Frugal Tips for Thrift Store Success

Kate Sorensen is a pioneer of the savings world and her effort can be found on her site.
Sorensen is always on the lookout to uncover all coupons and savings for consumers.

It’s fun to shop, and we all need to add new items to our closet on a regular basis. Maybe
you’ve got a new dress code, or you’ve lost weight, or you’re simply bored wearing
the same old things. While it can be necessary to buy new clothes, it can also be very
costly. One outfit can cost hundreds of dollars, and most people do not have that much to
spare. Money-saving sites can help you trim costs and you can save by using some smart
shopping strategies.

Consider the internet.
Yale University has given its students some tips on thrifty shopping, and while
they mention well-known thrift stores such as Goodwill and the Salvation Army,
they also point out that you might try Craigslist or Freecycle.
Often people will have clothes that they’ve never worn or that they simply have
no use for, and they don’t want to throw them away. You can get some very good
deals this way, and you can start the shopping process from your couch.

Borrow what you need.
Perhaps you’re going to an awards dinner or your daughter needs to go to the
prom. You may be able to find just the right thing at a thrift store or on sale
somewhere, but you might also just be able to borrow what you need.
You won’t have to store an outfit you may never need again, and you won’t have
to spend any money to look fabulous.
This is also a great strategy if you do a lot of socializing in the same circles—
you don’t want to always wear the same thing if you’re seeing the same people,
and this would allow you to switch outfits on a regular basis without an enormous
clothing budget.

Shop at thrift stores and consignment shops.
A lot of the items are in like-new condition, and you’ll have a lot more variety to
choose from then you would in a department store, because you won’t be limited
to the five items that every place seems to carry.
An article on "Saving Money during the Holidays" says that you can often find
designer clothing at these stores. Sometimes the staff do not know what they are
pricing, so you can get some incredible deals on some big-name brands.

Once you’re wearing the outfits you’ve purchased no one is going to know where you
bought them or how much you paid – unless you decide to spill the secret. Get ready to
look fabulous and perhaps you can treat yourself to a nice dinner somewhere with all the
money you’ve saved. You deserve it.