What to look for?

We all donate our used clothing, furniture, kitchen appliances...everything.  It's a convenient way of getting rid of stuff that's taking up room in our homes, and cluttering our lives.  I donate because it means I can pay back into the system that I'm exploiting.  Donation means that I can take truckloads of gently-used good without having to pay tipping fees at our consolidated waste site, or having to wait for our twice-yearly curbside pickup.  More than a lot of things, I like the convenience.  I don't have to waste time to post things on craigslist, or make arrangements to meet people who want my stuff.  I can send my things on to another useful life with someone else.  We don't donate things that are obviously unsafe, or too-well-worn to be usable.  

Not everyone feels quite the same way, though.

So, there's a lot of fine-tuning when it goes to selecting items for purchase.  I buy from thrift stores because it means that I can have a big rotation of clothes from which to choose, without having to have invested large amounts of money for any one thing.  When I started shopping thrift, it was in part because I had no idea how long I would be at a particular size.  Maybe a month, maybe 6 months.  It was hard for me to tell how much life I would get out of a particular piece of clothing as I was still losing weight at a rapid and steady speed.  Now, that's not a problem, but I have enjoyed the variety and selection that I can get at the thrift stores.  What it also means is that I don't have to pay full price for high-end items that I wouldn't otherwise have been able to afford.  I've never purchased anything from Banana Republic.  But I love to live off the cast-offs from people who do!

The clothes are not always current season.  In fact, a lot of times, they usually aren't.  But, my fashion tastes aren't so cutting-edge enough that anyone is going to notice (even me) that the top I am wearing came from 2011, for example.  And sometimes, it means that you find very classic, vintage pieces that have been well-maintained and are timeless.  Like the navy blue wool, fully-lined Pendleton skirt I found last winter.  It needs to be hemmed to fit me better (right now it's just below my knee, which, as a petite, isn't the best length for me).  But, it was in impeccable condition, and it will never go out of style.  

So, what do you look for?  My decision algorithm is a little complex, but it's critical for thrift-shopping: Does it appear to be something that I would wear?  Is it the right size?  Could it be altered to fit better?  Is it damaged?  Could it be repaired?  Do I love it?

Sometimes there are things that fall outside this criteria.  If I get to the end of the decision tree, and "Do I love it?" is left, sometimes the answer isn't a resounding "YES!"  But, the item may be something to fill a hole in my wardrobe, or may have some other application.  

But, it goes something like this.