Shop Phoebe’s Closet, an Instagram Boutique of Thrifted Baby Clothes and Things

I love thrifting. I LOVE it. When I stumble upon an amazing vintage dress or an designer sweater for $5, I feel like I found a true treasure, something unique and beautiful, and something that I can also afford to buy and own on our tight budget.

As Phoebe gets older and grows out of her clothes, I’ve given many away as hand-me-downs and donated a ton to those in need. But there were still some items I couldn’t bear to part with, my favorite pieces from her wardrobe. I knew I’d only get about 25 cents for them if I sold them at my local consignment shop, so I decided to hang onto them. “Just in case I had another girl.”

And then my friend, Emily, opened up an Instagram account to sell some of her daughter, Poppy’s, unused items: shop_poppys_closet. And I was inspired. This is what I should do with those cute clothes that are getting no use in the garage! This was a much better answer than buying storage totes and hoarding all the unused clothes! I could pass the clothes along to my online friends, and maybe even make a few buck in the process. And, so, Phoebe’s Closet was born.

I quickly sold, packaged and mailed out 10 listings. And then my friends started doing the same. I think that this is such a cool way for us to “cut out the middle man” and sell clothes directly to each other, so I wanted to include a shout out to all my other Instagram Mamas who are selling their unused baby wares online. If you’re on Instagram, you should totally check these shops out. Each picture will link directly to pictures of the shop’s wares on statigram (a way to view instagram pictures through your web browser):

WHERE DO I HOPE TO GO FROM HERE???

My goal is to visit my local thrift/consignment stores each week and look for good bargains on cute baby clothes. I’ve really enjoyed selling Phoebe’s things, and even though I typically only make about $1-2 per item, I hope to be able to turn this into a little business for our family. It’s something I can do with Phoebes in tow, and it’s something I’m good at! I’ve already done some “personal shopping” for half a dozen online friends who don’t live near good thrift stores. And while I’ve never charged anyone to shop for them in the past, I think this would be a neat way to help support our little family.

I’m going to start THRIFTY THURSDAYS on my Instagram shop, Phoebe’ Closet. Each week I’ll go looking for new finds, and then I’ll post them to the shop each Thursday. The clothes will be available for one week, at which point I’ll take down the listings, return them to the store (if they don’t sell), and buy new items.

How can you support Phoebe’s Closet? If you’re on instagram, tell your friends about the shop! If you’re on twitter, I’d appreciate a shout out as well. My username in both places is @phoebes_closet. If enough people follow the shop and buy my wares, I’ll make enough to keep it going and to keep sharing these cute clothes and great buys with all of you.

Thanks for your support!

^_^ Erin Wetzel
2012-08-28