I’d Rather Be Thrifting

Episode Transcript

[00:00:00] Katya Rucker: Hey, everyone. Thanks so much for tuning in to the second episode of I'd Rather Be. Just a quick heads up, there's some brief -- or, I might even call it fleeting -- explicit language used in this episode. And now that you've been warned, let's get into the show.

[00:00:15] Caitlin Ormsby: My name is Caitlin Louise Ormsby, and I have for the last, at least 15 years always answered the question, “If you could write a book about anything, what would you write about?” I've always said [00:00:30] thrifting. It's one of my unique zones of genius, I would say. And something I've had a lot of practice doing and something I get a lot of joy out of. Um, the art and science of thrifting even made its way into my own wedding vows, which I'm proud of.

[00:00:50] Katya Rucker: You're listening to I'd Rather Be, a podcast about the hobbies and passions that make our lives fuller and richer. The things we'd rather be doing morning, noon, and [00:01:00] night if we could. I'm your host Katya Rucker, and today's episode is I'd Rather Be Thrifting. Our guest, Caitlin Ormsby, is one of my closest friends. We met right after college while doing Teach for America together in New Bedford, Massachusetts. 

Caitlin will be the first to admit that for her, thrifting is more than a hobby. It's a mindset, a lifestyle, and a way to put action behind her values. In fact, Caitlin is so passionate about thrifting [00:01:30] that she just might convince you to thrift something you know you need that you hadn't considered buying secondhand, because that's definitely what happened to me. So let's dive right in and hear Caitlin's origin story as a thrifter. 

[00:01:44] Caitlin Ormsby: Um, how did I get into it? So I grew up with a lot of secondhand stuff, not by choice, but by necessity. You know, we shopped at a thrift store called Value Village, which is called Value Village on the west coast, but on the east [00:02:00] coast, I learned, uh, was actually called Savers.

[00:02:02] So if anyone's familiar with Savers, you know Value Village. We also shopped at Goodwill and, you know, St. Vincent DePaul, and again, not out of choice, but out of necessity. And I did not enjoy any secondhand clothes, but you know, hey, whatever pants lengths I needed in elementary school, they typically had them.

[00:02:24] I got really into thrifting in high school when I think most of us are reaching that [00:02:30] phase in our teenage years of wanting to be more counterculture, to be really unique, to be maybe sort of avant garde. Probably around 16, 17 is when I would start to consider myself more of a thrifting expert, and I felt like I did have a little bit of a leg up on some of my peers who were maybe new to it, but I had sort of secretly been involved in the secondhand world for a long time. 

[00:02:51] Katya Rucker: While Caitlin embraced thrifting as a way to be proud of the things that made her stand out among her peers in high school, it's clear she felt much more ambivalent or [00:03:00] even resigned toward the necessity of thrifting as a kid.

[00:03:03] I asked what she learned along this journey that ultimately cemented thrifting into her identity beyond her teenage years. 

[00:03:11] Caitlin Ormsby: The lesson that I would draw, I would say honestly, comes from my grandmother who was a product of the Great Depression. She was a foster kid and the idea of like getting new things, even when she could afford them was completely out of her wheelhouse.

[00:03:24] The idea that you would buy new towels just because every few [00:03:30] years that's something you might do was completely out of any realm that she ever existed. And so you just patched things up or you bought it secondhand, or you noticed that your neighbor was getting rid of something, so you made it work. And so that idea about being creative about things, you know, we always say necessity yields innovation. That sort of creativity that exists in a very low income environment is fulfilling. 

And so being able [00:04:00] to provide for yourself without overpaying for something, like we always say, I won't pay full price, which is actually a joke from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. We always say we won't pay full price. It's like wanting to be creative and clever and, um, game the system, right? It's sort of like the ultimate, like making it when you can have what other people have, but not have to pay full price.

[00:04:28] Katya Rucker: To demonstrate how she has put [00:04:30] these lessons and skills to the test, Caitlin shared with me a list of her top five favorite thrifts.

[00:04:36] Number five was a nearly new Weber grill, which she got on OfferUp, and OfferUp is a free peer to peer app for buying and selling pretty much anything. Kind of like Craigslist, but easier to use. 

Number four was a pair of carbon fiber hiking poles from REI. Caitlin recommended paying the one-time membership fee of $20 to join REI’s co-op because a membership gives you access to REI’s [00:05:00] Garage Sale, which is stuff that people return gently used. Those hiking poles retail around a hundred dollars and Caitlin got hers at the Garage Sale for $30. 

