t already have a screen, but there are several good videos online, like this one showing how to make a screen, and this one talking about the right ink to use, this one showing how to cut out your design, and this one showing how to actually get your design onto the shirt.

I did a lot of screen-printing in college, and it was really, really fun. There is something so rewarding about seeing your artwork on your own clothing. Once you get the hang of it, you will be hooked, and you will probably want to screen-print everything in your house- pillows, towels, clothing, table linens…

An old tea-towel is given new life by Etsy seller ohlittlerabbit

If you like J Crew as much as I do, you already know that the cool thing right now is screen-printed shirts. They have whole tables of screen-printed shirts in their stores. But you can have way more fun and spend way less money and end up with something way more unique and special by doing it yourself. And if you start with second-hand clothing, you’re reusing instead of buying something new. Win-win-win!

Please do a little homework before starting this project, and try to find inks that are eco-friendly. This article is very helpful in that regard. Save leftover ink in mason jars when you’re done- they keep for a long time- and wash your screen thoroughly so you can use it to screen again and again. Happy screening!