Nifty Thrifty Review: The Garment District

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by the pound, clothing, fashion, inhabit cashmere vest, marc by marc jacobs shirt, pendleton jacket, style, the garment district, thrift store, thrifted clothing, thrifted clothing finds, thrifted finds, thrifting, thrifting in boston

Today I took the bus over to The Garment District, one of the locations on my Boston Thrift Stores list.  It’s a massive store in Cambridge, easily identified by a bright pink band of paint around the outside.  They market themselves as an “Alternative Department Store”, and I was most excited for their ‘by the pound’ section…$1.50 per pound of clothing (!!!!!). When I got there just a few minutes before, there were already some shoppers waiting for the doors to open.

The store is truly massive.  It’s split into four major sections, on the first floor there is the ‘by the pound’ section spread out on the floor, a sell/trade section where you can sell your clothing to them, and a costume section.  Upstairs is a massive thrift store set up very much like a department store with circular racks all impeccably and almost obsessively organized.

The by the pound area is awesome.  They spread out hundreds of pounds of clothing on the floor and you can literally walk all over them, throw them around, sit down in them while you sort…anything you want!  I spent over an hour sorting through piles and piles of clothing.  They also have bins of some of the most random stuff I’ve ever seen and a bin of shoes.  At the register is a big box of plastic bags for you to stuff your finds into.

When you’re ready to check out, the register is just behind you.  You place your finds on a giant scale and scream with delight as you pay next to nothing.

Here are some pictures of the upstairs thrift store area.

I have to say, I was blown away by the by the pound section.  The upstairs store is too expensive for me (I just can’t justify paying $12 for a Forever 21 skirt) but has everything you could ever want.  They had some really cool hockey jerseys for $20 or so, which would be a great score for a christmas present for The Boyfriend.  Their vintage section is especially amazing.  If you don’t feel like sorting through piles of clothing then I guess you’re paying for convenience, which is fine!

Key Elements

Changing Rooms: Upstairs, yes. Downstairs, no.
Bathrooms: Yes
Credit cards: Accepted
Hold your bags: No
Sale sections: Yes (75% off redline items upstairs)
Parking: some street
Public Transportation: I took the 1 bus and it dropped me off about a half mile away
Address:
200 Broadway
Cambridge, MA
02139
Hours: Su-Fr 11am to 8pm, Sa 9am to 8pm (by the pound is Su-Th 11am to 8pm, Fr 11am to 6pm, Sa 9am to 8pm)

Tips for Shopping at The Garment District

• Thanks to Erin at A Wife of Material, I knew that the downstairs area didn’t have fitting rooms and she recommended wearing something tight fitting if you want to try anything on.  I second this recommendation. I wore leggings, a t-shirt, and flats.  I would avoid jeans and boots since they make bending over and wading through clothes difficult.
• Get there early.  There were already some people waiting when I got there 10 minutes before they opened, on a Wednesday.  I can imagine it getting crazy in there on a Friday or Saturday.
• Don’t bring a purse.  Mine was just in my way and I actually ended up setting it in a corner.  Just bring some cash.
• Use the plastic bags at the register.  They’ll make your life much easier.

Recommend?

YES!  Although I would suggest experienced thrifters for the by the pound section as it could potentially be overwhelming or discouraging.

My Garment District Finds

Marc by Marc Jacobs White Voile Ruffle Front Blouse (here): retails for $178

Inhabit Mid-Grey Cashmere Button Front Vest (here): retails for $242

very cool details on the back

Vintage Pendleton Wool Casual Jacket (similar here) A tricky shape and color but it’s so adorable on: retails for $158

And last and definitely least, an H&M black camisole that I’ve been desperately needing: retails for $8

I can’t remember exactly how much it all weighed, but I think it was 1.6 pounds.  That made…

My total: $2.10
Retail total: $586
Savings: $583.9, or 99.6%

Sigh.  What a great day.

