At Salvation Army, I cruise all of the racks seeking first by color and texture. For the record, I like everything 100% cotton in muted colors. Mostly earth tones, but also black, white, and very light pink(almost white). When shopping this way, quality presents itself in the richness of a color, consistency of a pattern, and feel of the fabric, and if I like it enough, I will try something a little different in style...you know like a v-neck t-shirt instead of crew. Because I enjoy branching out. Generally, I end up with items that I would not have found or afforded another way. And.... it is ok if I change my mind or stop loving item after 1 or 2 wearings. But this almost never occurs with my Salvation Army purchases. (I am pained to tally the thousands of dollars wasted on items never worn.)
Sometimes I feel as though I am getting the used items of the same person, as if by some psychic connection I am led through the many random racks to items similar in size and style. And, that makes me smile.
I shop the books in a similar fashion. The book jackets lure me with their hues, colors, textures, and fonts. And again, I like to think I am gathering books from the same reader. When I go to Barnes & Noble, I am distracted by the well marketed and most popular selections and miss out on genuine exploration. I seriously love Salvation Army, even if they are closed on my Simple Joy Sunday.
I love, love, LOVE Salvation Army!!
ReplyDeleteFor pretty much the same reason, only you put it much more eloquent than I would have. ;)
I once bought a mustard color sweater at SA. It makes me look sallow, which I kind of like because I associate sallow with skinny. I used to dye my hair red and I felt like a Fall foliage display. Ahh.
ReplyDeleteWe don't have a Salvation Army, but we do have a Goodwill!!!
ReplyDeleteWe have Good Wills and we love going there. The Good Will Industry has been sprucing their stores here, and the donation center is open every day of the week, most days until 9 pm. Great for when I get into one of my decluttering frenzies.
ReplyDeleteHow yummy was that post?
ReplyDeleteI'm all about purging and schlepping my discards to Salvation Army. Next time I'll wonder if someone as bad ass as your giraffe-looking self is purchasing my prior possessions.