Hey guys! Long time no see! :) I'm finally starting the new thrifting series, which I am pretty excited about. I thought a good way to kick it off would be with a guest post from my friend Jessie over at Aimless in Wander. We went to grad school together and I thought she had great story connected to thrifting, so today she's going to share it with y'all. Hope you enjoy! And don't forget to stop by her lovely blog and say hello! :)
My story of what it means to "thrift," why thrifting is so important and how it has changed my life and can change yours, begins with my mother in 1984, the year I was born.
My story of what it means to "thrift," why thrifting is so important and how it has changed my life and can change yours, begins with my mother in 1984, the year I was born.
My mom raised me to
"thrift"....
She was a single parent my whole life and so of course, we didn't have much money but she wanted me to have cute and comfy clothes to wear as a child, and stylish, trendy clothes to express myself with as an adolescent and during my teenage years…..just like any parent would want to do. She would find higher end thrift stores that had seasonal sales and wait until they were doing their 50% off sales in preparation for closing until the next season's opening. The one store that we shopped at all my life (and still do to this day) is called "The Children's Exchange." They sell second hand clothes for men, women and of course, children and over the past 8 years, they began selling second hand household goods and furniture as well. They have been open in Columbia for 25 years and have changed locations about 5 times that I can remember, but the same ladies have always run it. They have watched me grow up and been there through good times and bad in me and my mother’s lives. One of these particularly good times was May 2010, the month and year that I got married. One of the women from the Children’s Exchange, Liz, had worked in her uncle’s florist shop as a young girl. In as much, she has a plethora of knowledge about flowers, arrangements and has her own beautiful garden at her home. When she learned of my upcoming nuptials, she asked who was doing my flowers. When I informed her I planned on doing everything for the wedding myself (as we were on a tight budget) Liz offered to designed and create the flower arrangements, bouquets and boutonnieres for my wedding…for free. She even took me, my mother and other members of my wedding party to a local florist wholesale shop (where she had connections) to help advise me on what flowers to choose and so forth. I offered to pay her for her time and skills in doing all this, but she refused repeatedly saying she just wanted to be part of my wedding after being part of my life for so long. Below are some pictures of my bouquet, arrangements and the bridesmaid’s flowers.
She was a single parent my whole life and so of course, we didn't have much money but she wanted me to have cute and comfy clothes to wear as a child, and stylish, trendy clothes to express myself with as an adolescent and during my teenage years…..just like any parent would want to do. She would find higher end thrift stores that had seasonal sales and wait until they were doing their 50% off sales in preparation for closing until the next season's opening. The one store that we shopped at all my life (and still do to this day) is called "The Children's Exchange." They sell second hand clothes for men, women and of course, children and over the past 8 years, they began selling second hand household goods and furniture as well. They have been open in Columbia for 25 years and have changed locations about 5 times that I can remember, but the same ladies have always run it. They have watched me grow up and been there through good times and bad in me and my mother’s lives. One of these particularly good times was May 2010, the month and year that I got married. One of the women from the Children’s Exchange, Liz, had worked in her uncle’s florist shop as a young girl. In as much, she has a plethora of knowledge about flowers, arrangements and has her own beautiful garden at her home. When she learned of my upcoming nuptials, she asked who was doing my flowers. When I informed her I planned on doing everything for the wedding myself (as we were on a tight budget) Liz offered to designed and create the flower arrangements, bouquets and boutonnieres for my wedding…for free. She even took me, my mother and other members of my wedding party to a local florist wholesale shop (where she had connections) to help advise me on what flowers to choose and so forth. I offered to pay her for her time and skills in doing all this, but she refused repeatedly saying she just wanted to be part of my wedding after being part of my life for so long. Below are some pictures of my bouquet, arrangements and the bridesmaid’s flowers.
Over the past 4 years, my
mother has become what I officially call, a “Goodwill Huntress.” The things she finds at Goodwill are AMAZING!
It sort of became her therapy to go every day after work to our 3 local
Goodwill stores in search of those “killer” items. She’s got it down to a
science, spending about 30 mins or less at each store each day and I could
write a book telling you all the awesome stuff she’s found. I haven't had to go
shopping for new clothes or shoes for about 2 years...at least! Every time I
need a new piece of clothing or shoes or something for the house or even if my husband
needs something new, my mom always seems to have this knack for finding it in a
few days at one of the locations.
I, like my friend and
fellow blogger Stephanie, don't like to wear what everyone else is wearing. I
hate buying clothes from places where things are produced by the thousands and
I know I am going to see this same shirt on someone at the grocery store. Heck I work at a child development center
where our staff numbers top off at 17 people and I have seen people more than
once walk in wearing the same shirt or with the same purse over their
shoulder. Yikes.
By shopping at places
like Goodwill, or your locally owned thrift or second hand stores, you can make
your own style, on your own terms, with your own budget. Not to mention the
added bonus of not adding to the carbon footprint by supporting big business fashion
factories (but that’s another blog post…) If you are like me, you don’t need
your style choices validated by seeing on TV or in a magazine that what you are
wearing or decorating your house with is “trending now” or in a Kardashian’s
living room….blah blah blah…
You, dear reader, spin
your own wheel of fashion and design destiny each time your step into an ambiently
lit thrift store ready for “the hunt”….and if people are lucky enough (and
savvy enough,) they will join you on your journey.
Closing thoughts before you turn off this computer and run to your nearest treasure trove…..Even now at Goodwill, my mom knows many of the employees by name (just like at the Children’s Exchange) and one night a few months ago when I stopped by the Goodwill because I saw my mother’s car there, she introduced me to some of the employees who passed by and they were all very excited to meet me and went on and on about how much they loved my mom. It was a touching experience. Not only can thrifting change our lives, but by thrifting, we can change someone else's life too, in so many ways.
Happy Thrifting!
