Secondhand Style: A Completely Thrifted Look

Thrifting is not always easy. Often, you can go thrifting and not find a single thing. Other times, you may find something great that isn’t quite perfect. It can be discouraging, but what many people don’t realize is that those not-so-perfect pieces can often be transformed into something trendy or something that fits your personal style perfectly. 

For me, I have almost always needed to alter bottoms and tops to fit me just right, and I almost always crop my tops just to fit my personal sense of style. To show how you can find thrifted pieces that work together, I have put together an almost completely thrifted outfit. 

To start, I almost never purchase shoes from the thrift store. I would rather save up for shoes that I know no one has previously owned. While some shoes you find may hardly be worn, others may have a lot of wear and tear. It is just a personal choice.  

Now for the actual thrifted outfit-- I found a nude V-neck sweater at Goodwill. While it wasn’t perfect to start, I made it exactly what I wanted it to be -- a cropped sweater. When I went into the store, I wasn’t specifically looking for a V-neck, but I was looking for a more fitted sweater and I saw the potential the GAP sweater had. I distressed the bottom a bit, and it has been a staple in my wardrobe ever since. 

Always have a general idea of what you’re looking for when you go into a thrift store, but be open to exploring and finding great pieces that are a little different than what you imagined. 

When you’re looking through the racks, also pay attention to pieces that aren’t perfect yet, but could be with some minor changes. There are a lot of small and easy alterations that can be made to transform a piece! I personally really enjoy pairing crop tops with high waisted jeans or skirts, so this completely fits my style preference. Cropping is such an easy way to modernize almost anything you find at the thrift store, and it literally takes two seconds. 

Next, I thrifted this black mini skirt from Goodwill. I knew I wanted a black mini skirt going into the thrift store and when I found the skirt, I knew exactly what to do to it. The skirt was originally knee-length, several sizes too big for me and had these cute buttons down the side. In order to update the skirt I took in the back, shortened the skirt, and put in a slit. After I had changed the skirt into what I wanted, it was the perfect skirt for going out. 

Finally, I found this Polo Ralph Lauren corduroy jacket at Goodwill to finish it off. I immediately fell in love with it. I had been looking for a jacket like it for about a month when I finally saw it. Thrift shopping can take a lot of time and patience because new pieces are coming in all the time, and is not cyclical or predictable. That perfect piece you’re looking for may not be there today, but might be in a week or two. 

The color of the jacket is a really deep purple and it’s very different from my regular coats. It was perfect for adding a nice accent to a less vibrant outfit. The fit of it is oversized and required no changes! It took me a while to find it, but it paid off when I finally did. 

While all these pieces worked with specific things in my wardrobe, it took me a little bit to find all these pieces to make a completely thrifted outfit. Overall, it took me about three months to put this specific outfit together. It took me so long because it was really hard to find the perfect oversized coat because thrifting is always harder when you have a very specific piece in mind. All the other pieces were easier to find because I had less specific intentions and was able to change them into what I wanted them to look like. I made sure to be patient and keep in mind what I was looking for when I went thrifting, and in the end, I was able to make an almost completely thrifted outfit.