3 Things I Learned While Picking for Vintage

[from ItchforKitsch]

Lately, the thrift stores in my area have been picked over, and I've already listed most of what I have from previous months, so I had to find different sources for inventory. I had two opportunities to go picking through vintage clothing in the past few weeks, one from a collector and the other from a local dealer.

Craigslist led me to the collector, a sweet lady from two hours north of my town who loves vintage clothing and glassware. She was having a garage sale the same day that I went to her house, so I also scored some great home decor items. I ended up bringing home 15 dresses, a yellow purse, a set of blue apothecary jars, and a green pendant swag lamp.

The second trip I made was to see Lori from This Ol' Thing Vintage. She was trying to get rid of some clothes that weren't selling locally, so I picked up a few things that I'll try to sell online soon including a gorgeous mid century housecoat, a couple of women's suits, dresses, a Guess jean jacket, and some pink Levis.

I'm certainly no expert on picking for vintage (not even close!), but I did learn a few things that I need to keep in mind for the next time I go picking.

[from lacklusterco]

Set a budget before making the trip, and keep your spending limit in mind while negotiating.
This sounds terribly obvious, but it's so important. I had an amount that I didn't want to go over for the first trip, but I didn't hold myself to it and I ended up spending three times that amount! Of course, I got a lot of great items in one stop, and I am confident that I can sell them and make a profit, but I left feeling anxious and I started second guessing myself. I know I'll feel a lot more confident in my purchases if I stay within my budget next time.

[from visualphilosophy]

Stay calm and keep your wits about you.
It's easy for me to get flustered when I feel pressured to make a decision, so I sometimes have to literally tell myself to take a deep breath and chill out. When you're negotiating with someone over prices, remember that you don't have to rush and make a decision in a split second. Take a moment to consider the price they name, then, for heaven's sake MAKE A COUNTER OFFER. Be fair and do not make an insultingly low offer, but give yourself room to make a decent profit. I was not aggressive enough in negotiating, and I know that my profit margin would have been greater if I had. If the minimum price that the seller will take is not enough to make it worth your time to clean, possibly repair, measure, list, ship, etc, then walk away!

[from linedraw]

Bring a friend if you are unfamiliar with the seller.
It can be a good idea to bring someone with you on your treasure hunts. This is for safety as well as moral support. Just be sure to prep them before you go, especially if they are not used to buying and selling vintage. Make sure they know what you are looking for so they can keep an eye out for you. You can even explain your budget to them so they can help you to stick to it! When I went on the first pick, I had my grandmother (who was in town at the time) and my little sister with me. It was a little harder to negotiate with them there at times, but I was thankful they were there in case anything went wrong.


I just found another opportunity from Craigslist to go picking this week, so I'll try to put some of these things in practice!

Have you ever been picking for vintage through someone's personal collection? How did it go?