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Nifty Thrifty Under $50 Outfit (sort of)

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cheap outfit, clothing, cold weather clothing, copper bracelet, crossroads trading co, fashion, gap tank, goodwill, goodwill shopping, j crew, outfit, plato's closet, style, thrifted clothing, thrifted coat, thrifted designer jeans, thrifting

Ok so this outfit isn’t exactly under $50 but it goes to show that even cold weather clothing, which tends to be more expensive, can be very cheap.

J Crew Coat: Plato’s Closet $30 / Retails for $325 (similar here)
7 For All Mankind Roxanne jeans: Crossroads Trading Co. $23 / Retail for $198 (here)
Jessica Simpson boots: Goodwill $7 / Retail for $159 (similar here)
Forever 21 pussy bow blouse: Crossroads Trading Co. $5 / Retails for $20 (similar here)
Gap tank: Goodwill $4 / Retails for $20 (similar here)
Vintage copper bracelet: Goodwill $3 / Retails for $8-$12 (similar here)

My cost: $71
Retail cost: $734
Savings: $663, 90%

What to Pack (to wear) on a Cross Country Road Trip

Tags

clothes, clothing, Cross country road trip, road trip, what to pack on road trip

First of all, the move is in high gear!  We’re officially out of our apartment, and leaving for Boston tomorrow!

It always has to become a disaster before it gets clean

We’re going to road trip across the states from LA to Boston!  I’ve been trying to figure out what to bring, and so I made these outfit suggestions for the trip…

to the Grand Canyon! BDG shorts on sale for $5, Madewell top on sale for $7, Merona belt from Goodwill, Nine West sandals for $9

Our first stop is the Grand Canyon, which I’ve never seen before.  Weather will be 77 degrees with a 30% chance of rain.  My ultimate dream is to see the sunset at the Grand Canyon, so I’m hoping to get there for the 7:15 sunset :)))

Our next stop will be Albuquerque, NM, my birth state.  It’s going to be in the 90’s so I’m going to do a cooler outfit

unmarked white tank from Goodwill $2.99, DIY shorts $3.99, Merona belt from Goodwill, F21 grey shirt for when it’s chilly in the morning from Crossroads $6.50, Nine West sandals from Crossroads for $9

After Albuquerque we’re off to Amarillo, TX, a place I know nothing about except that you pronounce the ll’s.  It’s going to possibly thunderstorm.

After Amarillo we’re going to stop in Oklahoma…

Outfit for Oklahoma, BDG shorts, DIY tank from $2.99 Goodwill shirt, Rainbow flip flops from Crossroads for $16

Oklahoma is where we’re hopefully going to be able to do a tiny bit of laundry, since I’m loving these BDG shorts.

The next part of the trip is a really long push to St. Louis.  We’re both really looking forward to this city!  We’re hoping to go out and get BBQ and drinks, so I packed a cute outfit for a night out.

Nine West sandals, Ann Taylor shirt on sale for $7, skirt from Piperlime bought with a giftcard, Talbots belt from Goodwill

Indianapolis is our next stop, and I’m particularly excited about this one because I’m going to see the headquarters of my sorority :D.  I packed a more appropriate outfit for touring the building.

J.Crew dress (gift), Born flats (gift), hopefully will also keep me cool in the heat!

We’re going to drive up to Toronto through Detroit to see some special people as well as Niagara Falls.  I think it might be chilly at the falls so I packed a more covered up outfit for that trip

We’re also going to spend a little time in Toronto so we can visit as well as see the NHL Hall of Fame, so I have a walking around outfit and an out to dinner outfit.

Nine West sandals, DIY shorts, J.Crew perfect shirt from Goodwill $3.99, Gap shirt from Goodwill $3.99

Grab dinner and some drinks…Steve Madden flats, Chambray shirt from Sears for $7, J.Crew pants for on sale for $20

And then our push to Winooski, VT to pick up my mom and say Hi and Happy Birthday to my soon to be 21 year old brother.

