After my first few successes, I began to scour vintage, thrift, and consignment stores, with an eye for the potential of every item. Some I can tell are not going to be worth the effort, but a special fabric, pattern, or cut with minor imperfections now goes from promising to perfect in my inspired mind.
You don’t need to know how to sew or plan to learn to be a thrifty shopper. Sometimes a bargain find is worth the alteration costs. Visit with a friendly tailor and get an approximate idea of alteration costs so that when you see a $4 shirt that needs to be taken in a tad, you’ll know that the alteration will cost you an additional $7—and you can make an educated decision as to whether the fabric and style is worth $11. Sometimes it is and sometimes it isn’t. You don’t always need to rip a piece apart to make it work for you. Sometimes a quick button change is all that’s required to bring an old piece up to speed with the rest of your wardrobe. For instance, I found a fabulously fuzzy white coat, but it had a couple of very visible cigarette burns. I simply sewed some snaps onto two faux flowers I bought at a craft store and voila! The burns are hidden, the coat is personalized, and the flowers snap right off so I can easily throw the coat in the wash. Patches are great for disguising imperfections in the more casual thrift store finds and they allow you to be creative. You can be bold in your choice of patch fabrics to truly make your pants an expression of your style.
A strategically placed brooch is a quick fix for fabric stains or tears. Who cares if the stain you want to cover is just above the left hipbone? Cover it with Grandma’s bold faux sapphire pin and it’ll give your vintage dress a whole new look. Soon all your friends will be pinning brooches on their hips! Sometimes the right belt is all you need to achieve a more flattering form. If you don’t have the right belt, a silk scarf may work. There are loads of options and don’t worry about conflicting styles clashing. Sometimes that’s the very thing that makes your overall look really work.
