And my husband got a name brand dress shirt very slightly used from a thrift store and gets compliments on it ALL the time.

In summary, you can find many well-made namebrand pieces of clothing that are new or almost new at thrift shops, and they often will last longer than poorly-constructed clothing bought new.

As for kids clothes, our family has an intense recycling program with several families. CLothes get passed on to the next one down the line- and sometimes make their ways back. There are seasons into years when all we need to actually purchase for kids are underwear, socks, and a few key things to make everything work. The big rule of our group is no selling clothes or hustling them to consignment shops– if clothing of a certain size and gender is not needed it gets donated to our church’s clothing closet, where clothes are freely given to those in need. We coordinate about two van loads a year to give off among those participating.

Recently, my daughter spent $30 on a designer jacket she found at a thrift store. She received many compliments at school. On the third day, when I went to pick her up….she didn’t have the jacket. She’d sold it to a classmate for $120. The classmate knew she’d spent $30 on it but insisted on paying her that much for it. Turns out, the girl had owned a similar jacket (paid the $300 for it brand new) and had accidentally left it at a movie theatre. The girl bought it to appease her parents who were still upset that she’d lost a $300 jacket. Everybody was happy.

I work out of my house. When I meet clients (small businesses or individuals who also work out of their homes) I am often better dressed than they are – but their money is green, so I don’t judge.

My clothing budget is low, I do the best I can. If I have a choice between a new blouse that is $50 on sale, or taking my money to a second hand store – the second hand store will get my vote every time. I can buy more with that $50 there than any where else. What good does one blouse do me when there are seven days in a week?

My parents weren’t into fashion much. Criteria of a well-dressed person was “neat and clean”. I’ve learned that there is a little more to it than that. So I spend the time looking for the “gems”.

Certain professions dictate wearing the latest fashions, but not everyone in those professions can afford to dress the part. If someone at your work is wearing older fashions, then judge them on the quality of their work instead. New, expensive clothing doesn’t necessarily translate to being a good or competent employee.

To those of you who knock wearing second hand clothes – stay away from those stores – we who gleen the gems of such establishment don’t want your kind rubbing elbows with us, we just want your plethora of clothing that you buy and don’t wear.

Whatever, my posts fall on deaf ears….this is just an exercise to voice my own opinion.

I would never shop for “weekend clothes” to wear around the house. Everything that has a “strictly at home” tag has been something more or less dressy which got demoted when it was not fit for work any longer.

Well, it’s sure not because of your charming personality.

Also, if you’re going to criticize Trent for not understanding spelling and grammar, what does it say about you that you don’t understand paragraph breaks?

I wear a shirt and tie to work every day. I actually LIKE dressing up, it makes me feel confident. I exercise regularly, and I enjoy selecting stylish, quality clothing that flatters the form I’ve worked hard to achieve. That confidence comes through in how I carry myself, and I sincerely believe it contributes to my success in other, unrelated areas of my life.