Second Hand isn't Necessarily Second Rate

Have you noticed the condition of the economy has everything to do with our urgent desire to redefine our frugal ways? It seems we are in the midst of such a revival . I've noticed an increased number of blogs, articles and tips outlining ways to save money on those things we must have, and ways to recycle what we already have.

So I'm going to add my two cents from personal experience! I was raised in a very frugal household. Which is not be be confused with 'cheap'. Cheap simply wasn't done in our home because cheap was a waste of money. 'Buy well the first time and take care of it', that was our motto. Sometimes that meant buying something secondhand because it was a better value for the money and expectation of use.

I think we are familiar with second hand clothing shops like Goodwill, Salvation Army and the scores of consignments shops. Now some people stalk these secondhand shops looking for that treasure someone else threw out which is worth its weight in gold. I stalk them as the first line of shopping for clothes. I used to find great clothes for my son when he was young. When kids are at the stage of growth where they outgrow things before they've worn them out...secondhand is the only way to go in my book.

I recently found a brand new designer white cotton dress shirt with the tags intact for $6, well below the retail price and just my size. I found two sets of Laura Ashley cotton window curtains complete with tiebacks and fully lined for $10. Now I do a lot of sewing with cotton and there is enough excellent quality yardage in those curtains to make a dozen pillow cases, cushions, tote bags with enough left over the make some sachets, wrist cuffs and add several squares to my recycled quilt.

But remember, great buys are only great if you saved money on something you were going to buy anyway. It has to fit, it has to be useful and it has to be reasonable. Don't waste money on something you'll have to fix because you'll never get around to it.