Alice & Olivia dress, Boohoo heels

When I was little, I refused to go into thrift stores. I think this was because my mom used to bring me thrift shopping with her almost every weekend during my childhood. My parents definitely didn’t have a lot of money, so my mom used to buy most of her clothing from thrift/consignment stores. I got so used to the bizarre smell of thrift stores that I started to avoid going with her as often as I could. As I got older, friends of mine would ask me to go thrift shopping or vintage shopping with them, and I started to venture out of my comfort zone to stores like Goodwill and Crossroads Trading. When I lived in New York City, I’d go to Goodwill or Housing Works to scout for designer duds (like Chanel and Gucci) that you can literally find as cheap as $10. Let’s just say, I’m hooked on consignment/thrift stores now. Plus, having a reliable consignment store in your area is awesome because anytime you’re looking to get rid of clothing, you can bring in yours and get money on the spot! Last week, I made $200 from bringing in a bunch of my old clothing. When the clothing I have isn’t suitable for a store, I’ll give it to my mom to bring into the hospital she works in, or I’ll drop it off at a dropbox outside of a thrift store.

The difference between thrift and consignment stores is that one gives you money for your clothing, and one doesn’t give you anything. Vintage stores are neat too- that’s where you’ll find more than just clothing. There might be furniture, records, and electronics at a vintage store. You can choose to get money right when you get to the consignment store (they usually give you between 20-40%) or, you can wait until the clothing sells and collect your money then. If you do the latter, you’ll usually make more money, but it won’t be anything near what you purchased the item for. I usually take the money and go shopping!

I found this bedazzled Alice & Olivia gem for $25 at Crossroads Trading Company in West Hollywood back in November. I first found Crossroads in Houston, and fell in love with the perfectly organized consignment store. This chain of stores has the best selections of designers for the cheapest prices: brands like Rag and Bone, Topshop, Aldo, Alice & Olivia and more fill the entire store. The prices for men & women are right in line with your budget too: you won’t expect to spend that much per item unless you’re shopping in the designer section. When I was surfing through the racks, I spotted this dress and saw the price tag of $50, with an additional sticker of 50% off of $50. What’s better than making money off of old clothing, and buying expensive clothing for a quarter of the price?

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