Secondhand Chic: Finding Fabulous Fashion at Consignment, Vintage, and Thrift Shops [Paperback]

Fun, funky, and fabulous, this is the first personal buying guide to help you get in on the resale craze that is sweeping America.
Would you like to find a mint-condition Yves Saint Laurent jacket for $25...a brand-new, pleated wool skirt still bearing the original $40 price tag, for $7...a genuine Dior suit for $75? Now you can! InSecondhand Chicyou'll discover where to look, what to look for, and how to buy quality. In fact, you'll get all the secrets of spotting a valuable bargain so you can shop brilliantly whether you're in a consignment, thrift, or vintage store. Expert shopper Christa Weil shares the insider information that will help you buy the best clothes you've ever owned...at a fraction of the retail cost.
Learn about:
Spotting quality -- which you will know immediately from buttons, pockets, seams, and fabric
Labels...big names, department store brands, exquisite foreign lines -- and fakes!
Finding your size when there are no labels or tags
Flaws you can fix and the ones you can't -- from wrong lengths and wrinkles to stains and shininess
Unearthing handmade shoes, silk scarves, name jewelry, and other elegant accessories
Buying what you really need -- and caring for the clothes you've got
The styles that make your body look best
From domestic to international stores, from New York to London, from Memphis to Paris -- no matter where you buy, you can buy secondhand chic.Christa Weilis a freelance editor and full-time writer who loves to buyand sell secondhand clothes. Her writing has appeared inThe Paris Free Voice, North Atlantic Review,andR&R News.She is currently living in London.Chapter One: All About the Secondhand Market
Secondhand clothes have gone uptown. Cities such as Boston, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. now have used apparel stores that resemble upscale boutiques in everything but their pricetags.
-- Money,June 1996
It's fascinating to see how this thril/