Are you underwhelmed, sometimes, at the stuff in the thrift, resale, and consignment shops around you?
All you need to do is add a little YOU.
More? Sure. Look here and here and here on our Pinterest Idea Boards!
Author: Auntie Kate of Too Good to be Threw
How often should you wash it?
Not everything needs to be washed every time you wear it. BUT… everything you want to take in to your favorite resale, consignment, or thrift shop should be freshly washed. Yes, even if it came straight from your closet.
Thanks to businessinsider.com for this graphic.
Kids & Clothes: A Match NOT Made in Heaven
Children are tough on clothes. After all, they’re closer to the dirt than we are! We’re happy to pass these care tips from resale moms on:
To keep their favorites as bright as the first time they wore them, add a cup of white vinegar to your rinse cycle once in a while. Vinegar cuts soap residue which dulls and grays colors.
Provide your children’s dirty-clothes hamper with spring-type clothes pins. Ask the kids to tag stains to be pre-treated before washing.
Collar stains are easily removed with shampoo. Use that brand no one liked!
Cut your mending-pile work by dabbing clear nail polish over the threads that hold buttons on. Prevents wear that leads to lost buttons.
Remove drawstrings on hoods that can present a tangling mishap.
And best tip of all: shop consignment and resale for your children’s wardrobe! If they’re growing fast, your budget will be able to keep up. Shopping at a Professional Resale Shop means more money for that college fund!
Collecting: More fun than… just about anything!
What do you collect? Whether it’s art pottery or souvenir spoons, collecting can be a way to have fun, make family memories, or even invest in the antiques of the future!
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Choosing what to collect can be as simple as looking around your home. What gives you a warm feeling every time you see it? Maybe it’s your vintage wooden chairs gathered around your kitchen table, or perhaps you love the botanical prints on your family room wall.
Don’t be afraid to mix the whimsical with the good. Who says it has to all be collector’s items? An appealing addition found at a rummage sale can enhance and extend your collection.
Display your items in cycles. Choose a favorite piece to highlight monthly. You’ll enjoy your selections more when pieces are rearranged periodically.
What do you collect? Or what would you LIKE to? Your friendly local resale or consignment shopkeeper will be happy to keep an eye out and call you when something likely comes in. Who knows:
The shop might even run across something you’ve wanted for years!
See hundreds of wonderful collecting ideas on the HowToConsign Pinterest boards.
Kiss a Resaler today!
Now you may or may not have gotten your Valentine’s Day treats, attire, gifts or decor at a consignment, resale, or thrift shop.
But you know what? Those shopkeepers deserve a kiss (or at least a pat on the back!) for being the MOST local of the “Shop Local” businesses in your city, town, village, neighborhood.
Because the goods they sell aren’t shipped cross-country or cross-world. No mile-long tankers steamed across the Pacific to fill a resaler’s store. No tractor-trailer idled upwind from your kids’ playground. Best of all: You don’t have to trek to the mall only to find nothing interesting. Resalers are close to home and offer more locally-popular styles than any “new” retail store could.
Because their eco-footprint is light as can be. Whether your style runs to Birkenstocks or Manolo Blahniks, resalers re-use as much as they can. For example, their counter might be a salvaged door or a “throw-away” from the luxe store over at the mall. Best of all: resale shops offer you the chance to tread lightly on our planet, too!
Because their suppliers aren’t mega corporations. Resalers stock their stores with gently-used goods that have spent a little time in the homes of folks just like you. So all money made stays local. Best of all: You too can Turn Your Cluttered Closets into Cash!
Because 100% of the money you spend stays in your community. Consignment shops pay their consignors (who chances are, live local… or at least spend their cash-in-hand at the cafe next door or the specialty shop two blocks down.) Buy-outright shops create a cash flow that generally flows right back into your local economy. And non-profit thrifts? The money you give them goes directly to your community through their mission, whatever it may be. Best of all: Resale shops are the MOST LOCAL of all Shop Local Shops… and they themselves shop locally with PRIDE! (So ask them the best place to… They’ll know, and they’ll tell you! After all, they’re locals!)
How to Consign 