secondhand clothing

[LadyFaile]

how does everyone feel about wearing secondhand clothes?
we were having this discussion the other night at dinner. a coworker was cleaning out her closet and had a ton of clothes that didn't fit her anymore but she thought they might fit me so she brought them in for me. some were too small so i passed them along to my sister in law who they fit perfectly.
my coworker was so happy to see me wearing some of them to work, she buys expensive name brands and was really attached to some of these pieces and couldn't bear to throw them away or dump them at a thrift store, she really wanted to see someone enjoying them and appreciating them the way she did.

and i appreciated it because money's been tight and i need new clothes quite badly, and some of them are really nice!

my husband thinks it's gross and wierd to wear someone else's clothes even if they have been washed. i'm wondering if many people think that way or if most people think like me: free is free don't complain

[Skylark]

The last time I got an item of clothing I was pretty sure hadn't been worn by someone else before me... would have been a T-shirt corporate decided we all had to wear a few weeks back to support LeBron James in his MVP bid.

I almost never buy new clothing. I get everything at thrift stores and garage sales and bags of free clothes. Footwear can be much harder to find used, especially non-leather durable boots, so those I will buy new after much research. I also buy only new undergarments, because that I do get squicked out about!

[LadyFaile]

yeah used undies would be gross. i am so cheap when it comes to clothing i probably spend more money on underwear than clothing. underwear i'm more picky with, it has to be comfy and durable. if i pay $5 for a shirt and it falls apart in a year oh well. if i buy a cheap pack of underwear and they ALL fall apart that's no good lol. and i've learned my lesson with cheap bras. they suck and they hurt. pay more upfront for something i'll actually wear instead of spending more in the longrun constantly replacing cheap ones that hurt or break right away

[Skylark]

Sports bras are by far the most comfortable IME. :lol: I might buy a good sports bra from a thrift store if it looked barely used, and I'd wash it really, really well. But definitely not undies for down south! I just never see good sports bras at thrift stores, so while I can keep looking, I'm not going to hold my breath.

[Scarlet Soul]

I buy secondhand clothes all the time. Salvation Army, GoodWill. Why would I pay full price for anything and contribute to things being made out of my country by children or people being paid next to nothing?

I don't think it's gross... that doesn't make sense! I wash them of course.

[hoodedclawjen]

second hand clothes don't bother me. its not like i can tell whether or not if someone or 20 someones tried on the stuff i bought new in the store before i bought it- or even took it home, wore it out for the night, or kept it for 3 weeks, and returned it. when i buy things they get a good hot wash and thats likely gonna nuke anything dodgy.

second hand knickers i'd definately avoid for hygiene reasons, and cos they tend to look really manky in charity shops- but if they were brand new, in the bags, and had all the labels on (so basically catalogue return equivilent) i doubt i'd care much.

bras are tricky, cos they get bent out of shape really fast, and get stretched in weird ways, and my complicated boobs just don't appreciate it, but for people like my mum with little tiny boobs who are buying things like little push up bras that have been worn 3 times by a teenybopper and then discarded, its no issue.

from time being dragged around charity shops and car boot sales in my childhood i learned that people buy stuff, or get stuff as gifts, never use/wear it, and then toss it away all the time. its crazy for it to get wasted.

everything we buy has been through assorted hands and boxes and locations before we take it home. its easy to imagine that it magically appears in the shop in one piece, but its not like that. getting something with a bit more time and scenery already added to its journey doesn't make much odds.

now, second hand mattresses and pillows.... thy ick me out much more. :sick:

[Skylark]

I just bought a second-hand mattress and box springs two days ago. :lol: Pillows, well, I find good sales on those, and since I'm so picky about the pillows I like, I do tend to buy those new.

[LadyFaile]

we had a secondhand bed for the longest time. it kind grossed me out, especially the stains that could've been ANYTHING lol but you can buy mattresspads that give you a nice buffer between you and possible ickyness.
i also vaccumed and febreezed the heck out of it when i got it lol.

[hoodedclawjen]

with mattresses and pillows my main concern is the dust and dust mite poo allergy thing. being allergic to my own dust and dustmite mite poos is one thing, but i don't wanna be sucking in random strangers little bed monster castoffs in my sleep as well. and yeah, those scary stains are just scary looking.

i'm so contrary with my public-toilet-seat nonchalance and stranger-pillow-sweat woes. :lol:

[Skylark]

I think everyone's entitled to a little inconsistency, Jen. :)

I'm not allergic to anything to my knowledge, so that helps what products I can bring into my home.

[hoodedclawjen]

yeah, allergies suck. i take my own pillow with me wherever i sleep cos people always try and force their 'good' feather ones on me and get all weird when i descretely turn them down. :brood:

back on topic- its quite funny how once clothes hit a certain age, and when they have a certain style appeal to them, suddenly these things which were previously deemed to be icky and shameful in a "no mum!" way become considered vintage, and smart people scour charity shops for them, and put them into chic boutiques and charge inflated prices for them.

when i was a teen, the cool shops in the college area of bristol where we'd go hang out on saturdays were crammed full of old 70's bellbottom flares and garish shirts and tanktops, and they sold for absolutely mental money. 2 or 3 years earlier if my mum had come into my school on an errand wearing her still-in-wardrobe-rotation kaftans, wooden clogs and ponchos, i'd have curled up and died on the spot. :dizzy: in fact several times i did. :lol:

[chryssiie718]

