A review of what makes thrifting in L.A. more or less affordable, letting you decide where to empty your wallet
Thrifting has long been the cheaper, more affordable way to look great and cultivate a closet unique to you. You could find a gorgeous faux-leather jacket for $5 or cute cowboy boots for less than a specialty latte. However, prices have been creeping up to the same prices as what you can find on the rack at retail stores.
In the right locations, hidden gems, like a niche label or conventionally pricey brand, can get donated and be undervalued by the store, allowing you to get them for a steal. Sure, Goodwill is still good for lower prices, but you just have to spend that much more time searching for the diamond in the rough.
With outerwear and aged denim, such as utility jackets, tailored coats or pre-2010 jeans, having reasonable prices is not out of the question. For something that might last you for years and can weather plenty of storms, $8 to $20 is more than reasonable.
Sunday’s Best Thrift, for example, has plenty of lucky finds and fair prices for most items; it makes you feel like shopping vintage is worth it. From the outside, it looks small, but one step inside and you’re in a vintage wonderland. Although some items have steeper prices, that’s the price you pay nowadays for mint-condition pieces.
However, one never-ending battle in thrifting is sizing. If you are tall, wide or anything more than a size large in Los Angeles, there can be only a handful of pieces available. Things might look better on the hanger than they look or feel on you. Vendors like Thick Thrift and The Plus Bus are uniquely tailored to vintage items for extra large and beyond at budget-friendly prices — they are the exception, not the norm. Most of the time, larger sizes are sectioned off into their own forgotten corner of the store.
LA’s plus size market is back in the Arts District every 3rd Saturday! 50+ vendors all starting at size XL—curated vintage, indie brands, jewelry/accessories, homewares, art, food court, & more! February presale tickets + March vendor applications are now live <3
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Even used fast fashion brands, like Zara and H&M, now often cost more at local thrift stores than their retail clearance rack or at secondhand sellers online. They typically offer more mainstream options, but one upside is that with more options comes more sizes and chances it will feel right for your body. Better to buy something brand new or nearly-new that will last you the season and fits like a glove, rather than fall in love with a piece that’s more than retail price and not in your size.
Goodwill Clearance Center in Atwater Village, which is pay-by-the-pound, and Jet Rag’s Sunday $1 Parking Lot Sale where everything is only $1, come widely recommended for their extreme discounts. Again though, you can never know what you’re going to find. It can take hours of parsing through out-of-style graphic tees and items that have never been or will ever be your style. You’re just grabbing to grab and hope something you walk away with is worth it.
Once you take into account parking, gas and traffic from driving around the city from thrift shop to thrift shop, thrifting is just as expensive as letting loose in a mall and doing the same thing, but on your feet instead of wheels. Especially if it’s an extra disappointing day where you only find three or four solid pieces, all that travel time and money seems like more of a waste.
But all hope is not lost. If thrifting is your calling or you prefer more eco-friendly shopping, outside of central L.A., good thrift prices still exist if you venture to shops in Ventura, Huntington Beach, San Diego or Simi Valley and put your mind to the test. It’s just about how far you are willing to go to find a dream thrift store with great prices and greater pieces.
With online services like Depop, Grailed, Poshmark, Vinted or even classics like eBay and Facebook Marketplace might better serve you than wasting time and gas on a usually fruitless adventure across L.A. You can save yourself the trouble and add filters, but you can’t try them on or see them with your own eyes before purchasing, so it poses a separate risk.
Thrifting remains a great way to experiment with your style and figure out what is truly you when you don’t know where else you can find your favorite lesser-known pieces; you just have to decide how much experimenting is worth to you.