vintage clothing stores are the tonier half of this category...often...they're set up like sophisticated boutiques...offering the most interesting styles of old clothing and accessories...the owners of these shops usually have a passion for vintage clothing and an educated eye...which is passed on to you in the form of a well-edited group of merchandise as well as higher prices...
thrift stores...on the other hand...make no pretentions to style or quality...they're simply places that sell..usually for charity...anything that anybody gives them...thrift stores offer the ultimate shopping adventure and the ultimate payoff...if you know your stuff and paw assiduously through the racks...you can come up with some pretty sweet "quality" pieces...at $2 to $10 a piece...
if you've never shopped at a vintage clothing store...don't reject them out of hand...you can find pieces there that work perfectly well with a modern wardrobe...but you also have to have a good eye...you don't want to walk out looking like a picture of your mother in 1949...head-to-toe vintage "costumes" don't work...but mixing a few interesting old pieces with your new clothes can be a sensible way to dress and shop...
at thrift stores...you can find items that no one would ever guess were old...never mind that they cost little to nothing..but it takes a lot more work and a much keener eye...they can be great fun...however...as well as an educational experience...and if you buy somthing that's a mistake...you're out only a few bucks...
keep in mind...thrift stores are always best in those out-of-the-way places...thrift stores in bigger and trendier cities have usually been picked through by those in the know...who snap up all the "good" stuff the minute it hits the racks...
any vintage or thrift store shopping has to be approached from the viewpoint of fun...you're not going to buy your winter wardrobe or complete an outfit...but you might chance on one wonderful something that will make you feel great whenever you wear it...and remember how little you spent for it...
and...because the nature of the clothing and the stores themselves differ so markedly from any kind of store selling new clothing...your shopping strategy has to be different...too...tomorrow i will post some tips...
so...are you a thrifter? if so...share one or two of your treasures that you've found...
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