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2011-04-01

Thrift Day. Where I Do Damage.

I always get asked where I thrift shop. And I lie and avoid the question. I never went to kindergarten, I don't have to be good at sharing. But today I will share the location of where I find my thrift treasure.. because it's Friday and I am feeling good*. Talize (here)

shop talize


(Clockwise from top left... Marc Jacobs, vintage leopard, vintage DVF and handmade bubble trench... all Talize)

I would be happy to take all the credit for my thrift finds as I think that I have thrift skills as others have basketball skills. But in a moment of humility, I admit that Talize is a thrift playground full of treasures waiting to be discovered. I have never walked out of there without buying something; usually I walk out with the biggest, orange bag of life... a sure sign of a hoarder in training. Talize is stacked. While their designer rack has a funny mix of Sean John, Apple Bottoms and Anne Klein, I have found Marc Jacobs, DVF, Notte by Marchesa and Jil Sander hidden in the regular racks. There is always plenty of good vintage to discover as well. The prices are certainly not the cheapest in terms of thrifting ($8-$10 for dresses, $5 for shirts, $7 for blazers) but they aren't ridiculous and when I use their coupons and my student discount, they are quite reasonable. The store is always clean, packed full of stock and the people who work there are friendly and helpful. Hands down, this is my favourite place to go thrifting. Value Village (here, here and here)

shop vv


(Clockwise from top left... silk wrap dress, leather clutch, sequin vest and Tory Burch cardi, ... all VV)

I love to hate Value Village but I hate that, sometimes, I love Value Village. It's no secret that Value Village's ridiculous over-pricing makes me want to throw cats (not mine but yours Merl). My friend saw a wool Banana Republic jacket with 3 missing buttons for $60 last week at Value Village. That's the stuff urban legends are made of. And it's not like their over-pricing affects me so much as it's brands like Guess, Banana Republic and George (...?, I know... don't get me started) that get treated to the highest mark-ups. Vintage clothing and obscure brands escape the crazy pricing but regardless, the principle of their over-pricing has me so frustrated. And sometimes, when I am there, I shop and then seethe and promise to never set foot in a Value Village again but then.... I find something like this amazing skirt that gives me booty or this amazing dress that gives me booty (so much booty) and I weaken in my resolve. Now I only shop there if I have a good coupon or it is one of their 50% off days (they happen at Talize and VV about once every 2 months). It is worth noting that the Value Village in Brantford is not picked over and much cheaper than the one in Hamilton. I just found a silk kimono style jacket for $4... Anywhere.

shop random


(Clockwise from top left... boots from Salvation Army in Winnepeg, dress from From the Past(?) Hamilton, skirt from Bibles for Mission and collar from Waterloo flea market)

I know... that is so helpful. Besides Value Village and Talize, I am pretty open minded about where I thrift shop. I often frequent this Salvation Army or this Bibles for Mission. This flea market is great too... it's cheap and big and has lots of good jewelry. I like to walk a lot and I can't resist dropping in any second hand place I come across. Also, any time we travel or go on vacation, I need to check out any charity shops in the area. I know thrift shopping differs based on geographical location but unless the prices are obscene, there is treasure to be found no matter where you live. My dad and I have made a little tradition of going on thrifting or antiquing adventures almost on a weekly basis. We are always on the look-out for new places to discover. Now you know where I go when I am sad... when I am happy... when I am bored. If you are local, reveal yourself! and let me know if there are any good places I am missing. If you don't live near Hamilton, thanks for reading the whole post. I am not on the tourism board yet but I urge you to visit Hamilton sometimes. We have waterfalls, castles and good thrifting. One sweet day this may be the new go to all-inclusive destination... or not. But the thrifting really is good... * It just took me 4 hours to post this due to Blogger and Internet issues... cry. Not feeling so good.

41 comments :

Alessia said...

Thanks for sharing. I don't live in Hamilton, I live in Oshawa, and thrifting over here is plentiful. However like you, I like to go to thrift spots when I am in different cities, so now I know all the hot spots in Hamilton!

p.s. I saw a pair of jeans at VV for...ready?? $119!

Meg said...

Oh man, if I am ever in Hamilton it sounds like I need to hit up Talize like WHOA. Thanks for the recs!

I once saw a stained wedding dress at the Sally Ann for over $100. Value Village does tend to be pricey too, though.

If you're ever travelling in the Maritimes, particularly in Nova Scotia, I *highly* recommend Frenchy's. It is my favorite chain of thrift stores in the world. I bought my prom and wedding dresses there, both for under $10. Sadly, the ones in Halifax all suck or are too far away for a girl without a car. :(

my healthy twist said...

