What to look for when shopping pre-loved.

Mad about Missoni? Aching to wear Alberta Ferreti? Once upon a time, designer and high end brands were out of reach for many of us. Not any more. The rise of pre-loved and vintage stores, both physical and virtual, has meant beautifully designed and tailored clothes fit within many more budgets. Here’s our handy guide to shopping vintage and pre-loved.

Green Salon Founder and Sustainability Coach, Lucy Johnson, in pre-loved Issa dress.

Remember when a shopping trip was a great girls’ day out? Now more and more we tend to get our retail kicks on our phones or laptops. Well, we’ve got a radical suggestion for you: grab one of your besties and make for the shops again. There’s joy to be had in those changing rooms.

But to make it more 2022, jettison Zara for a funky pre-loved store.

Why do we love pre-loved and vintage at Green Salon? Because the future is circular and clothes don’t come much more circular than vintage and pre-loved. Want a Missoni jumper? There’s a lonely one out there waiting for you in someone’s wardrobe right now. 

The beauty of circularity is that you can find a pair of pre-loved Donna Karan sunglasses or sell a pair – and nothing gets thrown away.

If you’re new to this pre-loved fashion world, it might all feel a bit daunting so here’s our guide to smart pre-loved shopping.

Head for a pre-loved shop

That’s right you heard it, ditch the phone or laptop and do it the old-fashioned way. Nothing beats sorting through racks of pre-loved burnt-umber woollen trousers, cream cashmere sweaters and russet silk skirts. Just the feeling of the fabric beneath your fingers: the softness or the crispness of the fabric, the texture of a twill. You just can’t get this effect online.

We love that a preloved shopping trip means you get to spend quality time with a friend: trying things on, reminiscing about past outfits and catching up with their news. Shopping together is all about connecting: with the friend you’re with, but also with the staff who work in the shop. Nobody knows a pre-loved shop the way the staff do. If you’re after a new pale pink blouse: ask them. If there’s none there today, they’ll often give you a call when one comes in.

One of the biggest benefits of shopping IRL is, of course, that you can try things on. You can see how they fit with your curves and you can see how you feel in them. The changing room strut is not one that we think should ever go out of fashion.

Deuxieme pre-loved shop in Parson’s Green, West London: a Green Salon favourite.

What if you can’t make it to the shops?

If you’re not able to make it to the shops, there is now a vast online wardrobe available – and pre-loved is one of our favourite corners of that digital trunk. But where do you start? How do you judge the quality when you can’t see the clothes in real life? And how can you tell if they fit?

Keep an eye out for the photos

When it comes to shopping pre-loved online, it pays to be savvy about what the clothing looks like beyond the silver screen. Even on the glossy pre-loved online clothes site, Vestiaire Collective*, the lighting and camera quality often resemble a quick snap you might send a friend (or your sustainable stylist!) when you’re in a changing room and can’t decide… not exactly professional, but practical.

We love the way Sign of the Times* showcases its clothes online on actual humans. That way, you can see how they hang and how gorgeous they could look on you.

A golden rule is to spot posts that have photos from all angles. Then take a deep breath, and imagine how you’re going to pair that lovely black Sandro dress you just found with what you already own: brown suede boots? A caramel trench coat? Black spiky heels?

The more pictures the better. Lots of angles can also give you a sense of the true colour – with multiple photos, preferably with flash, you’ll know if the jumper’s black, charcoal or navy blue.

Look for thorough descriptions

Still feels risky? Here’s where descriptions really help you sort it out. It pays for sellers to be honest about the conditions of the clothes they are trying to sell. If they’re not, they’ll likely get a bad review. And trust us, bad reviews matter.

You can also check the seller’s star rating and read earlier reviews to decide if you’re ready to seal the deal. You’ll know if the item is in Very Good or Good condition… or if it has been worn at all. You’ll be surprised how many items still have their shop tags on.

The more thorough a description is, the more you can trust that you will get what you are paying for. And this is the purpose of the descriptions: to help you picture that jacket in your hands, on your closet, and on you.

Vintage bags and shoes galore at Sign of the Times* pre-loved shop

When in doubt, message the seller

Still in doubt? Just ask the seller. Most sellers are keen on answering your questions.

Want to know how bright that baby blue suede vintage skirt is? And what about the length of that beige Burberry skirt? You’ll need to know the height of the person who modelled it, so just ask.

It can really pay to chat to the seller as that way you get to find out as much as you need to know about the item, and it feels much less transactional than simply pressing buy. These are real people, after all, just like us, who will have loved this dress, for instance, at some point just as much as you’re going to.

It’s important to remember you can’t send back clothes on pre-loved sites – unless they are inaccurately described - so you have to be as certain as you can be that you love this item. Take your time and enjoy the process. It’s a whole new mindset and way of shopping – not the frenzied click and buy of fast fashion.

And here’s our most important piece of advice:

Never buy trousers online!

OK, that’s a bit radical but our sustainable stylist Rosanna has a word of caution here: trousers, more than most other clothes, need to fit beautifully. A pair of well-fitting trousers can really make an outfit. And as we are all unique in our shapes, trouser shopping is an art – best done IRL.

However, you shop pre-loved – in an actual or virtual store – if you remember the mantra of slow fashion: “buy better, buy less”, you’ll find your style reaching new heights.

We analyse each brand for their commitment to sustainability but we are not a certification body, nor are we auditors, and we have taken the approach that we trust brands to tell the truth about their sustainability policies, practices and plans.

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