Do you buy used clothes from eBay or thrift shops?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My teen DDs love thrifting. They know they must wash any thrifted items before wearing. I have even dry cleaned some items too. I wouldn’t buy shoes secondhand but that is me. When they were younger they were always happy to get hand me downs from their older cousins and I guess thrifting is sort of an extension of that.

+1.

[Anonymous]

Yes, I buy from thrift shops. I also get things from Buy Nothing.

I wash everything. I’m still here to talk about it. No bed bugs or lice.

I don’t buy a lot since I am working from home now but T-shirts, jeans, tops, etc.

I get lucky once in a while and get some designer finds. It’s fun.

[Anonymous]

In my many years of thrifting in actual brick and mortars, I had one episode of clothes mites that ruined some clothes. Now, if I buy from an actual thrift store, I freeze my items in the freezer for 4 days, before washing, because washing them does not kill clothes mites. Freezing them does.

I order on Poshmark and Etsy (and eBay, back in the day, but not any more) and have confidence that the sellers take good care of their clothes, and just wash them as they arrive. Have never had any problems with those.

[Anonymous]

I’ve been buying second hand clothes, housewares, and furniture since I was in high school. I’m 48. I’ve accidentally purchased damaged items a few times when I didn’t inspect closely enough, and I’ve certainly purchased items I don’t end up wearing, especially post-covid since fitting rooms at thrift stores are rare now. We recently overpaid for an item on FB marketplace, but that was totally on us for getting it anyway when we saw the quality was not as expected. But those are the only issues I’ve had - no bugs or mites. My kids bring lice home from school every year but I’m not at all worried about getting them from the thrift store. I’m more concerned about bed bugs from a hotel.

That said, we don’t buy second hand upholstered furniture or mattresses. Just wood. Honestly the quality is so much better with some of the older stuff than what you can buy new. Same with some of the clothes. They don’t make ‘em like they used to!

I do wash everything when I get it home, but I wash mew clothes before wearing as well.

[Anonymous]

This Xmas I bought a coat from EBay for 19’year old DD. She loved the original coat but lost it on a school trip. When I asked what she wanted for Xmas, she jokingly asked if she was too old to ask Santa for a gift. Since the coat is no longer in production, I had to look on eBay.

Once the coat came, I washed it about 5x in detergent and Lysol sanitizing liquid. I then left it out in the sun as much as I can in November when the weather was nice.

It worked great. The coat still had a slight fragrance from the previous owner but it is a nice hint of floral scent. DD loved her gift and has been wearing it everyday since Xmas.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to buy from thrift stores but am worried about bed bugs. Maybe that's irrational?

It’s not irrational. I had an exterminator tell me there are live bed bugs at pretty much any given time at all the thrift stores (in my area) and Goodwill. Granted, it’s unlikely the one item you picked would have something. But I seal anything I buy second hand in a bag and threw it in our deep freezer for a week. Then I wash it on hot or dry clean.

[Anonymous]

I’ve bought and sold on eBay hundreds of times over the years. I just wash it as I would any new clothing. I’ve never had a problem.

[Anonymous]

Adding to the chorus. I buy a ton of stuff from eBay and thrift stores, and I just wash them when I get them home.

[Anonymous]

I don't thrift anymore because it grosses me out. Is it rational? Maybe not, but the quality of Goodwill near me has gone way downhill. I buy online and wash normally.

[Anonymous]

I keep things double bagged in the car and wash immediately.

[Anonymous]

I’ve been shopping secondhand since I was a kid and I am 51. I don’t love goodwill anymore mostly that perfume smell gets to me but I shop secondhand and on eBay all the time. There are also some nice and some very nice vintage and used clothing stores in my area I shop at regularly. I just wash, have never had an issue.

[Anonymous]

I knew someone in college who would buy new clothing, wear if for a couple months and then reattach the tags and take it to the store and get a full refund. My sister worked at a mall in the 1990s and said this sort of thing was common. So, some of us are purchasing new clothing that should actually be going to a thrift store. Additionally, I know people who just love to impulse shop--and then they never wear the items they buy. They donate the unworn items, tags still on, to the thrift store or send it in to an online consignment shop.

Whenever I buy new clothing, I assume there’s a good chance at least one other person has tried them on. I have no idea whether they had body odor, sweaty feet, or how long they were wearing the item in the dressing room that I'm about to purchase.

When I stay in a hotel, I try to not think about how many strangers have slept in the bed, used the towels, or laid on the mattress before me---otherwise the ick factor sets in.

The same goes for restaurants. I try not to think about how many people have eaten off the same plates, used the same utensils, or wiped their mouths with the same cloth napkins. Many of them I'm sure probably were sick with something when they were eating.

Movie theater seating--how many strangers were sitting in the used seat before me? How clean were they? And were they feeling sick at the last showing?

Once you see it, you can’t unsee it.

[Anonymous]

No.
One of our adult kids does though.

[Anonymous]

So if something is washable you use this amazing home contraption called a washing machine. If something is not washable in water, or delicate like silk or wool, you pick up yoir phone and Google "drycleaner near me". Google will even route you there in case you get confused or lost. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve been shopping secondhand since I was a kid and I am 51. I don’t love goodwill anymore mostly that perfume smell gets to me but I shop secondhand and on eBay all the time. There are also some nice and some very nice vintage and used clothing stores in my area I shop at regularly. I just wash, have never had an issue.

I was told sometimes they spray the clothes with febreeze or something similar to mask smells. I believe it because notice how it's always the same smell? I've purchased items where the smell refused to get out no matter how many times they are washed or how long they are aired out. Some items are unworn and still have price tags on them. I've slowed down since covid because thrifting has changed. It's become so popular that prices have gone way up especially around here. Some places only want cash or they separate the good stuff, or what they think is the good stuff (mid level mall brands) because I've found way better on the regular racks.