Second-hand Clothing

I love buying second-hand clothing! A large proportion of my wardrobe nowadays is a mixture of vintage finds and charity shop bargains, so it seems only right that I should dedicate some first-hand words to second-hand items. It's great to take part in fashion recycling and to have a garment with a history of its own! Moreover, I feel older clothes are made to last and if they've lasted this long, I can definitely get a few more years out of them. To me, the term covers several different areas and as I like lists, I'm indulging in some headings today!

Some favourite finds and items from friends!

Vintage and Retro
Vintage is, after asking the internet, classed as original items from the 1980s, 70s, 60s and further back, although some of that may be in museums instead of shops, meanwhile retro is modern items in the style of vintage and could also be items from the recent past, 1980s/90s. A knowledge of older labels is quite useful for vintage hunting. My personal favourite is St Michael (now M&S clothing). Labels in general are tell-tale signs! If garments have been made in the country the label is from, big labels with fancy fonts and measurements are promising signs!
Finally, vintage clothing often comes with all the hands! Some items won't be colour safe and the pigment will run or the fabric may be delicate, so hand-wash is advisable! A lot of vintage knitwear in the jumper sections I've found is often hand-knitted! Similarly, more people were skilled in sewing and made their own clothing in the past which means you can snare completely unique items that are hand-made!

Charity shops and Jumble Sales
Charity shopping is great fun and it's all for a worthwhile cause! I love browsing and rummaging through piles and rails; the race is sometimes better than the finish. I don't want to sound deep and pretentious, but taking time to rifle around and find a vintage gem or the garment from last year's trend you wanted but never actually bought is much more fulfilling than clicking online or buying in a well-organised store.

Hand-me-downs 
A brilliant way to recycle clothing, charity donations aside, is to offer them to the people around you, friends and family. The past year has allowed me to inherit two pairs of Converse, a St Micheal leopard jumper and a Topshop top among other things! I have offered first dibs on my cast-away as thanks in return! It's nice to see items you couldn't or no longer wanted to wear get the love they deserve from a friend!

Cov's hunting tips for second-hand prowling:
- Bring a belt: the downside of not having that specific pattern or design in every size is that you need to breathe in/buy squeeze-in underwear or nip the volume in at the waist.
- Be patient: this from someone who's co-blogger is highly impatient highlights that, sadly for some, good things come to those who rummage and browse carefully! 
- Check for stains: especially under arms, but don't despair over dirt: Vanish exists! 
- Try on something hideous, you may surprise yourself, and if not you, certainly any nearby shoppers; I've tried on a wedding dress, a leopard catsuit and and 80s 2-piece: have no shame! 
- But obviously, have fun, stylish ones!