Consignment and thrifting help you find one-of-a-kind pieces while decreasing your carbon footprint
As a way to combat the growing climate crisis and save some money, many turn to secondhand shopping. Rather than buying items brand new and increasing their carbon footprint, fashionistas throughout the country are opting to purchase items previously worn by other users. Secondhand pieces can be acquired by consignment shopping (which also allows the owners of those clothes to make money) or by thrifting vintage and antique pieces.
One local consignment shop is Loralei’s Boutique, 43 W. Franklin St. in Centerville, which has been open more than 12 years. The brand focuses on finer and designer women’s items including carefully curated clothing, handbags, shoes, jewelry, outerwear and accessories.
“Consignment is an ideal way to recycle, especially for customers whose closets are filled with clothes, shoes and/or accessories that they never or rarely use or wear,” says Suzanne Wehrly, owner of Loralei’s Boutique. “The resale economy offers the second-best sustainable option by extending the lifecycle of each garment, keeping it out of landfills and replacing the need to produce new items.”
Current trends Wehrley is seeing at the shop include whites, boho prints, animal prints and bold black and white with a pop of bright colors.
“Loralei’s is the only consignment shop in the area that focuses on designer and premium brand fashions for women,” adds Wehrly. “Loralei’s selects only the best of the best, and all items are in new or like-new condition.”
In addition to consignment, thrifting and vintage (vintage being anything over 20 years old) are growing in popularity. Katie Sharp is the owner of Brass Bee Vintage Goods, a vintage home decor and fashion brand located at 3742 Kellogg Ave. in Cincinnati. Sharp is an advocate of thrifting because it’s better for the environment.
“Reusing what already has been manufactures and is out there already is the best option or our planet,” she says. “Another reason is that a lot of vintage items are much higher quality than what you’ll find mass produced today.”
Trends that Sharp is seeing in the home decor realm include mid-century modern pieces and vintage Pyrex. “Fashion vintage trends right now really range, but if I had to narrow it down to a few decades, I’d say ‘80s-‘90s denim especially, and early 2000s items like black platform sandals, claw clips and tube tops—yes, early 2000s is officially vintage now,” she adds.
