Shop & Style
I bought this vest last week at a little thrift store that was running a 25% off everything sale. It was tucked in the men’s outerwear section and it’s a wonder I found it at all (I don’t usually sell menswear so I don’t shop in that section much). Of course I grabbed it as soon as I saw the Eileen Fisher label!
Purchase price: $4, CHKD thrift store
Shipping and fees: $8.70
Sale Price: $47.99
Total Profit: $35.29
Have you found a thrift score lately? Post below!
I almost didn’t buy these! They were $12 at the thrift store and that just seemed like a lot to me. But what the heck, they were made in Italy and it looked like real fur, right? I also did a little research and found out these did have a good resale value.
Purchase price: $12, Goodwill
Shipping and fees: $20.80
Sale Price: $107.99
Total Profit: $75.19
The biggest shock of all was that they sold for this much in in April! I really thought I’d be hanging on to these boots until mid-October, when people are thinking about skiing and being cold again. I’m so glad I priced them high–these are a good example of how you could price something too low, thinking it was out of season. Always research your prices!
Do you have a thrift score to boast about? Share below!
Lilly Pulitzer became a major fashion designer in the 1960s. She and her husband ran a juice stand in Florida and she asked a dress makers to sew her something that wouldn’t show those bright colored fruit stains so badly. And that was the start of the gorgeous, happy prints of this brand!
I almost always pick up Lilly Pulitzer items when I find them, but not all of them sell this well. I attribute the bidding to the right time of year and the right size (this was an XL).
Purchase price: $5, Goodwill
Shipping and fees: $9.40
Sale Price: $53.99
Total Profit: $39.59
Do you have any Lilly Pulitzer dresses in your closet? Share below!
I nabbed this beautiful 1950s style original vintage Nina Ricci dress at a local thrift store. I know, it’s just bizarre what ends up at the Goodwill, but there it was, waiting for me!
Purchase price: $7, Goodwill
Shipping and fees: $28.83 (it went to Australia!)
Sale Price: $103.75
Total Profit: $67.92
I knew it was original by a couple things: labels and seams. This dress had two different labels–one from the designer, Nina Ricci, and another from a store called Thalhimers. Thalhimers started as a dry-goods store in 1842 and became was a popular department store chain until 1992, when it merged with Hechts. The flagship store was in Richmond, VA. As you probably know, modern clothing doesn’t usually have a store specific label sewn on. The store’s name on modern clothing is on one of the paper tags, along with the price tag and extra buttons.
Modern clothing also has tiny fabric allowances at the seams. Vintage clothing often has an inch or more at the seams, like this dress. It allows a tailor to adjust the item for the perfect fit.
These are the kind of thrift scores that make me want to keep shopping and selling! Have you scored any great vintage thrift finds lately? Share below!
Springtime is the time for dresses! I’ve been selling retro, pinup style dresses like crazy lately. Most aren’t true “vintage”, but modern vintage. They share some similar characteristics, like classic patterns and bright colors. I price them at auction for $28 and up.
The great thing about these dresses is brand doesn’t matter. Of course, if the dress is a designer brand it will be worth more, but even Walmart brands are worth at least $28 if they look the part. I’ve gotten as much as a $150 for a pinup style dress. The best part is that the dresses sell FAST. So I look for good deals at the thrift store (I hate to pay more than $7 for a dress) and get these dresses listed as quickly as possible.
When thrifting for pin up dresses, look for:
When you list these types of dresses, use the terms “retro,” and “pin up” and definitely “Plus size” if that applies. Display with a crinoline underskirt for maximum poof for the full skirt.
Below I’ve paired a dress I’ve sold with a similar pin-up styled dress on the left.
Have you sold any pin up style clothing lately? Post a link below!
These cuties are by United Nude and they are so well made! The pink leather on the inside was supple and the fabric uppers was just a little stretchy. I’ll tell you the truth–I was really hoping they would fit me. But they were too big. So I sold them for a good profit.
Purchase price: $5, Goodwill
Shipping and fees: $12.95
Sale Price: $67.98
Total Profit: $50.03
Do you have a thrift score to brag about? Comment below!
I had NO IDEA this would be a thrift score. I thought it was a pretty good buy but nothing exceptional. It absolutely boggles my mind that 3 buyers battled it out to the extent they did.