BDG shorts, Victoria’s Secret shirt from Goodwill $3.99, Rainbow flip flops

We will probably stay a few nights in Vermont before we head down to Boston, do laundry, etc.  Boston is only a three hour drive from where my family in Vermont lives, and we’ll be unpacking and moving a lot that day so I decided on this…

$5 shirt from my family’s trip to Jamaica, Nike shorts from Goodwill $3.99, my sneakers…don’t even want to say how much they were.

And that’s the trip!!!!  I can’t wait, I’m so excited, AHH.  Also, The Boyfriend is currently unaware of this, but we will be stopping at thrift stores along the way ;)

Our Route!

Anyone done this trip? Any advice? We could certainly use it!

Nifty Thrifty Under Fifty Outfit 5

Tags

bargain, brands, budget, clothing, goodwill, saving money, shopping, thrift stores, thrifting, under $50, vintage

I haven’t done one of these in a very long time!  Here is an under $50 outfit

 

Outfit Breakdown:

Top: J.Crew from Goodwill for $2.99, retails for $100
Shorts: Club Monaco from Crossroads Trading Co. for $9, retail for $80
Shoes: Marc Fisher from Crossroads Trading Co. for $18 (splurge…), retail for $70
Bag: Nordstroms from Goodwill for $10, (vintage), retails for $45
Bracelet: Goodwill for $2.99, (vintage), possibly retails for $10
Earrings: on sale at Sway for $5
Belt: Merona from Goodwill for $1.99, retails for $20

Outfit retail cost: $330
My cost: $50
Savings: $280

DIY High Waisted Denim Shorts, Step-by-Step Instructions (with pictures)

Tags

clothing, denim, distressed high waisted shorts, DIY, diy clothes, diy goodwill projects, goodwill, high waisted denim, high waisted shorts, hipster shorts, refashion, shopping, shorts, shorts from jeans, thrifted diy project, thrifting, urban outfitters

***UPDATE***

Here’s how the shorts look after some washing and wearing

 I’ve seen a lot of girls wearing shorts like these: hipster, distressed, high waisted, mom jeans, denim shorts.  They’re not exactly me…but I thought it would be fun to do a DIY project.  They’re all over Urban Outfitters for about $40-$50 a pair, but I made mine for $6 each :) here is a black pair and here is a blue denim pair from Urban.

Although they took me forever, they’re super easy to make.  I think finding the right pair of jeans is the hardest part!  I tried on about 7 pairs and found 2 that worked.  Lucky me, it was $5.99 jeans day at Goodwill!

I think that vintage-y not cool mom jeans are the best: look for Levis, DKNY, Kirkland, or others.  You can always do other brands like Gap, Old Navy, Abercrombie etc.  Also, I chose jeans that were way too big…I usually wear a 6 to 8, but these jeans were a size 14.  Additionally, I think that thicker denim frays better.  You can do any color!

You need mom jeans (Levi’s, DKNY, etc. work well), scissors, and a pencil to get started

Here are the step-by-step instructions!

Lay the jeans out and get an idea of how they look

Put them on and measure where you want to cut.  This is really important!!!!!!! I found that about 2 inches from the crotch of the jeans was perfect.  For the outside, I decided to cut it on the diagonal because I think it’s cuter…

Cut away!  Don’t worry about making it perfect.  I ended up fraying mine afterwards, so any imperfection are hidden, and they actually look cuter a little messy.

You can see the diagonal cut in the picture above.  I cut one leg at a time because my scissors aren’t strong enough to cut through both legs at the same time.  Make sure the jeans are lined up nicely.’

Fold them over…

…and follow the same line as the other leg.

Tada!!!!!!

After I cut mine I distressed them with scissors, a fork, a steak knife and a cheese grater.  I think the best method was to slice little lines with the steak knife (you could use a razor or exacto knife if you have one…) and then shred it with the cheese grater from all directions.  I did the pockets, front legs, belt loops, etc.  I also decided to cut the back pocket.  Here are pictures of the final result!

I also did a black pair that had the pockets sticking out.  I made them exactly the same way except that when I cut the black pair I did it inside out so that I would cut the pockets off.

