A little back story first...
For Sophia's first nine months, we were extremely fortunate enough to receive an abundance of clothes that we did not have to buy her anything. For 9-12 months, we were given quite a bit of second-hand items that were still in great condition. This was also around the time I started thrifting for clothes for her which now makes it a year that I have been thrifting for second-hand finds for our constantly growing toddler and new baby to be so here are the things I have learned in the last year about thrifting for children's clothes.
Brands
I personally look for name brand items only such as Carter's (I'm talking Carter's Carter's, not Child of Mine Carter's or Just One You Carter's, more on this in a second), Baby Gap, OshKosh, Children's Place, etc.Here is why.
When I am thrifting I am trying to save money but I do not see a Baby Gap onesie for $1.50 and a Garnamials onesie for $1.50 to be equal in quality. I am not saying there is anything wrong with Garnamials but I could spend another dollar or two to get it brand new at WalMart so it just is not a good deal to me. This is the same for the different sub-Carter's brand at Target and WalMart. They are cute and I buy them but I would buy those brand new since the pricing isn't that far off. Also to note, there is a difference in quality between the Carter's main brand and sub-brands, hence the different pricing at each store and why they are made specifically for those stores. I have personally found that Carter's main brand can withstand a lot more washes then Just One You and Child of Mine therefore again I wouldn't buy those sub-brands used since the quality has already started to deteriorate depending on how many washes it already went through which gives you less uses of it.
Quality
Since I started talking about quality, let's discuss this next. After sorting through brands, I check the quality of the item. Does it have any stains? Is it faded? Are there holes? Just because something is a brand name doesn't necessarily make it a great buy if there is baby spit up or food stains stuck in the item and there better not be any holes. I guess faded items could be up to your discretion but I personally don't buy faded items no matter how good of a deal it is unless it is handed down to me for free but that is a different story.Tags
There will be times when you come across items that are name brand AND still have the store tags on them. As in, never have been worn. I typically do not even hesitant and will just grab these items before anyone else sees the goodness I just landed on. Of course, I do make sure the sizing and season is correct for us and if they aren't I think of friends' and family members' whose children's birthdays or baby showers are coming up.Frequent Shopper
My last piece of advice is the more often you go, the more often you find steals. You don't have to buy something every trip but going often allows you to see the newest stuff they put out and you are more likely to find those items that still have store tags on them. You are also more likely to figure out their sale schedule. The second hand store I frequent has their onesies for 10 for $10 every so often which is a great deal especially when I find all Carter's. Also following your local second-hand store on social media, they may list bigger items (like cribs, strollers, etc.) or their latest sales so you know exactly when to go in if you don't have time to stop by a few times a week.Do you buy your children's clothes second hand? Are there any tips I left out that works for you?
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