The EPIC Thrift Haul

I may have slightly over-hyped this on my IG stories and in the title of this blog post, but I think you will agree that my enthusiasm was understandable; even for a seasoned thrifter, scoring $5,000 worth of clothes for $65 is not an everyday kind of event. I’m gonna go ahead and chronicle this thrifting milestone for posterity, because I have a feeling it may prove to be one of a kind. I have said that before, I know – and, hey, I would love to be wrong – but indulge me a little, won’t you?

I have been neglecting Value Village a bit lately because their prices are getting to be bananas. Goodwill has been good to me in the meantime; I have no complaints. I ended up visiting the VV on Whyte Avenue purely out of impulse, motivated by what I call my thrifting “spidey senses”. I don’t know if other thrifters experience this, but I occasionally feel especially drawn to visit a particular location; not “drawn” in the usual sense of “I feel like thrifting today!” (that would be any place, any day, hah) but in the sense of “something over there is calling my name”. I’m not a superstitious person, but I do believe in following your gut … which is maybe just a hipster way of saying I am superstitious. Anyway, on the particular fine Sunday morning in question, my gut told me to go to the Whyte Ave VV so, instead of hitting up my usual Goodwill, that’s where I headed.

Thrifting Pro Tip: All metaphysical chat aside, remember that the key to thrift success is consistency. The more often you go, the more bargains you will find. This is my hobby, and not a side hustle, so I tend to stick to the stores that are most conveniently located, foregoing the chance to score elsewhere. However, every now and then, I do check out some of the stores farther away from me … and you should too. Thrifting is highly location-specific, and inventory can vary wildly from store to store even in the same city.

My visit began innocuously enough; my rounds of the homewares aisles did not yield any interesting finds, and I didn’t feel like looking through the book section on this particular visit. I hate thrifting during the Halloween season, because the racks tend to be reorganized around those seasonal displays (which don’t interest me) and I have a hard time figuring out where everything is located. When in doubt, I hit the dress racks.

Thrifting Pro Tip: I tend to follow the same sequence whenever I’m at a particular store, which depends on how the store itself is laid out. Thrift stores can be overwhelming, and it helps to have a plan in hand before you head in. Some people like to go in with a list of specific items they want, but that’s not my style. I like to take my chances with whatever the universe wants to send my way. So, rather than a shopping list, I go in with a plan for which section(s) of the store I will visit and in what order. This might seem like a complicated tactical task, but when you know the stores well, it’s not; just a matter of routine. I find it helps me focus and avoid the distraction of a hundred racks, all clamouring for my attention.

I always check the entire dress rack, from the Small end to the XL. Things get misplaced all the time. At this particular store, I found my beloved Zero+Maria Cornejo dress (size 6) in the middle of the Large section; it looks baggy, and the size label is not easily visible, so the store employees probably just took a guess. On this occasion, I wasn’t having much luck spotting anything of interest when, lo, I came across a blazer.

Thrifting Pro Tip: Have a close look at things that are in the wrong section entirely. This is not always the case, obviously, but you might stumble upon a goldmine. Do people intentionally “hide” items around the store? I don’t have proof of that, but sometimes I wonder. It could also be an item that someone initially picked out as interesting, only to later decide against buying it. Either way, worth a look … just as it’s always a good idea to scan the “reject” racks by the changing rooms.

I cannot drag out the suspense any longer: the blazer was an Yves Saint Laurent piece from one of their 2007 collections. Here it is:

Although it’s 11 years old, I think it looks surprisingly current. The sleeve detail is fantastic. I haven’t found this exact blazer online, but similar ones run anywhere from $2,500 and up. This one was tagged at $12.99 (and I scored it for 30% less with a coupon).

Y’all can bet that, as soon as I saw it, this beauty went straight in my cart, which I proceeded to guard closely. Finding a designer piece early on during a thrift store visit is an encouraging sign for me; I assume (perhaps overly optimistically) that it means there are other great finds to be discovered. My rationale goes something like this: most people donate a bunch of things at the same time, and whoever has a YSL they’re willing to toss out, probably has an interesting purge pile.

Had I been on top of my game, I would have scoured the rest of the racks closely; but I’ve been spoiled by my thrifting luck, and I ended up half-assing the job. Rather than spend extra time in the Whyte Ave store, I decided to wrap up my visit quickly so I could hit another location on my way home. More on that in a minute.

I did find two other pieces at the first store. The first was a beautiful Oak & Fort for $6.99 less 30% off.

The other was a pretty major score in its own right, even if it was overshadowed in this case by the YSL. It was this 100% real suede fringed jacket from Maje:

Best as I can tell, this retailed for something like £400 or, roughly, $800 CAD. It’s in very good condition, and was tagged at $30 (less 30%). I wasn’t sure about buying it because it’s way outside my comfort zone, but I ultimately went for it because it was an unusual piece and I thought I would regret not getting it. Later, I found this inspo pic online, which gives me some ideas for how I might style this:

Thrifting Pro Tip: The challenging thing about thrifting is that you have to make purchasing decisions on the spot. There is no “sleeping on it” – you leave the store empty-handed, be prepared to never find that exact piece again. You might come back even an hour later and, chances are, it will be gone. So you have to make split-second decisions, sort of. Having a really good handle on your style parameters helps tremendously; for years, I didn’t quite have those nailed down, which was a huge contributing factor in the constant turnover of clothes in my closet. in effect, I would buy things to try them on in the comfort of my own home, without distractions and with my whole closet readily available. If they didn’t work out as expected, I would cycle them out. The low upfront cost make this a feasible strategy (and you can usually recoup some or all of the cost), but it can be emotionally tiring, if nothing else. It’s much better to spend time refining your style parameters, and go from there. With that said, if ever in doubt about a purchase, I tend to err on the side of buying it IF it’s a very unusual piece AND one with a high retail (and resale) value.

As planned, on my way home, I stopped at the VV near my neighbourhood. I hadn’t had much luck there recently, but I had half an hour to spare and was feeling quite satisfied with my previous purchases – I had nothing to lose. The first fifteen minutes of my visit yielded no interesting finds, so things did not get off to a good start. I was beginning to think about cutting my visit short when I came across my first find in the skirt aisle: an Eileen Fisher silk-viscose blend midi skirt for $11. I love Eileen Fisher. I’m currently obsessed with midi skirts. This one would have retailed for around $250 or so; not a huge score, but one that made me very happy nonetheless.

A few minutes later, in the blazer aisle, I found the last gem of the day: a wool blend, cropped boyfriend style jacket by Smythe. This one looked to be new, and it was tagged at $10. The original retail price would have been $800 and up.

After that, I basically gave up. I had hit the jackpot, and didn’t want to push my luck. Also, it was close to lunch time and I was hungry. But as a coda to my story, later that same day, someone posted on IG about their find of a Miu Miu skirt … at the Whyte Ave VV. I don’t know if the moral of the story is that you shouldn’t let yourself be ruled by laziness and/or hunger because you might miss out on some great find … or whether it’s that, no matter how many of us dedicated thrifters are out there looking for the next big score, there are great finds waiting for us all.