“Thrifting refers to the act of shopping at a thrift store, flea market, garage sale, or a shop of a charitable organization, usually with the intent of finding interesting items at a cheap price.” This definition of thrifting – provided by niftythriftygoodwill.com – captures the essence of this frugal act and the thoughtful people who look for good deals when shopping.

When I was younger, I used to think that only some people bought clothes from a thrift store, especially the Salvation Army, which is where my mom and I have donated several times to, because that’s usually who I tended to see there. My mom, sister, and I would empty out our wardrobes of clothes that no longer fit us or things we just didn’t need and donate them it to our nearest Salvation Army center.

However, over the years I’ve come to better understand thrifting and the positive side of it. Macklemore says it best in song “Thrift Shop” when he says, “I‘m gonna pop some tags/Only got twenty dollars in my pocket/I – I – I’m hunting, looking for a come-up.”

I looked into good thrift stores, thinking that I would begin taking part in the trend, but when the time came to ask my mom if she could take me, she yelled at me.“Why do you want to wear other people’s clothes? You think I don’t have enough money to pay for you?” As I grew older, and even began conforming to the thrifting trend, I grew an interest for thrifting and the sweet things you can find. In the past, I’ve heard of people paying less than $10 for a whole outfit or even finding great antiques. I can’t forget to  mention high-end clothes like Polo Ralph Lauren or Tommy Hilfiger that one can find at thrift stores!

As bougie as this may sound, I went to the thrift store and tried to find some nice clothes, but my mother’s mentality really got to me. I’m low-key, a germaphobe person, so it was hard for me to try on certain clothes. I can say the experience was amazing. You just need to go with experienced people, not come in with a set outlook, and just have an open mind.

I walked out with some long-time-coming, high-waisted shorts and cute linen shorts as well.