You’re reading Jersey Girl Thrift’s bi-weekly newsletter! A quick and fun read, full of second-hand trends, style tips, local sales, store reviews, great reads, and a recipe or two. It’s everything you need to live a thrifty and luscious life.

And we back…

As always, we have been riding high on the amazing energy that was at our last swap! Thank you to everyone who joined us for another great time at the GORGEOUS Ria x Gallery!

In case you missed it…the vibes were high- the clothing was incredible! The North Jersey girlies showed up in droves to come swap with us- snacks were had, buttons were made, friendships were formed!

One of the most incredible parts about hosting these swap for us has been seeing our community being built in real time- we love seeing the same friendly faces following along to each space we pop up at. We are so grateful to the JGT girlies, and more energized than ever!

the bts

This week I thought I’d share a little peek behind the curtain of my role at the swap: which is one of joyous frenzy!

If you’ve joined us at a swap, you’ve seen our Front of House extraordinaire Larell greeting you with a smile, a fierce outfit, and all the 411. You may or may have not seen me, tucked in a quiet corner of closet (or this time, a back alley!) digging into all the goods you gals brought and sorting through it at a rapid speed.

We go through about 40-50% of contributions live while the swap is happening, the other 50% go directly onto our truck to take back to populate the next swap. As gals are arriving it becomes an avalanche of bags to sort through, and it’s both overwhelming and exhilarating!

When I’m sorting through bags, typically I’m looking for things I know we are running low on at the present swap - for example at this one, the graphic tees were really a big hit, so I was digging into bags looking for more we could put out. I may also be looking for specific sizes, if I know we are running low on small dresses or large shorts, I’ll be hunting for that as well.

We’ll set aside bags with items for a different season- for example we set aside any bags filled with winter coats, boots, or heavy sweaters/fall items to bring out during a future fall swap. I’ll also set aside items to take back that I know we have a ton of out already, as well as sorting out any items that are a little too well-loved, stained, etc.

This process requires really quick decision making, ability to stay calm under pressure, and a keen eye! Is it labor-intensive? Extremely. Is it fun? Absolutely. It’s the definition of labor of love!

As I am sorting through these pieces, our runners are taking any new items we find and putting them on the racks at the swap to keep things feeling full. It took Larell and I a while to come up with this system. Most traditional swaps have you bring clothes and set them out yourself, which requires a lot more digging for what’s good as a shopper. At our swaps, everything is curated, organized, and QA’ed, and we can both start a swap with full racks, but also keep a constant flow of new things and in-the-moment contributions being added in. There’s nothing more fun turning to your friend with a shirt saying, “this is SO you!” and hearing back, “THAT WAS MINE!”

Thanks again to Ria Gallery for hosting us, as well as our sponsors at Eagle Rock Cafe, our raffle sponsor Home Harmony with Kate, our photographer Laura Loves Looks, and Devon Johnson Weddings for helping the front of house run smoothly!

Do you have a business that you’d like to partner with us? Send us a DM! 💌 

what I’m watching

If you haven’t watched Hacks yet, get ye to HBO. It’s maybe my favorite show on television, that somehow started strong in Season 1 (none of that “give it 8 episodes you’ll get into it!”) and keeps getting better every season. Deborah and Ava are the perfect duo as a legendary Las Vegas standup and her gen Z comedy writer. Episodes are a quick 30 minutes and it’s the only show that actually makes me laugh out loud every episode.

#thrifted

I’ve always been interested in the brand Converse, but always had a hard time pulling the trigger on getting a pair (which can get a little costly!) and now I don’t have to thanks to the pair I found like-new for $26 at Buffalo Exchange this weekend! They retail typically for $60+, and are thankfully just my size!

This summer we'll be taking a couple months off of swappin' so we can focus more on the business end of JGT, including renovating the dungeon-cloffice, and focusing on strategic partnerships. We are excited to spend more time to get organized internally, so we can continue to build this commuity and bring you the best swaps possible! We'll be keeping you in the loop along the way here on all the haps, as well as highlighting the best garage sales, flea markets, and thrift stores to help you shop secondhand this summer!

That’s it for now girlies!

Love ya! xxO K