As the leaves change their colors this fall, try making your fall wardrobe a little greener! The modern fashion industry is the second biggest contributor to pollution, right behind the oil industry. Our affordably cute Charlotte Russe jean jackets and Forever 21 sunglasses come at a great cost to the environment and contribute to the violation of the labor rights of impoverished and underage workers overseas. Tremendous amounts of farmland used for growing materials, hundreds of thousands of kilowatt-hours of electricity, and just as many underpaid workers are required to meet the seasonal demand of many of our favorite clothing chains. As stores like Zara cycle out their merchandise on a bi-monthly basis, leftover inventory is either burned or sent out to landfills, completely wasting the resources used up to make their ever-changing products. One of the easiest ways to reduce your carbon footprint this fall is to shop used and vintage. Not only will you be wearing completely unique outfits, but you’ll also be reducing your contribution to the fast-fashion industry and saving your wallet at the same time. So without further ado, let me tell you about a few of my favorite used and vintage thrift stores in Chicago:
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Belmont Army Surplus – 855 W Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL 60657
- The first location on my list is located off the Belmont stop on the CTA red line. The Belmont Army Surplus store is a four-story building nestled in-between the famous Annoyance Theater and an unassuming Subway restaurant. While floors 1 through 3 are their own separate and unique storefronts (I still recommend checking them out as well!), I’m going to tell you about the unusually magical 4th floor. Not only is this place stockpiled with good-as-new vintage 70’s, 80’s and 90’s clothes, it’s also the perfect place to find a great costume for upcoming Halloween parties. Not only are the employees here extremely helpful and fun to talk to, but every piece in the store is undeniably one-of-a-kind.
2. The Hollywood Mirror – 812 W Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL 60657
- Also located right off the Belmont Red line stop, the Hollywood Mirror is less of a regular clothing store, and more of a mixed bag of fun vintage clothing, halloween costumes, and interesting 60’s-90’s kitsch. Though prices are a little bit on the higher side (vintage 80’s acid-wash jean jackets are priced at $35), the Hollywood Mirror is definitely worth checking out if you want to be transported into a old-timey carnival world of colorful oddities.
3. Buffalo Exchange – 1478 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60622
- The Buffalo Exchange, located in Wicker Park, is another great consignment store to check out after grabbing a video-game themed drink from the Wormhole Cafe down the street. Sifting through the racks at this store always feels like a treasure hunt, because I always come out with something I’d never see on a Forever 21 mannequin. While prices range from low to high, the sheer volume of the selection here makes the likelihood that you’ll go home with something amazing that much greater.
4. Crossroads Trading Co. – 1730 Sherman Ave, Evanston, IL 60209
- With four locations in the Chicagoland area, including Evanston, Lincoln Park, Wicker Park, and Downtown Chicago, Crossroads Trading Company is one of my go-to’s for quality name-brand pieces. The Evanston location is only a short walk from the Davis purple line stop, and is chock-full of mid-priced name brand clothing in all sizes. In past visits, I’ve found second-hand J-Crew sweaters priced at $10, as well as Doc Marten’s boots for only $25.
5. The Brown Elephant – 5404 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60640
- The Brown Elephant is extremely unique in that the store is set up in a converted open loft. The extremely well-priced clothing section is just a small part of what this place has to offer. Unlike the Salvation Army or Goodwill, you don’t need to sift for hours to find something you like. Tops and bottoms are priced starting as low as $4, making shopping for a new outfit very easy on your wallet.
6. Green Element Resale – 6241-45 N Broadway, Chicago, IL 60660
- Though many of Loyola’s Lake Shore Campus residents may already know about the Green Element, this place definitely deserves a shout out for its great selection of, well, basically everything! I often find myself visiting the Green Element during long gaps between classes, and I always seem to come home with a reusable bag filled with “new” graphic t-shirts and one-of-a-kind jackets. The icing on the cake when it comes to the Green Element has to be their insanely good prices, with skirts and bottoms starting $4, women’s’ tops starting at $3, and hats and scarves priced at $2 (just in time for the upcoming freezing lakeside winter).
In summation, I hope that this list inspires some of you to skip the mall next time you need a new pair of jeans or a dress for your sorority’s formal. It’s not only better for the environment to shop used, but you’re also refusing to support a wasteful system that mistreats and underpays underage workers overseas. Not only is shopping second-hand good for the world, but you’ll be setting your own trends instead of following the ones you see repeated on every mannequin at the mall.