Sorry about your internet/blogger issues, that sucks, but at least you got the post up! I hate slow posting days like that, they mess with my mojo! This is a great post, and I wish I were local, but luckily I have some cool thrift store around me too! XOXO, www.NatalyasCloset.com!

The Blissful Academic said...

You always have such great vintage finds. I wish I had an awesome place to go and scour the racks, but the nearest great place to me is an hour away.

Unknown said...

i love that you say that there is treasure to be found where ever you live SO TRUE! it is SO fun to see all you AH-mazing finds! i just love thrifting so much... such a stress reliever!

~selina

Emily said...

you have castles?

Pink Chai said...

@Meg...a wedding dress for under $10! That is amazing!!!

@Emily, I actually went to Hamilton 2 summers ago for a family wedding and was really surprised by all of the castles and old buildings. Not what I expected.

PS: Fabulous post. I live really close to a Talize and head there almost every Sunday morning when a certain colour tag is marked down to 50% off!

jenn from midlife modern said...

You really do have the gift for thrift. Your assessment of Value Village in your area reminds me of my love/hate relationship with the inappropriately named "Cheap Jack's" in NYC. If that store's considered cheap, i'll eat my hat.

Sidewalk Chic said...

I know what you mean about not wanting to share -- sometimes I'm pretty evasive about telling others where I shop, because I'm afraid it'll be too picked over when I go. And then I feel a little bad about being greedy.

But I usually hit up the Goodwill and Salvation Army near my old home -- tons of untouched vintage there.

Anonymous said...

Wow, thanks so much for sharing! I have family in Burlington, so I will need to hit up some of these fabulous places the next time I visit. I love reading about your mad thrifting skills!

From Suns To Moons said...

It's not super close, but have you been to the Value Village in Niagara Falls? It's on Lundy's Lane, right before the strip-club strip begins... So yeah, it's klassy.

Michelle's Style File said...

You sure have a talent at finding amazing pieces.

x
Michelle
www.michellesstylefile.blogspot.com

Jo - Lost in the Haze said...

Goodness, you are super good at thrifting!

x
www.lostinthehaze.com

Cyn said...

Your haunts are safe since I live well away. But I too am an emotional thrifter. If I'm bored, sad, whatever, I blow $20 and haul far more than I would anywhere else.

(I'm just sad one of my favorite places to thrift during college is in an area known for bedbugs. Bah to bugs!)

And boo to PC/interwebz issues, but just think, with the advent of April garage sale season awaits!

thatdamngreendress said...

aw, Frenchie's is the best...I would totally love to go on a road trip back to NS to haunt all the Frenchy stores I grew up on.

In Montreal I mostly stick to VV and Sally-ann, though I have had some lovely (more $$ finds) at Local 23....

veronika, tick tock vintage. said...

it's SO hard for me to give up my secret thrift store/flea market spots. you're much more generous than i :)

Camille said...

I like the Salvation Army in Burlington on Fairview st. across from Bulk Barn. Smaller store. Seems not as picked over, very good prices ! PLUS they are not for profit :)
Now don't go steal all the good stuff from under me !

Secondhand Stella said...

I wish we had Talize in Boston!

Emma at Daily Clothes Fix said...

Thanks for persisting with this post, despite the issues with blogger. It was a great read. We don't really have places like this in the UK but it's fun to get more of an insight into how you shop.

Anonymous said...

The beaded collar you picture is just beautiful. Don't have many of the stores you describe in my area, but I do find that there is usually something to be found in ANY charity shop and very rarely do I walk out empty-handed. When I do, it is usually about my mood.

George? It does make one wonder who is sorting stuff in the back room.

Maria said...

I went to the Talize in Mississauga when I was visiting, because I had seen you mention it for some super amazing outfits. I found zilch! It totally sucked. Maybe more fashionable people live in Hamilton than in Mississauga; maybe it was just an off day; or maybe my thrifting talent was temporarily suspended that day. If I go to Toronto again soon, maybe I'll check it out again.

In Montreal, there's this awesome place called Eva B. I got a Laundry by Shelly Segal lace skirt there for 5 bucks last week.

Finally, if you say clockwise, you should go in a circle, silly. You just went left to rights, line by line. Haha.

Unknown said...

I just have to tell ya, I've been reading your blog for over a yr. now and I love that you haven't sold out to sponsorships or have pop-ups all over your pages!! Kudos to you for keeping it real.

myedit said...

@ Emily... I was going to link to my fave castle but my brain blew up after posting yesterday. We do have pretty castles though... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dundurn_Castle

@Maria... ahhh! Talize did you wrong! My heart is broken. Also fixed the clockwise thing... thanks for letting me know. oops...