Number three on the list was a blue silk scarf that a good friend thrifted and gave to her, which was a good reminder that thrifted items can make great gifts. Caitlin considers the scarf to be her signature item that can jazz up an outfit in all four seasons. 

Number two was her dining room table and chairs, which she and her husband, Alex, got for [00:05:30] $300 on Craigslist, and which would have retailed for over $3,000. 

Caitlin thought long and hard about what she'd consider her number one thrift. I'll let her take that story from here. 

[00:05:43] Caitlin Ormsby: The one that I'm going to share with you, I want to share for people as inspiration, but not necessarily a prescription of how to thrift or how to do things, um, in a thrifty way. But, my wedding dress is thrifted, was thrifted, actually. And this speaks to: when you have a thrifter’s [00:06:00] mindset, it's the first question that you ask yourself when you're looking for something, is where can I get this, something that I like, that's not brand new, but give a second or third or fourth life to? And so I very much had that mentality when I knew we were going to be married and have a wedding. And, you know, a dress was important to me, but not so important that I needed to - that I felt like I wanted to spend a lot of money on it.

[00:06:22] So I was looking at all my regular thrift stores, not seeing anything, not seeing anything. And that's when I just Googled [00:06:30] “Wedding dress, thrifting, Seattle” and happened upon a consignment shop. So the difference between thrift shops and consignment shops for people who are wondering: Thrifting is your typical Goodwill. They take the items, they tag them and price them, and you buy them from Goodwill. Consignment is when I take a special item, and when I say special, it just means, you know, anything that's usually a little bit more expensive, but consignment is not always more expensive. Where I take an item into a store and I say, “I want you to please sell this [00:07:00] item,” and I don't get paid for that item until it's sold. And if it doesn't sell within a month or three or six, whatever the store's policy is, then you pick up your item and you go home with it or you donate it or try to consign it somewhere else. So consignment is typically a little bit more higher end things that stores will display for you, but that you don't get any of the cutback until it's actually sold. So this was a wedding dress consignment shop, and it just so happened that all of their dresses are available and listed and photographed online. So if you see [00:07:30] something you like, you can make an appointment to try on that specific dress. But of course it only comes in that size, in that condition for that short period of time that it's available.

[00:07:38] So I had an appointment, I had one dress in mind that I thought, okay, maybe. I tried it on with a handful of other dresses that they picked out for me just because I was there. And within 10 minutes, I left with the dress that I picked out online. And I don't think most people would know that it was thrifted or that it was something, um, that wasn't brand new, shiny new.

[00:07:58] So that is something [00:08:00] that I'm particularly proud of because that dress is an all silk, multi layered dress with Swarovski crystals on the entire bodice. It was about a size or maybe a size and a half too big, which was perfect because it gave me a little bit of leeway. I didn't need to stress about it fitting, but I could also get it fitted, had plenty of time to get it fitted to me.

[00:08:18] Katya Rucker: You can see a picture of Caitlin's thrifted wedding dress on the I'd Rather Be Podcast industry. Caitlin tells me that if she had spent the sticker price for that dress, which was like $5,000, she knows she wouldn't have [00:08:30] had as great a time at her own wedding between all the dancing, eating, and general merriment of the evening. She spent $800 on the dress and around a hundred dollars on alterations. 

And what's the, uh, etiquette around if you were to resell this dress or put it back in the ecosystem, would you try to get $800 for it? Or would you be like, oh, I'd be happy with half of, of that. 

[00:08:55] Caitlin Ormsby: I think half is, from my perspective, fair to everyone. [00:09:00] Um, because it's kinda like when you drive, when you take a car off the lot. It immediately goes down in price. When you take something off the rack and you're buying brand new retail, it's automatically going to go down in price. So, you know, every time that something is worn, um, and it becomes, you know, through another life cycle, I think that 50% of the price that you paid for it is really reasonable, you know, and to a certain point. Like things that are always going to be worth a minimum of $50, for [00:09:30] example, you’re probably not going to get much less discount than that. Um, but that's what I would say, 50%. 

[00:09:36] Katya Rucker: It was a simple Google search for secondhand wedding dresses in Seattle that led to find the consignment shop that sold her that bedazzled silk dress in the perfect size for the alteration she needed.

[00:09:48] This made thrifting sound almost too easy to me. So I asked Caitlin to break her process down to the very basics of what kinds of things can you thrift and what should you actually [00:10:00] buy new? And with all the options out there, the brick and mortar stores like Goodwill, the online platforms and peer-to-peer apps, flea markets, estate sales, and so on, what's the best way to begin your search in a way that doesn't feel overwhelming?

