By now most of us are willing to admit that our economy is in the thick of a recession. This means lots of us are cutting back wherever possible. *Sigh.* But hey, just because you need to cut back doesn’t mean you can’t still be fly. Want to know how to be uniquely stylish while saving dough? Consider shopping at Goodwill.

Admittedly, in the past I slept on the gems that can be found at a secondhand store. When I was growing up, my Grandma used to shop at secondhand stores, and I didn’t get it. I thought the quality of their goods sucked and it was a waste of time to sift through all that stuff to find something worth buying.

That changed for me last week, when I went to Goodwill to recycle some electronics. After dropping off my e-waste, I decided to take a look around and see what Goodwill had to offer. I was pleasantly surprised to find a few unique and stylish items to add to my existing wardrobe collection.

Hip Hop Muse Came Up At Goodwill

These items are pretty dope, right? The gloves are very feminine and retro. The silver detail adds a bit of edge. They were brand new too, still had the tags on them. The chain cinch belt makes me feel like an over-accessorized celebrity. Stylin’ on them fools.. And the chocolate brown cable knit bag is super trendy. Spotted elsewhere for $65. Copped from Goodwill for $6. Total spend: $11. Holla atcha girl when you see me in the streets, being fly and holding enough to make a contribution to my 401k.

Here are a few things to consider when shopping secondhand:

1. “Hip Hop Muse,” you may say. “Wearing other peoples’ unwanted goods gives me the bubbleguts.” To that I say…you make a great point. The idea of wearing something from God knows where is quite daunting. I recommend dry cleaning any secondhand clothing items. You don’t know whose arse touched those clothes before you came along.

2. Found a top you love with a missing button? Zipper broken on that super cute handbag? Negotiate. Usually the clerks at Goodwill will cut a deal with you if you do a little haggling, especially if the item has a defect.

3. If you see something you like, grab it immediately. It isn’t wise to pass up an item you like, even if you aren’t completely sold on it. If you initially pass it up and decide to go back and get it, someone else may have grabbed it.

4. Be prepared to make fixes. The handbag is missing its clasp, so I’m going to hit up an arts and crafts store to find a replacement. Then it’s going to my local shoe repair where it will be fixed. It will be like brand new!

I came up, so can you. I’m still quite iffy about buying clothes from Goodwill, but if I saw something I couldn’t do without, I would snatch it up with a quickness. I can get over my secondhand store misgivings to come up on a good deal.

Feel free to share your thoughts on your secondhand store experiences.

Peace,

The Hip Hop Muse

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