I buy second hand clothes all the time and am thankful to have that opportunity. I buy clothes for the kids at thrift shops too; no way we can afford to clothe them otherwise. And since I am in the process of losing weight, I sure don't want to spend a lot of money on clothes I won't be wearing very long. (hopefully!) :D

[Star*Shine]

I don't mind buying secondhand and I do, but anything intimate like a bed or undies, towels, or something I couldn't. If it were someone I knew, fine since I'd probably know they were halfway hygenic. I even get creeped out when someone I barely know bakes for me. :lol:

[Skylark]

I don't mind buying secondhand and I do, but anything intimate like a bed or undies, towels, or something I couldn't. If it were someone I knew, fine since I'd probably know they were halfway hygenic. I even get creeped out when someone I barely know bakes for me. :lol:

I take it you don't buy food from restaurants, or is it home kitchens that scare you? :)

[MZCsmpsns]

I didn't read responses, but as far as wearing secondhand clothes... how is that gross?(as you said your husband said) Friends borrow clothes from each other all the time, as long as it's not underwear I don't see the problem. I get clothes from friends all the time. I have no problem w/secondhand stores or garage sales either. You can get good stuff that's basically one of a kind for a great price.

[jenni-anti-fur]

I don't mind buying secondhand and I do, but anything intimate like a bed or undies, towels, or something I couldn't. If it were someone I knew, fine since I'd probably know they were halfway hygenic. I even get creeped out when someone I barely know bakes for me. :lol:

I have a friend like that who wont eat what she calls other peoples food or something like that...this friend got an awesome banana bread basket from a co-worker for Easter and wasnt gonna eat it...but her hubby won that argument and he did eat it and loved it....she is obsessed with clean kitchens and food and only hers is clean enough to pass her test and hardly eat in restaurants either and when she does is soooo anxiety ridden she cant enjoy it at all it makes her sooo sick.

back on topic sorry...I buy secondhand clothes...I love to shop at Goodwill and my local thrift stores and Garage Sales...When I was younger my Mom and I would spend a whole Saturday just going to Garage Sales...It was a great time...I will buy almost everything second hand...I draw the line at undergarmets and bras and beds,bedding and pillows or shoes.

Have a Hippie Day:)

[LadyFaile]

shoes i find wierd too. even if i see a nice pair in my size that look to be in good shape if i think about trying them on i always decide against it. it's no big deal really you could just swap the insoles for new ones unless they're heels or something in which case you could wipe them down with a disinfectant. i might try to get over that i need a nice pair of heels but i don't want to spend a ton of money on them

[hoodedclawjen]

things like shoes most often aren't any good unless they've not been worn more than once or twice, or they're something that doesn't give or flex much- like buckle mule clogs with a wooden footbed and sole, or rubber wellies.

individual people wear their shoes down and in really differently- they quickly give and mould to the shape of your foot, the soles wear down in a set pattern, etc. wearing someone elses shoes is usually a very weird and uncomfortable experience for me.

also i have no desire to get vurrucas or athletes foot. :(

[whisper]

my husband thinks it's gross and wierd to wear someone else's clothes even if they have been washed. i'm wondering if many people think that way or if most people think like me: free is free don't complain

Does your husband eat in restaurants? You might want to point out he's eating from plates that hundreds of other people already ate off of. :p


I love shopping in thrift stores. I love finding a good bargain on something really nice and its good to know I'm helping cut down on waste.

In regards to sharing what others have used....just think, we are breathing in the same air millions of other people have exhaled.

[Tori~CL]

I buy secondhand clothes all the time. My kids are covered from head to toe in name brands and I didn't even pay that much. Plus it does help that we have a circle of family that I pass my daughters clothes to my step-daughter and my step daughters clothes I pass to her half sister on her dad's side and they pass their sons clothes to my son. Heh! Did ya get that?

I love to shop at thrift stores. The one thing I love about buying used clothes is because they are pre-shrunk. I mean it sucks when you buy a new shirt and it went into the dryer and came out two sizes too small. Gah, done that to many times.

But my daughter gets mostly new and it's from her dad's family side.

Plus I buy and trade at consignment shops. However they don't seem to give you the best bang for the bucks these days. :-/

Does anyone have a Savers store around them?

[fadeaway1289]

Almost all my clothes are used either from thrift stores or hand me downs. I rarely buy new clothing unless there's a crazy 75% off sale or something. Lucky for me my brother's fiancee is addicted to clothes shopping. She'll give me huge bags of hoodies, tshirts, etc. I also get my little sister's clothes that she no longer wants. There's no way though I would buy underwear from a thrift store but if bras are in good conidtion I'll buy them. I've bought blankets, sheets, and towels also.

[Beancounter]

As long as the cloths are clean and in good condition, it doesn't bother me at all.

[GrandmaD]

My dh and I love garage sales. We have no problem with buying used clothes.

[Midnight Angel]

I love secondhand stores. I'm a cheapskate, so I love getting good deals. I wish we had a Plato's Closet closer to me, but the nearest one is an hour and a half away. :(

Undies and bras I have to buy packaged, I can't buy those used. I don't tend to buy towels or sheets from second hand stores, mainly the ones around here are just clothes and shoes. If I find a good deal on shoes, I'm grabbing them (I'm kind of a shoe-whore, plus I have small feet so I buy when I can)!

[shesbatty]

I buy secondhand clothes all the time. Salvation Army, GoodWill. Why would I pay full price for anything and contribute to things being made out of my country by children or people being paid next to nothing?

I don't think it's gross... that doesn't make sense! I wash them of course.

Exactly my opinion of the topic :D