[00:10:14] Caitlin Ormsby: So this is where this idea of thrifting, or even thriftiness as a mindset, or even a cultural value comes into play. Because if you're not used to looking for things to thrift, you're not going to think about it. So it's about shifting your thinking to imagine, Is there a [00:10:30] place where this is thriftable? And the answer is 100% of the time, Yes. There is almost nothing I wouldn't thrift. But that's because I think about it. 

So for example, you know, you and I have both been through big home renovations, you much more so than I, and a place that I learned about when I was in fifth grade and we had to paint the outside of our home was Habitat for Humanity, which I'm sure we all know as a nonprofit, that builds homes. Great. Fantastic. But they have [00:11:00] a huge retail space that contractors, big and small of all sizes, donate or at a super discount, just dump off all their extra supplies from any big project. So for example, we got like 50 gallons of this light gray paint at Habitat for Humanity for $20 back in 2001 or whatever. And we painted our whole house with that exterior paint.

[00:11:25] It didn't matter that it was light gray. Like the paint color itself happened to work [00:11:30] out great for us. But what we were looking for was a way to meet our end goals. And using this service at Habitat for Humanity, which happened to be within a few blocks from our home, allowed us to do that.

[00:11:42] So, things like that, that you wouldn't normally think about. You know, not all the time though, is Habitat for Humanity, going to have 50 gallons of light gray exterior home paint. So you have to be again, judicious, keep an eye out, and try when you can to have some flexibility for your project timelines. 

[00:11:58] Katya Rucker: I’m taking three things away from [00:12:00] Caitlin's exterior paint story.

[00:12:02] First a thrifter can't be too picky and we all have some things for picky about, and some things we aren't, and Caitlin's family was not feeling picky about the exact color of the outside of her childhood house. So maybe someone's level of pickiness about a specific thing, whether it's paint color or brand of toaster could help determine whether or not to thrift instead of buy brand new. Second, a thrifter is both patient and vigilant.

[00:12:27] As Caitlin will talk about later, a good thrifter [00:12:30] always has a list of things they need and is willing to wait to get them, but is always on the lookout so as not to miss opportunities that may be within reach. And third, if you can think it, you can thrift it. For part of our interview, Caitlin's husband, Alex, weighed in about Caitlin's thrifting mindset and how it played a major role in their wedding.

[00:12:51] Alex Cypro: You can see how the whole wedding kind of had a thrifty vibe to it, you know, a theme, almost. She thrifted [00:13:00] like hundreds of golden candlesticks, like - 

Caitlin Ormsby: Brass. 

Alex Cypro: Oh, brass. Yeah. But you know, that kind of golden color and, uh, yeah, for like a dollar, a pound or something.

[00:13:15] Katya Rucker: Alex tells me she even tried thrifting the plates and utensils for the wedding. A case where Caitlin would now agree that just because you can thrift something doesn't mean you should thrift it. 

[00:13:27] Caitlin Ormsby: There’s a great store in Spokane called Union [00:13:30] Gospel Mission. Excellent thrifting. And there, I had the idea that we would thrift the glass and dinnerware like Alex is saying, because it costs like --  

[00:13:41] Alex Cypro: Caitlin didn’t like renting like, a plate and everything that comes with a dinner for five bucks a person. Caitlin thought that was fucking outrageous. 

[00:13:55] Caitlin Ormsby: Exactly. 

[00:13:56] Alex Cypro: And she was like, we could thrift this better. I was like, you're going to thrift a [00:14:00] plate, forks, like everything that people need for a meal for less than five bucks. 

[00:14:06] Caitlin Ormsby: And we did, except that what you don't realize what you're paying for with the five dollars isn't the use of the items. It's the convenience. Because if you bring your own, you have to bring your own and take your own. Like, so that was a lesson learned. We ultimately only thrifted the cocktail glasses, which you might remember, Ruck. 

[00:14:26] Katya Rucker: Yep, that's me, Ruck, the [00:14:30] nickname that's only used by a couple of my Teach for America friends to this day.

[00:14:35] And I'm sad to say, I don't remember the cocktail glasses, but I also don't remember feeling like Alex and Caitlin's wedding had a thrifty theme at all. Others might disagree with me, but I don't think it really crosses anyone's mind whether someone else's clothes, furniture, or house paint might have been thrifted.

[00:14:52] Now, at the beginning of the episode, Caitlin alluded to the fact that she has had enough experience with thrifting, that she could write a book about it. [00:15:00] And I really hope she does someday. Here are some of the most essential things she wants people to know about thrifting. 

[00:15:06] Caitlin Ormsby: So when I think about writing the book on thrifting, what I would want people to know is, people always ask me what's the best thrift store?

