How Did Thrifting Get So Bad?

Thrifting has a smell, but it also has a feel. For me, the feel is of thick, almost indestructible rayon weaves; of dense, mothbally wool; of slick, ancient crinoline; of stiff and generously cut denim. It was the feel of handstitching on a dress made from a pattern, or a cracked logo on a company picnic shirt from 1975. It was not the feel of shopping at Forever 21, even though the prices were approximately the same. Like so many of you, at various points in my life I’ve relied on thrift stores for resilient everyday clothes and delightful dress-up/costume accoutrements.

But thrifting has changed dramatically over the last fifteen years — and it’s never been more popular. In this episode, Kelsey Vlamis and I break down all the reasons for its its transformation, from the rise of fast fashion to influencers making haul videos. Plus: there’s a thrifting mystery we’d love to solve; listen and see if you can help us!

Show Notes:

• Read Kelsey’s big piece on thrifting in Business Insider — you can also read/hear her talk about it more on Marketplace

• Welp here I am in my Tiffany outfit, thrifted entirely from a now-defunct thrift store in Downtown Walla Walla, Washington

• A Fast Company overview of ThredUp’s booming business

• On the success of The RealReal

• A pretty good Reddit Thread on “Boots Theory”

• Dr. Danielle Sponder Testa is the ASU professor referenced by Kelsey

• Patagonia’s resale site, WornWear

• A pretty fun video of the Lummi Island Rummage Sale rope drop

We’re currently looking for your questions for future episodes about:

• Pre-teen influencers

• Pivoting from my beloved Paul Mescal…..can we just talk about Irish Pop Culturification (including Paul) with Caroline O’Donoghue (!)

• Budget Culture + Specifically Budget Advice You Find Dubious

• Getting into old movies!!!! Tell us why you want to get into them, why you find it difficult, and a few recent-ish movies so we can hand-pick recommendations for you

• Contemporary ideas of self-care (remember this newsletter?)

• Dad culture, whatever that means to you

• Anything you need advice or want musings on for the AAA segment — WE REALLY NEED MORE!! You can ask about anything, it’s literally the name of the segment!

• You can submit them (and ideas for future eps) here (this is the subscriber-only form!)

For today’s discussion: What’s your personal experience with thrifting / reselling, and how has it changed? What didn’t we touch on that you think is driving it? AND WHO ARE THESE TEENS IN THE BINS????

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