The difference between the two from the front…

…and from the back

Here’s the before and after shot:

I plan on washing and drying them a few times because I think it will really help finish the distressing process…but for now, that’s how they turned out!  Let me know what you think!

 

DIY hi-lo / mullet skirt from thrifted skirt

Tags

clothing, DIY, DIY mullet skirt, diy project, Floral, goodwill, Hi-lo, mullet skirt, refashion, shopping, skirt, thrift store, thrifting, upcycled

DIY project time!! I bought this skirt from the Eagle Rock GW today for $4.99. I liked the floral pattern but not the cut…

so I turned it into a hi-lo aka mullet skirt that is so popular right now. It was soooo easy. I have to say that I did cut mine just slightly too short in the front, so next time that’s the only thing I would change. I’m not very good at measuring first haha. I have a mullet skirt that I like, so I just used that as a template.

Just cut along! If you are going to hem it be sure to leave an extra 1/4 to 1/2 an inch.

And here is the final product! Again, mine is a little too short in the front but I bought another skirt for half off at $2.50 and I’m going to do it again more carefully. Let me know if any of you have tried this before!

A Lesson on Pricing

Tags

budget, clothing, goodwill, prices, pricing, saving money, shopping, thrift stores, thrifting

This week’s nifty thrifty lesson:

Pricing

I can’t believe that I haven’t done this lesson yet.  Apologies for doing one of the most important things so late!  The way that clothes are priced at thrift stores can be tricky to understand.  This post will hopefully help you find your way around the prices at thrift stores and help you make good decisions.

How do thrift stores price their items?

Goodwill has an interesting way that they price their clothes.

• Each section has a set base price, so all shirts are $3.99, all skirts are $7.99 etc.
• Everything in the store has a barb or a sticker with a designated color.  The color of the barb/sticker does not indicate price!  Red, blue, yellow, whatever color barb is all the same price.
• Each week a certain color is on sale: this is when the color of the barb is important.
• Items that are more expensive will be marked with a specific price tag.

A Barb

These signs will be right when you walk in. Look for them to save!

A specific price tag. Exceptions to the regular pricing

Goodwill (annoyingly to thrifters) will frequently pick out higher end pieces and price them higher than their normal set prices.  This is why finding something that is designer that they’ve missed is even more exciting.  However, they don’t have specific designer racks like other thrift stores.  Higher priced things will be in the same racks as regular priced items.

Other thrift stores:

• Will usually have a certain price on each piece of clothing.
• May or may not have weekly specials, but you should always ask!
• Usually have a sale section or $1 section either somewhere in the back of the store or outside on the sidewalk.
• Frequently have racks dedicated to designer pieces.  This means you don’t have to search for them but also means that they are priced accordingly.  If designer brands are foreign to you, check out my post on designer brands.

$1 section at Out of the Closet

How much should I pay?

I find that when I’m shopping I usually have a price in my head that I refuse to spend more than on an item.  I usually spend no more than $3 on a shirt, $5 on a skirt, $7 on a dress, pants and jeans, shoes, jackets, and blazers.  If something is really high end I might spend up to $20, but that’s pretty much as much as I’ll spend, and only on something that would retail for over $100.  Having those set prices in your head will allow you to stay selective.  I can’t tell you what a great price is for a shirt because it’s totally relative.  If you need help, visiting my post on brands can help you figure out what you want to spend.

Do you have any other tips or rules you swear by?  Let me know!

A Lesson on Setting Up Your Dressing Room

Tags

bargain, blazer, clothing, dress, finds, goodwill, shopping, thrift, thrift stores, thrifting, thrifty

This week’s Nifty Thrifty Lesson:

Shopping with Siblings (And, how to set up your dressing room)

First of all: woooo!

Second of all: today I asked my brother, David, if he’d like to go thrifting with me.  I asked mostly as a joke, but to my immense surprise he said yes, so we set off to GW!

Excited to be thrifting on New Year’s Eve!

We walked in and it was hopping.