[00:15:12] There's no such thing as the best thrift store. It depends what you're looking for. Depends on your style, the fabrics that you like, the things that you're looking for. A good thrifter has in their back pocket five to ten places. They can be really small places that are run by [00:15:30] opt-in grandmothers who are donating their time to charity and they organize these great shops or they can be huge, massive Goodwills or even Goodwill Outlet, which like, that is the PhD level type of thrifting is Goodwill Outlet. So like, get your thrifting muscles beefed up before you try that one. 

But a good thrifter has five to ten stores on a variety of scales, whether it's a small shop or a big sort of corporate conglomerate like Goodwill or [00:16:00] St. Vincent DePaul or something that they go to regularly. So what makes a good thrifter is they're always on, they're always on the prowl. And you also don't need to spend a lot of time in any thrift store. You can go through every single rack and every single hanger and every single piece of furniture. You can certainly do that.

[00:16:18] But you're not going to find much after the first three to five minutes in any thrift store that you're going to find after three hours there. So do a lap. See what looks, what stands out to you, um, and also always shop with a [00:16:30] list either in the back of your mind or an actual physical list or a list in your phone of things you're looking for for your home. 

[00:16:35] Katya Rucker: Especially for someone who's new to thrifting or who loves to get a great deal, this idea of having a list seems like an important guardrail for those first few excursions though, as a seasoned thrifter, Caitlin still swears by the list. 

[00:16:50] Caitlin Ormsby: It is extremely tempting to look out for anything that's a good deal, right, like, oh, that's, that's this amazing dresser that I could [00:17:00] get at this estate sale for just a few dollars compared to its massive price tag on the street, or, you know, on a, on another more expensive app. And that, my friends, is how you become a hoarder. And the goal of this, of me sharing what it means to become a thrifter is not to get more stuff you don't want, but is to live and engage in a life that allows you to be more authentically yourself at a way that supports you, your budget, the environment and the world we want to create.

[00:17:29] Going out [00:17:30] and constantly trying to find the best deal and then consuming that is going to lead to like a fraction of a moment of happiness, but it's not going to help you create the authentic life that I suggest thrifting can help you to do. 

[00:17:41] Katya Rucker: This doesn't mean Caitlin always heeds her own advice. The reality is, she's in a constant battle between her love of thrifting and her own self discipline. 

[00:17:51] Caitlin Ormsby: All the time, I thrift the most outrageous things. I have the most beautiful, bright lilac ostrich feathers sweater that I never wear. [00:18:00] That's like not a good thrifting find because I'm never, ever going to wear it. And it doesn't actually suit the purpose of what I shared with you about thrifting, giving things a second chance.

[00:18:08] This thing's not being worn. Um, being able to showcase it, again, it's not being worn. But the things that I do wear over and over and over again are like this black and white jacket that when, on days when I don't know what I'm going to wear, I'm going to put this black and white jacket on. Cause I know it looks good on me.

[00:18:24] I like the brand. I like the cut. So fabrics that you're going to go for are your more higher-end fabrics. I would [00:18:30] avoid anything polyester because, not because polyester is a trash fabric, but because it's probably been worn to its limit, it's not meant for long wear, it's meant for fast fashion. So avoid things in general, when you're thrifting, what not to do, avoid anything that's fast fashion because it’s fast fashion for a reason, it usually doesn't look good for a long time and you might not find yourself actually using it. 

[00:18:54] Katya Rucker: Caitlin tells me that when it comes to clothes in particular, it's super important to look for high quality fabrics in [00:19:00] brands or styles that you know you like and look good on you. That's how to avoid the guilt of having a beautiful ostrich feather sweater that never sees the light of day hanging in your closet.

[00:19:12] I think a lot of us also don't spend much time thinking about the things we own, but never use, whether that's clothes, sports equipment, appliances, whatever. But for Caitlin, I notice very minimal long-term attachment to most of what she owns. If something doesn't suit a particular life stage that she's in, she wants to set it free. [00:19:30] Give it another life somewhere else. 

[00:19:32] Caitlin Ormsby: I think that in order for the thrifting ecosystem to work, we have to both consume and provide for the system. So, in fact, this is really interesting, just like two days ago, I think on Thursday evening, I had a thrifting consignment appointment where I got rid of like a 60 pound suitcase worth of all the dress clothes that I am never ever going back to, like all the 2, 3, 4 inch heels that I swear I'm never going to wear again.

