Updating Your Fall Wardrobe the Frugal Way

Second-Hand Shopping Tips and Links; Finding Great Items, For Less – and how to make cash too!
Amy Hannold, FamilyTimeandMoney.com

Shopping resale can be a great way to find items you need, at an affordable price. Look in your local yellow pages, or search online on websites such as:
http://www.consignmentshops.com/
http://howtoconsign.com/find.html

Online, you can search for regional websites which will lead you to the best of consignment shopping. To find local stores, simply Google your city, along with the words “second hand shopping” or “consignment stores”. (www.local.com is another place to find local shops) One example, which offers tips for all shoppers, is the “Second Hand Shopping Guide” for the San Diego area:
http://www.bargainlink.com/

When shopping for baby gear or household items, be aware of product recalls. An easy resource to refer to is offered by the Consumer Product Safety Commission:
You can search for product recalls by date, type of product, company or product description:
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prerel.html

Secrets of Second-Hand Shopping! Increase your Second-Hand Shopping Savvy; Kate Holmes, an industry icon who mentors consignment retailers, offers these tips:
http://howtoconsign.com/journalsavvy.htm
Ms. Holmes also offers tips on second-hand shopping at “Too Good to Be Threw”:
http://www.tgtbt.com/consumer.htm
How to Consign; Turning your items and clutter into cash:
Howtoconsign.com also offers you easy to follow tips on selecting and preparing items you may want to consign:
http://howtoconsign.com/spiffy.htm

Want to Shop With Consignment Fans? Some areas offer “Consignment Bus Tours”. This may be something you can research before a vacation or day trip. (Always research great, local shops before you take that next getaway). Here’s an example of Consignment Chick tours:
http://www.consignmentchic.com/

FreePeats.org: Baby Gear, Maternity and Kids Stuff: An online community growing in popularity which serves families looking to get the gear, for free! (A $4.95 lifetime membership is required).
http://freepeats.org/

Find a thrift store near you, and more!: Links to product manuals, national thrift store chains and charity resale shops can be found here:
http://www.thethriftshopper.com/

Other sources for buying clothing and other items, for less:
Find a Yahoo Group in your area which offers “free classifieds”. You can join these groups, subscribe to the posts, and find good stuff. Listing items you “WTB” (Want To Buy) gives you the opportunity to let your neighbors know what you’re looking for.

Neighborhood newspapers often times offer free or reduced rates for classified ads. Find these publications and you may find a great deal! Selling items through these newspapers can bring in extra cash.

Freecycle.org, if you’re not familiar with it already, is a place to give and get items – for free! Help someone with their needs, or find items for yourself. You may make a new friend or two as well!