@Cindy... thank you for that! I have to tell you... sometimes I just wanna say 'suck it' cause it would be nice to make some money. haha... I could write a novel on this subject.

Amanda @ Life with A.Co said...

Bummer I don't live in Hamilton and can't hit up Talize - boooo, however, I already knew you shopped there as it's been mentioned before so WAKE UP readers, this wasn't a huge secret! :P

Secondly, VV, we already had a mini twitter rant convo on this and I wanted to say (but was too limited as far as characters went) that I saw things at ridiculous prices (as you know) but then come across of Citizens for Humanity jeans for $7.99. WTF. I ALMOST bought them just to consign them (they were too small for me) but then remembered I did that with a pair of True Religions and they still haven't sold yet. Le sigh.

A.Co @ A.Co est. 1984

Laurel said...

I think you should wear more Apple Bottoms.


But on the reals, I haven't been to Value Village since I lived in Oregon, but I still have some of the crap I bought there in college. It's got staying power, that stuff.

Alysa Kimiko said...

you gave up your secret stores?! don't worry, I live in california so your secret is safe with me :)

Lynda D'Souza said...

Thank you for sharing your secrets with us...I know exactly what you mean! I'm from Toronto and am lucky there are so many stores here. Just yesterday I got 3 awesome items from VV in Vaugn(one of my fave branches) then went to the newly opened Marshal's and was disappointed. Who needs that when we've got our thrift stores! keep going girl!

Leah said...

Amazing! I JUST realized you are from Hamilton and it made me really excited! My bf lives there so I am here every other weekend. I have yet to go to Talize but I just may have to now! Love your blog! Your style is so unique and I strive to be the kind of thrifter that you are!

xo L.

Ashley [Free Honey] said...

I am not from Hamilton (or Canada), but you got me sold that it's a worthy visit spot...I mean, that Castle looks pretty amazing. I am going to click thru to your side bar for some thrifting tips...my roommate and I tried this weekend...went to 4 different shops and struck out. I would like to blame the stores, but I think it must have been us as well.

xo, Ashley

Anonymous said...

Your thrifting skills are amazing! I've sent your blog to a few friends who wish they could find good pieces at thrift stores- as do I! Thanks for sharing your secrets and your amazing style!

Hayley

www.vintagehay.com

Hollie said...

Talize is just so good. I'd go everyday if I could.

kelsey said...

You have got me totally in the mood to go thrifting! I haven't done it in 5 years, at least. Now, if you only knew the best places to thrift in Iowa... :)

Unknown said...

Jentine,

I wish you would write about sponsorships & adds on your blog. It would be an interesting take to hear your point of view. Like I said, I've been reading your blog for over a yr, for the other blogs I read, I lost interest quickly when they sold out. Are they in it for free clothes etc., for getting paid or is for the love of fashion, thrifting, blogging etc. I admire your stance and I'm sure others do too. I'd assume your blog will continue to grow in popularity for that reason alone? Of course your style is amazing as well and keeps us coming back for more.

Unknown said...

Thanks for sharing your secrets, now if only I was in your area...

Jessica @ wrinkled dollar

Jenny said...

I am a lurker - love your style and your appreciation for the sport of thrifting!

Your clutch - I think it is eel skin, not leather. Forgive me if I am wrong and presumptuous.

Thanks for sharing!

Vanessa said...

I stumbled upon your blog and it's great. Love how you put your outfits together. I live in Maryland and went to Vaule Village Thrift Store and walked right out. They are sooo high. Hell, I could get a new shirt on clearance cheaper..lol

Anonymous said...

I took a trip from GTA to Hamilton just based on your post and hit up talize and the VV there. It was so worthwhile. Thank you, Yen!

If you come to Toronto anytime, let us know on your blog. I'll share the cool thrift stores.

Danielle said...

I skimmed the comments and I'm pretty sure this post was written for me lol, I live in Hamilton too and have been trying to figure out where the best places for thrift shopping is. Kensington Market in TO is not it, if you think VV is over-priced its ten times worse!

I've purchased glass and housewares from Talize and keep meaning to go back to look at clothing, its definitely on the list now!! Thank you so much for this post!!

Anonymous said...

Talize is store that abuses its employs and i know because i worked there. The amount of job we do there in the back is crazy and use Threatening intimidation tactics. i will never shoop there because they don't care about people its all about money. oh and they charge for more i mean you can get better deal at wall mart and its new.

to talize can go kiss my black ass

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Anonymous said...

You will never have 'booty', no matter the skirt.