The 50% color today was grey

My brother had nooooooooooo idea what he was doing at first.  He followed me around for a while…which is typical for someone who doesn’t know how to thrift.  I finally sent him away after he said he was bored after 5 minutes.  He came back with this:

My brother, the glamour girl

He was clearly on the wrong track…….so I pointed him in the direction of the men’s stuff.  He ended up finding his own way, and I found him picking through the shirts.  So proud!

Goodwill was hopping!  I flipped through the shirts but didn’t find anything.  Then I went to the blazers and found three beautiful ones to try on.  The dresses were next, and I pulled out a few.

I decided it might be a good idea to show people how I set up my dressing room when I’m thrifting.  It’s really important to keep it all organized, especially when you have like 20 or 30 items.  I always separate my items by type, so all shirts get hung up together, all dresses, etc.

Skirts / Dresses / Blazers / Bathing suit

After I try them on I then separate them into three piles:

1. Definitely: things that you try on and immediately say “I LOVE THIS”

2. Maybe: things that you keep on a little bit longer, swish back and forth in the mirror, maybe try it on more than once

3. No: things that you either can’t get on, are way too big, you hate, you immediately say YUCK to

The things I put into the maybe pile I sort through again once I’ve tried everything else on.  I usually try them on again.  It’s important to be selective!  And there’s a reason they’re in the maybe pile.  If I can think of about 3 outfits I could use them in, then I might buy them.

I didn’t think my brother was going to be able to find anything…but while I was looking at the dresses he came up to me with a grin wearing a beautiful camel colored wool blazer.  It fit him like it was made for him!  He was stoked.  He also found a book called Stupid White Men.  Here he is, sitting in a cute plaid chair

He’s single, ladies!

So, we were finished!  David’s total came to $6…$5 for the blazer and the book was 50% off at just $1.  We researched the brand when we got home Amherst and Brock.  Looks like they tend to retail for quite a bit!  I found some for sale for $75, which David couldn’t believe.

My total came to about $27.  I bought a beautiful Calvin Klein dress for $15 and two blazers…one at $7 and one at $5.  Pictures of my finds are coming soon!  The CK dress I found…the tag was still on it, retailing for $235.  Here’s a picture of it:

That’s my thrifting adventure of the day!  Hope you had an equally enjoyable day.

Have an AMAZING New Year’s Eve!

Ann Taylor Loft Dress

Tags

clothing, dress, finds, shopping, thrift stores, thrifted finds, thrifting, thrifty

I thrifted this dress by Ann Taylor Loft.  It was fairly expensive for me…about $12.  I decided it was a good investment though, so I got it.  It would normally retail for around $80.  And I was right!  It’s been great.  I’ve worn it on many occasions.  I actually really like Ann Taylor stuff and I tend to pick it out when I’m shopping.  And on this dress I especially like the flutter sleeves!  So not constricting.  Found anything great recently?

 

A Lesson on Fabrics

Tags

cashmere, clothes, clothing, cotton, fabric, fabric types, fabrics, goodwill, shopping, silk, thrift stores, thrifting, thrifty

This week’s Nifty Thrifty Lesson:

“Fabrics”

Fabrics are SO important when thrifting.  Since clothes at stores like Goodwill are generally all the same price (i.e. all short sleeved shirts are $3.99 or whatever) it’s important to be able to pick out clothing with high quality fabric that gets you the most for your money.  Plus, higher quality fabrics will last longer, look better longer, and generally just look better than lower quality fabrics!  I’ve been thrifting for so long that I can pick out a synthetic vs. cashmere sweater from across the room, but many people struggle with the difference.  Here are some tips about fabrics, as well as additional info from fabric.com.

Fabrics you should know-

Angora: a material usually in sweaters made out of rabbit fur.  Very soft and cosy.

Cashmere: THE MOST AMAZING SOFT YUMMY FABRIC EVER.  Usually sweaters are made out of it, but you can find it in capes, socks, and blankets too.  Made from goats…if you find something made from this material I would recommend just getting it.  It usually retails for no less than $100.

Chiffon: a light flowy (why is that not a word?) material that is usually used for women’s evening gowns and flowy tops.

