I agree with everything said so far and have something else to add. I thrift because I am willing to "make do" with what I find. So many people have to have what they want, when they want it. It's that "affluenza" thing we've got going in the other thread.
I can have an image or style in mind, without craving a particular item -- I ignore those fashion articles with the "must have" piece to each wardrobe. Same for home furnishings. But things that fit with my tastes are out there -- but not "on demand."
When we thrift, we open ourselves up to possibilities, we can relinquish our need to have "the" thing that is "it." Because while we all have a mental hit list of the things we want, let's face it that if we really felt we had to have these things in order to be fulfilled, we'd have to go out and buy the stuff new. Full price. Maybe on credit.
Nope, thrifting is my way of letting go of the rat race in many respects. It's easy for me to let go of the goal to keep up with the neighbors and advertising-driven society. Thrifting helps me turn a blind eye to what marketing tells me I want or must have. It allows me to find what I can use, discover something cool. True, it's also turned me into an accumulator of stuff -- but at least I'm not a carbon copy citizen bound to a credit card with arbitrary terms and rising interest rates... just a chick with a lot of vintage linen and cool dishes.
We're a weird sub-culture -- but I think thrifting helps free us from the message that we have to have the newest, the best, the luxury, etc.
Thriftily,
Alexandra
www.livingwithoutmoney.blogspot.com
