Day 11: Shop Second Hand
As much as we might try to deny it, shopping is fun! Getting a new outfit, a great item for your home or a new piece of sports equipment is exciting.
But 10% of global emissions come from the clothing industry and it’s clogging up landfill too!
Well, you can actually have it all. You can have the fun without all the guilt by shopping second hand.
Here are my favorite places to shop:
Household Items (think vacuums, Instant Pots, shelves etc)
Boulder’s Virtual Yard Sale, Craigslist, Buy Nothing Boulder. or Facebook Marketplace.
Clothes
Common Threads, Apocalypse, Plato’s Closet or Rags in Boulder.
Or online at Poshmark, ThredUp, Swap.com, Mercari, Goodfair or Facebook Marketplace.
For extra fun, have a clothes swap party with friends or just shop your closet. I went 18 months without buying any new clothes or shoes and it was actually super liberating. When events (like weddings) came up, instead of having that mad panic to go find the perfect outfit, I knew I had to find it in my closet somewhere and so I did : )
Outdoor Gear
In Boulder there’s Boulder Sports Recycler and Play It Again Sports.
Online you have Patagonia Worn Wear, Gear Trade, REI Used Outdoor Gear, Out&Back Outdoor and The North Face Renewed
Furniture
Check out IMA Design & Consignment on North Broadway and the Amazing Garage Sale up there too.
Most towns have a ton of thrift shops you can browse but if you’re looking for something specific and more highend, check out these online options.
1st Dibs, AptDeco, Chairish, Etsy, FloorFound, Kaiyo, One Kings Lane (sells both new and used), Rejuvenation, Sotheby’s Home (for antiques) and Sunbeam Vintage.
Kids Stuff
In Boulder, I let my kids run free and buy whatever they want at Art Parts because it’s all used arts and craft stuff.
I also LOVE Childish Things. When my kids were little I used to get everything here and it’s still my go to for clothes and shoes. And of course Boulder Babies Free Swap which is a Facebook page where you can ask for items people are giving away and even request things that may not be listed.
I also have friends and family members with older kids save the stuff their kids grow out of and I offer to take it off their hands. They’re happy because they don’t have to deal with taking it to the thrift store and because a lot of stuff gets a second use on my kids. When my eldest was born a friend was giving away ALL her baby stuff and was so grateful that we were willing to just take it all. Most people just want it OUT of their houses once they no longer need it.
Challenge 11:
Go shopping! Pop into a consignment store or get online and treat yo’self, you deserve it : ) Share a pic of what you bought / acquired for free.