Corduroy: a cotton fabric with piles.  Thicker and suitable for fall.  Makes great pants, jackets, and skirts.

Cotton: a great natural everyday fabric.  Just about every type of clothing has been made out of cotton.  It’s really easy to take care of and can come thicker or thinner.

Jersey: a knit fabric that usually makes up dresses and tops.  It’s casual, soft, and has a bit of stretch to it.

Leather: animal skin.  Obviously a huge topic of debate.  I do like leather, and if that offends you, I’m sorry.  Tends to be quite expensive so I would definitely check out any pieces you find that are leather.  Pieces that need to be fairly durable are usually leather: jackets, purses, wallets, and shoes.

Linen: another natural fabric that is a bit more flowy.  Sometimes has a ‘hippie’-ish feel to it.

Mohair: another goat hair fabric that’s soft and cosy and warm.  Sweaters, coats, suits and scarves are usually made out of it.  Also tends to be fairly expensive, but not nearly as expensive as cashmere.

Satin: shiny material usually used for women’s dresses and tops.  Tends to be quite cheap.

Silk: LOVE! Makes up almost any type of clothing and tends to be very expensive.  Some synthetic fabrics can mimic silk so it’s important to check to make sure it’s 100% silk (it will say so on the tag).  I love the feeling of silk and usually buy it when I find it.

Suede: a leather with a soft external feeling.  Can also be faux.  Usually shoes, jackets, and maybe pants.

Tweed: a woolen-y fabric that’s warm.  See the picture to the right!

Wool: we’ve already discussed several types of wool.  I personally don’t like wool besides cashmere because it makes me itchy, but it’s a great warm, waterproof, and heavy duty fabric.

Additional fabrics you should familiarize yourself with:

acrylic-manmade, soft and very washable
nylon-bathing suit type material, little ‘real’ clothing is made from nylon
polyester-often blended with natural fabrics, doesn’t wrinkle easily and is durable
rayon-often substituted for cotton, though it is manmade
spandex-stretchy, tight material used for workout clothes etc. but also found in jeans to give them stretch. LYCRA is a brand  name for spandex

My next tip is…

Be able to recognize a fabric by touch.

This way you won’t have to check the tag of each piece of clothing to find out what it’s made out of.  It takes some time, but it’s really worth it.  The way I shop is usually by flipping through each piece and feeling it to tell what it’s made out of.  Of course I pay attention to other things too, but fabric is a pretty big factor for me.  If I feel something that I like (silk, cashmere, etc.) I pull it out and inspect the other things about it like style, color, etc.

Always check for damaged fabric

Things that end up at thrift stores can be damaged.  Goodwill in particular does a pretty good job of keeping those things that are really ripped up and/or old out of the racks.  If things are damaged, they’ll usually be priced accordingly.  For example, I recently bought a pair of 7 For All Mankind jeans, which are usually marked up to around $15-20, for the ‘regular’ pants price of $7.99 because they had a pretty big tear.  You should always look every piece of clothing over for rips or tears.  If you can sew and love something, I would say buy it and fix it…otherwise, FORGET IT! It’ll sit in your closet and you’ll never get it repaired, never wear it, and end up having wasted your money.  Especially because some fabrics are really hard to fix, like denim.

Avoid fabrics that are really worn.

You can tell if a fabric is really worn (and therefore old/close to tearing itself) if the color is really faded, it’s pilling, or it feels super thin.  There’s no point in spending your money on these items.

Be aware of fabric care

Does it need to be dry cleaned?  Can you just throw it in the dryer?  Almost every piece of clothing will have a tag that explains the care required for it.  Sometimes it’s on the back of the size tag that’s on the back of the neck, and sometimes it’s on a tag closer to the bottom hem of the shirt (or whatever).  I recommend checking these out.  If getting something dry cleaned is going to be an issue for you, it may be better to skip it.  Sometimes it explains the required care in words, and sometimes in symbols.  Here is a chart!

So that’s the lesson on fabrics.  Did I miss anything?  Are there fabrics you wished I’d included in here?  Any tips?  Leave a comment!