"Sh*t...It was 99 Cent": Thrifting in Vancouver

It’s been four years since Macklemore popularised thrift shopping, but I can confirm that it is still bloody awesome. When you embark on a Year Abroad, you arrive in the country that you are going to live in for a year with very few possessions - I rocked up to Canada with just one suitcase. As a result you genuinely have very little clothing. Very quickly you realise that, unless you want to pay to do laundry all the time, or want to wear the same identical outfit every day, you are going to have to do some shopping. This brings us to our next problem – as a student on a year abroad, money is tight. If you are anything like me, you will end up committing to crazy and stupid excursions that are way out of your budget – like a weekend in Toronto, or 10 days skiing in Whistler – and you’ll be left with very little funds for day to day living. So here is the dilemma: you drastically need to expand your wardrobe, but you don’t have a lot of extra cash in which to do it. The solution? Thrift shops!

I don’t know whether it is Canada in general, or whether Vancouver is a thrift shop gold mine, but I have had some huge successes in thrift shopping here. I’m going to outline for you guys some of the best places I’ve been, and what treasures I have found there.

The Rag Machine Clothing, 2425 Main St.

This cute and quirky shop is located in Mount Pleasant on Main Street. Tucked away from the main road, I stumbled across it when exploring some of Mount Pleasant’s awesome graffiti art courtesy of the Vancouver Mural Festival 2017 (side note: you should definitely check out the art). Situated in a graffiti-filled alley, this shop is a hidden gem. Everything is priced by weight, a cool feature that nostalgically reminds me of the many-a kilo sale I’ve explored in Birmingham. There is bin upon bin of t-shirts, skirts, flannel shirts and jeans, and rail after rail of quirky jackets and coats. As everything is priced by the pound, items such as T-shirts are incredibly cheap – excellent if you need to expand your wardrobe in affordable but vintage style.

I’ve been to visit the shop twice. The first time I snapped up a thick, grey embroidered fleece which has quickly become a staple part of my wardrobe for the cold mornings on Burnaby Mountain ($7). The second time I returned, I grabbed a vintage pair of Adidas trainers ($8). When you have to pack up your whole life into a suitcase, once you’ve squeezed in the necessary running trainers and hiking boots, there is very little room for other footwear! I came to Vancouver with only two pairs of day-to-day shoes – one of which has broken since being here – so I was pretty excited to find a new pair of trainers. They are also waterproof, which is essential when living in Raincouver (it really does rain all the time).

The Rag Machine Clothing is really a great shop. Situated in a quirky area, it has a hipster feel, and is great for re-stocking your wardrobe in style.

The East Side Flee Market, 1025 Main St.

The East Side Flee Market on Main Street is open every weekend from now until December 17. This Market is a temporary set-up in the Ellis Building, arriving for Fall and Christmas, and it is fantastic. With wooden floorings given an antique aesthetic, and a mini bar tucked up in the corner, it is a quirky and cosy destination. The Market has two floors and sells all sorts, from potted plants, to jewellery, trinkets and home-made hummus – easily the best hummus I have had in Canada. The vintage clothing is definitely the star of the show, however. There are racks of clothes, featuring designer brands also – my friend grabbed a thick, winter Levi denim jacket. Some of the things in this market a bit more expensive in comparison to the Rag Machine, but still affordable for what they are and considering that many of them are designer brands. I managed to get a thick, woolly turtle neck jumper, which has been pretty essential in keeping me warm but fashionable when exploring Canada, at the amazing price of $15 (£9).  For cheap vintage, and even just for a Christmassy experience of music, stalls and nice beer, this is a great place to visit. Entry was $3 – and it was definitely worth the price.

The East Van Garage Sale, The Astoria Pub, 769 E. Hastings St.

This was a one off event, but that doesn’t mean that it, or others like it, won’t come back. The Garage sale took place in the Astoria Pub on E Hastings. The inside layout of the pub had been entirely rearranged in order to accommodate for the stalls that surrounded the room, selling everything from clothes, to piano keyboards and jewellery. This was a rather more unusual and informal sale. It had the same kind of feel as a car boot sale – rather than representing a shop or brand, people were just selling the spare pieces from their wardrobes that they didn’t wear anymore. Consequently, everything was at a very low price, so that the items could still be used and loved by someone else. It was at this event that I made what is probably my greatest second hand purchase ever – a white pair of Vans, that just happened to be in my size, and were only $1. And I found them just one week after my beloved Ellesse trainers collapsed! There were some other great things on offer:  vintage Adidas and Nike jumpers, big warm coats, boots, t shirts and long dresses… even a Celine Dion jumper for my Celine Dion obsessed friend, Fi. It was a pretty informal atmosphere – it felt like everyone that was there were just friends that had decided to sell their stuff together – somewhat helped by the very cheap drink deals on offer at the bar. This was a one-time-only event, but I am sure others like it will emerge in the future. Entry was $2.

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So in the last few months I have done some pretty successful thrift shopping! There are other good stores and events in Vancouver beyond just these three, but these are the ones that caught my attention! And, of course, I couldn’t write a whole blog post on thrifting without mentioning my life and saviour, Value Village. Value Village is located all over Canada and their stock will vary from store to store, but I have had some excellent finds there. Hoodies, jumpers and jackets most specifically, including a real Canadian Winter Olympics sweater, because I had a serious lack of winter clothing when I first arrived.

When you are a poor student, especially when you are on a year abroad, second hand clothing is the best option for restocking your wardrobe, so I’m pleased that I have had so much success in doing so with these stores! I’ll let you know about any other good thrift finds in the future. x