Laundry On Sundaes

It’s no secret that I love thrifting. More and more of my closet is starting to be taken up by pieces I thrifted, some of my most-loved clothes and shoes came from Goodwill, and I often catch myself putting together entire outfits composed of thrifted stuff. And while I will always love going to a good thrift store and hunt for great bargain pieces, I thought I’d also try a more high-tech approach to it. So I tried two websites – Twice and Copious – and I’m here to review them.

1. Twice

Twice is a site through which you can buy and sell gently worn clothes from higher-end and designer brands. They have a list of brand they accept, ranging from the Gap and J. Crew to Anthropologie and Theory. It’s definitely geared at a more grown-up, profesional audience. Right now they only buy and sell clothes (tops, dresses, jeans, pants, and skirts), no shoes or accessories.

I was most drawn to Twice for their buying procedure. I have tried selling to places like Buffalo Exchange, but never had much luck. Selling on eBay is a lot of work, with taking all the photos, posting a listing, shipping, etc. To sell on Twice, all you have to do it check a list of items you’re selling on the site, they give you an estimate for how much you’ll make, and then you get a shipping label. Then you just pack your clothes in a box, tape the label on it and drop it off at the post office. When they receive your clothes, they’ll send you an e-mail with which items they will buy and for how much, then you either accept or reject the offer. Anything they don’t take you can either have them shipped back to you for $5 or donated to Goodwill. So I picked out 5 things to sell last time and they accepted 4 of them. I sold a Banana Republic top, a Gap top, a the Limited top, a pair of Trina Turk pants, and I made $24. Would I have made more on eBay? Maybe. But it was SO EASY and it didn’t cost me a thing. I would definitely recommend Twice if you ever have nice, lightly-worn clothes you want to get rid of.

I have not yet tried buying yet, but I think I might soon. All the clothes are nicely photographed, with measurements clearly stated. It’s easily searchable by size, color, occasion, style, and brand. Prices are pretty reasonable too; a nice top from say Banana Republic or Ann Taylor goes for about $10-$20, lots of jeans for around $20, etc. If you’re just starting to build a professional wardrobe, this is a great place to start. If you are interested, follow this link and you will get a $10 gift certificate just for signing up: liketwice.com/CnJaD

2. Copious

I first signed up for Copious a while ago, I think back in the spring. I like to call it a fashion-centric eBay with a social media twist. I tried to sell a pair of shoes back when I first signed up but without success. So I kind of left for a few months, but then I saw the site featured in the November issue of InStyle magazine and I thought I’d come back for a look (there was also a promo code – I can’t ignore a good sale/discount!). Basically you sign up for an account, and you can buy and sell clothes, shoes, bags, accessories, beauty stuff, etc. You can also “follow” other users and “love” different items (you know, all the standard social media stuff).

The thing I like about Copious is that you can basically raid someone else’s closet. If you find someone who’s your size and has similar style as you, then you’re in luck! The range of brands is much wider, everything from Forever 21 and H&M to Dior and Fendi. Prices are set by the users so lots of good bargains to be found. The downside to that is that the photos mich not be great quality and the description could be lacking, but you can always contact the seller for more info. Their search function could also use some improvement. And I wish there are ratings and reviews for sellers so I know I can trust them; right now you can only see if they’ve sold items before.

Selling on Copious is no different from eBay (maybe you target a better audience though), so I haven’t really tried selling since that first time. But I did end up buying something because I had that promo code. My experience was very positive, but that really depends on the seller. Anyway, try it out, you might find some real bargains on the site. And watch out for coupons and credit codes, they seem to give them out quite often (I believe there’s a discount for signing up too).

Readers, have you tried selling and buying secondhand online? What are your tips? Are there any other sites I should check out? I’d love to hear from you!

Tags: fashion, shopping, technology, thrifting