Listed at 7 day auction for $42.99 plus shipping.
2 days before the end of the auction, the bids went up to $76. Hot diggity dog! I thought. I’ll take that on a $5 dress all day, every day.
The day before the auction ended the price doubled. And then the final, winning buyer went up $2.50 just to seal the deal.
Winning bid: $152.50 plus $4.99 shipping.
What made this dress special?
Sometimes the starting price of an auction influences the perception of the item’s value. There’s something about seeing an item listed with a starting price at $0.99 that makes a buyer wonder if it’s only worth that much. With clothes, the value depreciates so quickly due to trends, style, time, and buyer’s emotions that you can really NEVER tell what an item is worth on the resell market. I figured since retro dresses were in, and that this was a larger size, I had a shot at getting more for this item than usual.
Even taking all these things in consideration, it was just a lucky break for me that 3 buyers all wanted this dress at one time. But luck favors the prepare, so you can bet I immediately went out and bought all the fluffy skirted, retro style dresses I could find. Like these:
I love going to the DAV Thrift stores in the Hampton Roads area. They have good prices regularly, but they also mark down items and offer sales (Goodwill, you could learn a thing or two). I got $5 off every $25 I spent and several items were only $0.99!
Total: $113
Number of items: 33
Price per item: $3.44
Estimated Profit: $420
Generally I don’t buy an item that won’t make at least $10 profit, and many of the pieces in this thrift haul will bring more. I think the biggest seller will be the Stetson boots. I sure hope so because they were the single most expensive item, priced at $10.
I’m thinking about hemming that vintage blue belted dress to a flirty-er length. Right now it hits mid-calf (is that EVER flattering?) so maybe there’s refashion post coming up.
In a couple weeks when things sell, I’ll post an update to this thrift post.
Got a thrift haul to share? Comment below!
My polka dot dress was another pregnancy loan from my sister-in-law. It’s not even a maternity dress–but it has inverted pleats on the skirt at the waistline and it’s stretchy. I think I may like non-maternity dresses better than maternity dresses for 1st and 2nd trimester just because they don’t overwhelm the body. Those maternity dresses can look just like circus tents if they don’t fit perfectly.
Dansko shoes have a longstanding reputation for being comfortable. Their Professional Clog is a favorite with anybody who has to stand most of the day for their job. But Dansko also makes THE CUTEST sandals. The block heel and little brass tacks are on trend this spring, and I love the navy color.
The great thing about these Dansko shoes is that I actually made money buying them. I purchased them as a 3 pair lot on Ebay, and then sold the other 2 pairs. I’m actually $13 to the good on these shoes.
Dress: En Focus, FREE (I think she got it at Ross)
Shoes: Dansko’s, better than free
Purse: Nine West, $4 thrifted
Jewelry: Pearls, a gift from my husband from way back
So here’s a lot of Dansko and Sanita shoes I scored on ebay for $32:
I really bought this lot for the navy blue sandals. I loved the big block heel and the little stud tacks on the side. On the resale market, Dansko shoes go for $20-$80 depending on the condition and the style. These sandals are worth at least $30 on the resell market. But being a fashion reseller, I definitely did not want to pay $30. I want my wardrobe to pay for itself. So when I saw this lot, I couldn’t turn it down. It was like buy one, get 2 free!
As you can see, the lighting on the original Ebay listing wasn’t the best, and usually selling items in lots is NOT a good way to get top dollar per item. So I won the auction and relisted the other two pairs of shoes. Here’s what my listings looked like:
As you can see from my photos, these shoes were in much better condition than the original listing showed. I used natural light and listed the shoes individually. It took a couple weeks to sell both pairs. The buyer of the Marcelle clogs actually picked them up in person to save on shipping costs (an additional $6.99) since she lived in the area.
Total gross for 2 pairs: $59
Total inventory cost for lot of 3 shoes: $32
Fees & shipping: $12.9
Total profit after expenses: $14.10 plus a pair of cute sandals
And here’s me wearing the blue Dansko sandals that I actually MADE MONEY by purchasing. I love it when I buy stuff that pays for itself!
Do you make your wardrobe pay for itself? Comment below!
