Charity Chic

  I had spent the whole morning splurging and trying on things that I couldn’t possibly afford at the Billion Dollar Babes sale.  So afterwards, I felt the need to purge my guilt by going thrift/charity shopping.  (Key: Charity = Thrift).  Now, a few years ago, you really couldn’t pay me to go  into a charity shop.  I was vintage shopping yes, but the thought of charity shops balked me because a) 95% of the clothes are usually cheap tat and so in order to find the gems, you really have to roll up your sleeves and hunt, b) the condition compared to vintage stores where they usually wash the clothes is appalling and c) those were the days when vintage shopping was ACTUALLY affordable and thus, there was no need for charity shopping.

Nowadays, I’m less of a snob about these things and I really enjoy the hunt and the rummage.  I also find that if you go to the more upscale parts of London (I assume this applies to other places too) like Chelsea, Notting Hill and Hampstead, the stuff you can find is mind-boggling good and far less priced than what you would pay in a designer consignment/vintage store.  For example, in a Cancer Research shop off Kings Road, I found an Armani navy satin dress for £10 (sadly too big for me) and a pair of Chanel ballet pumps for £15 (again too big). 

My challenge was simple.  To find an outfit for less than £10 – not just a cheap thrill that I’d buy for the sake of it being cheap, but an outfit that I would ACTUALLY wear out.

I scored big time – 2 outfits for £10.50 (ok…it was 50 pence over but that doesn’t count since I found the coin at the bottom of my bag!)

This is a size 22 black sheath top that was £4.75 that I would wear as a dress.  It’s a matter of seeing things out of context.  Most people would look at it and think ‘big black tent’.  I was looking at it and thinking ‘Aha…looks like the Miss Davenporte dresses that Ashley and Mary Kate Olsen wore a while back!’

It’s no wonder stylists go into charity shops all the time, because they have the super skills to take something really normal and sometimes dodgy looking and make it fabulous.  I’m trying to slowly learn the tricks of the trade and do the same…my bank account will thank me later!

The next two items were seriously cheapie cheapie.  The green silk shantung top was £2 and the old Levi’s jeans were £3.75.  They did look like ‘mum’ jeans on the rack – high waisted and v. tapered.  But if you wear long enough tops over them and roll up the cuffs a little, they could work in a lot of ways.  I think I’d wear this outfit to a gig or something. 

Conclusion? Challenge completed!  I feel all the better for buying two outfits for £10 and it’s all gone to a worthy cause.  The satisfaction of the experience is also well worth going through all those smelly racks of clothing.

Here are some tips from guardian.co.uk if you wanna be a super thrifter!