I’ve been doing practically no shopping except for thrifting lately, so I have a lot of photos to share. Hope you’re sitting comfortably, with a beverage of your choice close at hand.
Cute office wear dress. Not my size, but I figure this one went to a good home sooner rather than later.
At first, I was sort of intrigued by this coat, but the longer I looked at the print, the more it started to remind me of bacteria growing on an agar plate. Pass.
Cute but wrong size, and overpriced. Come on, Value Village!
Just slightly too big, but so on-trend with the fringe and the 70s vibe.
These were just a hoot.
I was torn, you guys. I almost bought this, but ultimately decided to exercise restraint. I just didn’t see myself wearing it very often, and as much as I liked it, it didn’t spark joy. Even at $7, it wasn’t worth it. I hope it found a good home.
Cute dress and great fit – plus, this came from a made-in-Canada label. Too bad I hate brown.
I really loved this, even though it’s an “older” style, but it was simply too big. Sadness.
I recognized this brand from blogland – I think it’s one of those mid-level labels that gets sold at Nordstrom maybe? It was 100% silk and a cute enough style, but I ended up passing. I liked the colours, but they weren’t super flattering on me.
Cute dress, just not my thing.
You know I love a good RL jersey dress, but again with the brown tones. Brown just makes me feel “whoop whomp, sad trombone” for some reason.
Value Village has wised up to Jimmy Choo, hah! I bought my old pair of Choo pumps for $8 a few years ago. This pair of flats was marked at $40. Whoo boy.
I tried to get my mom to buy these brand new peep-toe wedges, but she held out because she thought they were a little pricey. And you thought I was cheap …
No secret that I bought this. And loooove it.
I also bought this Anthro dress. For $3.50, are you kidding me? Thrifting Anthro pieces is one of my biggest weaknesses, and I love Nathalie Lete’s whimsical prints. I hunted one of her skirts on eBay for almost a year, after all – there was no way I’d leave this behind. Plus, I love butterflies. This dress was missing its belt and detachable shoulder straps but that didn’t bother me at all because I likely wouldn’t have used either.
Technically, I bought this at the antique mall, not at a thrift store, but the price was in the same ball park. You know I love me a good brooch.
These are some weird-ass shoes, and I love them. For some reason, they remind me of the bottle of that Angel perfume that used to be super popular when I was in high school. Anyone know what I’m talking about? Anyway, I bought them because I thought they’d work great with an outfit I was planning to wear at a gala event. Since I wasn’t buying anything else for the occasion, I didn’t mind splurging on shoes I may only ever wear once.
These, on the other hand, are pretty much classics. And they were brand new – the sole completely pristine. They came to less than $12 after a 30% off coupon. Crazy good deal.
Ditto for these La Canadienne boots, which netted around $18. I’m now set for winter boots for a while, I think.
All in all, another solid month of thrifting. How did you fare, my fellow thrift lovers?
The Thierry Mulger perfume Angel that smells like chocolate? Bleugh but I know what you mean. The Calvin Klein dress with the red top and black/white skirt is gorgeous on you dammit.
You know, I don’t think I’ve ever smelled it. I just remember the ads with Nadja Auermann (sp?) – loved those.
I love seeing your thrifty finds! I have been wearing an H&M plaid button-down and a vintage ’90s Coach bag ($12) that I thrifted last month, and two things I haven’t worn yet: a great cape coat ($5) and a genuine suede DKNY vest that I am looking forward to picking up from the cleaners (really hope the $35 cleaning will be worth it…I paid $5 for the vest!)
Oh man, vintage Coach for $12 – I’m jealous! The suede vest sounds interesting too – and $40 all in is still a good deal.
where do you ladies find these pieces. I have not had good luck here in Ottawa at all. Mind you I’m still new to thrifting
For thrift, I mostly shop at Value Village and Goodwill. I occasionally check out some of the smaller thrift stores in my area, but I’m less diligent about that. There are also really great consignment stores in Edmonton. Most people are surprised to find that out, but Edmonton has one of the best resale/secondhand clothes markets in Canada, IMO.
Hello Adina!
This is my first reply after months of looking through your archives. I want to say how much I am inspired to rethink my wardrobe and, even today, your influence was apparent.
I pulled out an old thrifted jacket, and put it together with a very old for-some-reason-I-kept-it-because-it-made-me-feel-good-once top. And then made both work with a new, very swell necklace…and tada! I had a new outfit!
So thank you for being so passionate and creative! It helped me get off my duff and try to do the same!
Thank you so, so much for taking the time to read and comment – it means so much to hear from readers, especially about the ways they’ve been inspired to re-think their wardrobes. I love clothes (hah, if that wasn’t obvious) and the best part about writing this blog, is getting to share that with others who are equally excited about the subject. Sure, it might be a frivolous pastime, but it can also be such a fun way to express creativity in a small but concrete way every day (even for those of us who don’t otherwise have a lot of time in our day for creative pursuits).
Slow clapping over here for this post – nice finds!
Thanks! I’ve been finding a ton of stuff lately – must be my lucky year š
I love reading about your thrifty finds. I started exploring thrift stores for the first time this summer as a result of reading your blog and seeing the professional and casual outfits you put together. I didn’t find anything interesting at first. Just the usual worn out clothing you might associate with donated clothes. Eventually I found a few treasures. Found a nice Coach bag and a vintage YSL men’s jacket for the husband! But for the most part, the thrift stores I’ve gone to don’t have the nice items you seem to find. I have yet to see nice shoes. Maybe I just need to go more often!
Keep posting about your finds! I love reading about them!
Those are great finds!! Thrifting really varies from place to place. I think I’m lucky to live near affluent areas where people donate all kinds of barely used things.
Thrift stores get a lot of turnover, so going regularly is key, I agree. But don’t do it if you don’t enjoy it, though – it can be a frustrating experience if you hate the process (no matter how great the finds might be). I love the “hunting” aspect of it as much as the end result, and that’s what keeps me going back. (Well, that and the idea of sustainability. And the awesome scores.).
I agree there’s something thrilling about the hunt! Sometimes seeing full retail prices at stores give me sticker shock. I recently found a lace Boden top in really great condition that would have cost at least 10x what I paid.
I love the patent nude pumps. I need to find a pair of nude pumps as my ONLY work pair (Manolo Blahniks thrifted at $60) has finally died *sob* ..
Nude pumps are a great wardrobe staple. I’m using these to upgrade my Nine West pair … though, knowing me, I’ll probably end up keeping both. “You never know” is my hoarder’s refrain š
Adina, you find the best stuff thrifting! Which Value Village in Edmonton do you frequent? My go to is 34th ave!
I love ur thrift posts!
I’m in Toronto.
Congrats on ur finds! Jealous of the nude pumps find! I love stuart weitzman shoes š
Thanks! I do too – they’re so comfy.