Our Favorite Thrift Shop Finds

I first entered the ethical fashion space in college, after my friend Jazmine brought to my attention the harmful effects of fast fashion. At the time, we were both in school, meaning our wallets weren’t exactly overflowing with cash. One thing Jazmine shared with me was how thrifting is an affordable, sustainable alternative to buying fast fashion.

Since then, I’ve built a wardrobe that’s about 90% thrifted. I love sharing stories about my favorite thrift finds and thought it would be interesting to ask the team about their favorite secondhand treasures. Here’s a bit of our conversation on the topic.

What’s the best thing you’ve ever thrifted?

Celeste, Social Media Coordinator: So the question is: what is or was the best thing you’ve ever thrifted? It can be something that you wear all the time, or something that you found and were just like, “Oh my god—I can’t believe I found this.”

Emily, Managing Editor: I was in college and I’d just spent the morning having mimosas with my roommate. Afterwards, we decided to go thrifting in downtown Bloomington, Indiana. I bought a completely unnecessary prom dress. I also bought this vintage, butterfly sequin top.

AmyAnn, Co-Founder: (laughs)

Emily: AmyAnn’s laughing because I’ve worn it multiple times on special occasions.

AmyAnn: It’s so awesome.

Emily: I wear it every Christmas and New Year’s.

Celeste: Is it a blazer or is it a shirt?

Emily: It’s a shirt.

Courtney, Associate Editor: Is it like super ‘80s?

Emily: Kind of? It literally looks like you are a butterfly. It’s very… big. It’s kind of tight around the waist but it fits really well.

Courtney: I think my mom has this same shirt.

Emily: It’s really special to me.

Belinda, Assistant Editor: My best thrift find is actually a pair of boots that I just got rid of because I’d worn them down. They were just a pair of plain black heeled boots that were like six dollars. I think I got them at Goodwill and I was just like, “Why not?” And I wore them so much more than I thought I would.

AmyAnn: That’s a good one.

Belinda: I also have these botanical prints on my wall that I got from a thrift store. I have three different ones and it’s just a really nice addition to my room. It’s kind of fun to think about all the other spaces they’ve lit up in the past.

AmyAnn: Yeah, like where they’ve lived before!

Belinda: Exactly.

Courtney: I don’t even know if I’ve ever told you guys about this but my Grandma used to own an antique shop in Minnesota called Cobweb Antiques.

Celeste: That’s so cute!

Courtney: I grew up going there in the summers, playing dress-up in this gorgeous vintage clothing. I made my first vintage purchase there, which was this pair of 1920s little black heels with silver bows. And they’re just seriously so special!

AmyAnn: Do you still have them?

Courtney: Oh yeah. I got them refurbished and they’re like new! But they’re really delicate and I’ll only wear them for very, very special occasions.

Emily: I love how you grew up as a kid dressing up in vintage clothing and that’s kind of what you do now.

Courtney: I know! It’s in my blood.

AmyAnn: I don’t have anything super meaningful and nostalgic, unfortunately. But my favorite thrift find in my closet right now are those white, wooden heels—

Celeste: —I was hoping you’d say that!

Belinda: What do they look like?

AmyAnn: They’re just these wooden platform heels with three white leather straps.

Celeste: They’re very cloggy to me. They’re clog-adjacent.

AmyAnn: They’re very unique and I am very tall in them. Which I like!

Celeste: I have a lot of things I thrift that I’m like, “I would wear this if I had a different lifestyle.” And one of those items is this dress that has really small leopard print on it. It came with a slip that’s the same print and this see-through top that’s collared with short sleeves…

Emily: Did you wear it on your first day at The Good Trade?

Celeste: I did wear it on my first day!

AmyAnn: I don’t remember this?

Emily: It was striking. It was really cool.

Celeste: Yeah, I haven’t really worn it since. It’s not really like an everyday piece.

Belinda: Whenever I have a really bold piece that stands out, I’m always self-conscious about wearing it again because I feel like people will remember the last time I wore it.

Celeste: That’s how I feel about this dress! It’s definitely like weird, art girl vibes.

Emily: Have you ever bought an outfit then done something because you bought it?

Courtney: Yes! It’s a piece that we actually used for one of our shoots—it’s that really beautiful ‘90s black tank with the lace cut-outs on the sides.

AmyAnn: Oh yeah!

Courtney: So, I bought that and very much was like, “When would I ever wear this?” Because it’s very sexy and sultry. But then I wore it with this vintage fur, and I curled my hair and wore dark lipstick. And it was just this whole alter ego. I feel like I lived that dress’s truth.

Emily: Where did you wear it?

Courtney: I wore it to a work holiday party.  

AmyAnn: Okay, so for our next work party we’re going to have to have some sort of dress-up theme.

Celeste: Definitely.

What’s the story behind the best thing you ever thrifted? Let us know in the comments! 💛

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Celeste M. Scott is the Social Media Coordinator at The Good Trade. She is a writer and photographer who is passionate about film and Internet culture. She can often be found sifting through the racks at her local Savers. You can find her work on her website and Instagram.