Sophie (Chanko) Dare

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Originally published February 5, 2019

Thrift shopping is no longer perceived as something done out of necessity; rather, it has become a pastime for people from all economic backgrounds, finding fun in discovering great deals on unique clothing pieces.

The appeal of “vintage” fashion has only grown in the past decade, with Champion sweaters, overalls, and oversized jackets all making a comeback from the 80’s and 90’s. These type of throwback pieces can either be purchased new from on-trend retailers like Urban Outfitters, or for a few dollars from a local Goodwill or Salvation Army.

The thrift store appeals especially to young people, whose personal styles and tastes are constantly shifting and don’t want to spend too much on something as trivial as clothing. Modern clothing is still in demand in thrifting, with consignment shops like Plato’s Closet only buying and selling teen fashions that are currently popular.

Thrift stores have recently been flooded with donations from peoples’ closets, basements, and attics. However, January is too early for spring cleaning- this influx of decluttering is being caused by a Netflix sensation, Tidying Up with Marie Kondo.

Marie Kondo.

The Netflix original series features Marie, a tiny Japanese woman who has made an art out of decluttering a home. Her method goes by category: first by pulling out all the clothes in a bedroom, piling them all together, and getting rid of anything that “does not spark joy.” Books, papers, miscellaneous things, and sentimental items then follow in that order.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvyeapVBLWY

As viewers of the series quickly discovered, any items of clothing that hadn’t been worn for over a year obviously did not spark joy anymore, so off to the donation bins they went.

Debra Schnettler, an employee at a Michigan location of the Salvation Army thrift store, has seen the effects firsthand. “Usually, we get lots of donations before the first of the year, for the tax deductions,” Schnettler said. “But they just keep coming lately!”

John McHenry, president and CEO of Goodwill Keystone Area in Pennsylvania, was amazed at the uptick caused by decluttering. “January is usually a slower month for donations, what with the weather conditions,” McHenry said to Lancaster Online. “But this month, we’ve seen a double-digit (percentage) increase in the number of people donating. The volume of stuff is trending upward, as well.”

Racks of clothing at a Salvation Army thrift store.

Even with the boom of brick-and-mortar thrift stores, the new media has shifted the thrifting landscape with popular consignment sites like thredUP and Poshmark, as well as Instagram users running their own pages to sell unwanted clothing.

Many content creators on YouTube and Instagram have begun to produce content sponsored by thredUP, where they receive packages of secondhand clothing in almost new condition and promote the great deals found on the site. This has brought online thrifting to the attention of thousands of viewers, because who doesn’t love a good deal? thredUP mainly features name-brand, higher quality fashion that is difficult to come by on a budget.

A social media influencer promoting thredUP.

Naomi Dare, otherwise known as @happynthrifty on Instagram, began her own thrifting page only about a month ago, and has been consistently making sales ever since. “I just have so many clothes that are basically new, and I’m sure other people would love them,” Dare said. “If I didn’t wear something, I’d just give it to Salvation Army, but now I can sell it and get at least some of my money back that I spent on it.”

Dare’s self-made thrifting page.

The larger perspective brought to thrifting by Marie Kondo is the simple concept of getting rid of things that are only collecting dust and taking up room in a living space, and repurposing them or passing them on to someone who will actually use them. A pair of jeans that have never fit someone the right way could be another person’s perfect fit, and someone who wants a fun shopping trip that won’t break the bank can make a date with a friend to dig through racks of outrageous clothing from the 80’s at the Salvation Army down the street.

Decluttering can spark joy, not only for the one who donates and frees up space in their home, but also for the one who finds the donated item to be just what they needed.

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