[00:19:58] Plus all the [00:20:00] dress up clothes that I hope I don't ever have to go back to. And it's not because I don't like them. It's just because they don't really suit this purpose of my life anymore, this time in my life anymore, working from home. So I have a great deal of pride and sense of obligation and duty to contribute to the thrifting ecosystem, which means putting things back in circulation so that someone else who is in that position to wear them, gets to continue to enjoy them.

[00:20:26] And then by default, right, that idea of sort of karma, cosmic [00:20:30] good or karma that's going to come out of someone else doing that, who's consigning or donating something that I might find really useful for this period of my life, that makes me feel really good. I think most thrifters would agree. 

[00:20:43] Katya Rucker: This thrifting ecosystem stands out to me as one of the more under-reported ways that people who thrift are making the world a better place, through keeping things out of landfills, reusing and upcycling them and reducing the demand for all the new products whose supply chains are already under [00:21:00] environmental strain.

[00:21:01] The fashion industry produces a staggering 20% of global wastewater and almost 10% of global carbon emissions. Thrifting a single pair of jeans saves 2,000 gallons of water, which puts thrifting up there with Meatless Mondays as one of the most impactful things an individual can do to reduce their carbon footprint.

[00:21:22] And Caitlin believes that for the most part, people put a lot of care and good intention into the things they choose to donate.

[00:21:28] Caitlin Ormsby: Another life [00:21:30] lesson from thrifting is that there really is good out there, if you look for it. All of the cool things that I have found remind me of all the people who had something special and said, you know, I'm going to let go of this and let someone else enjoy it.

[00:21:41] So when I think about, do we need to be afraid of what's out there or be really scrupulous? No. I mean, be smart about what it is that you're buying. And of course put things through the wash that can go through the wash. Who knows how long it's been at the store it's been, or how long it was in the closet before it came to you.

[00:22:00] Um, but trust that people put it out there because they're good people. 

[00:22:05] Katya Rucker: A really nice example of this - of thrifters being good people with good intentions - came in the last story Caitlin shared with me as we were wrapping up our conversation and I asked if she had any parting thoughts. 

[00:22:18] Caitlin Ormsby: Well I could not let this episode reach its conclusion without shouting out a phenomenal group called Buy Nothing.

[00:22:28] Many folks may be familiar with [00:22:30] their local neighborhood Buy Nothing that's B-U-Y Nothing, Buy Nothing. It's a huge movement, it's actually located and facilitated through Facebook. So you need a Facebook account. But they are hyper-local, meaning really small, like on the very neighborhood level, groups that exchange for free goods and services. So within my first week, moving to my new city, which is San Diego, I joined my local Buy Nothing group. And quite literally, within the first like [00:23:00] 36 hours in San Diego, I had got rid of my packing boxes. I had gotten an opportunity to try new coffee from a neighbor who was getting rid of coffee they didn't like. I borrowed - I lent out an old hair crimper that someone needed for a party. And it's a great way to just buy or try things, um, and give something a second life, or keep something out of the landfill or offer a service or fulfill a need for a service that you have. And do it in a hyper-local [00:23:30] way where you get to meet your neighbors too.

[00:23:31] So I think anyone who's interested in dipping a toe into thrifting, but maybe isn't ready to get out to their local Goodwill or finds it overwhelming, or maybe you don't want to scour through OfferUp, Craigslist, or DePop, heaven forbid, your local Buy Nothing group is a great way to see, like, what sorts of things are people giving away out there? Um, I think you'll be really surprised. 

[00:23:55] Katya Rucker: According to a CNBC article from late October, [00:24:00] 2021, Buy Nothing has around 4.3 million participants worldwide. So there are some particularly active neighborhoods and some areas where not many people are using the platform yet, but someone has to be first. So if you don't see any activity on Buy Nothing in your area, that someone could be you.

[00:24:21] I'd like to thank Caitlin for sharing her wisdom and passion for thrifting with all of us. If you're enjoying I'd Rather Be, the best way you can help [00:24:30] the show grow is by sharing it with one or two friends, because personal recommendations are how most people discover new podcasts to listen to. And I really appreciate the fact that so many of you have already been spreading the word. Next week, our guest would rather be on a vineyard, and her passion for wine just might inspire you to try a bottle you never would have picked out in a wine store.

[00:24:53] Guest for Next Week: Every single glass of wine has something that can tell you if you know how to read it, how to listen to it. I think [00:25:00] that's very cool.

[00:25:00] Katya Rucker: You can listen to this episode when it comes out on Tuesday, December 28.

[00:25:06] I'd Rather Be, was hosted, produced, and edited by me, Katya Rucker. Show notes for this episode can be found at idratherbepodcast.com. You can follow the show on Instagram, the handle is just I'dRatherBePodcast. Have a great week, and thanks for listening.