Turn Thrifting into a Fashion Business

The Intersection of Fashion, Sustainability, and Body Positivity through Thrifting

In this engaging episode of the Designer’s Plants and Coffee podcast, our guest Amber shares her inspiring journey of creating the blog Eat’n’s Style, a unique fusion of food and fashion. Over four years, the blog has flourished by advocating for selling unused clothes and promoting thrifting as a sustainable and stylish choice.

Key Highlights:

1. Thriving Through Thrifting:Amber’s partnership with Goodwill stands out as a cornerstone of her success, emphasizing the importance of thrift shopping and the positive impact it can have on both the environment and personal style.
2. Thrifting Tips:Gain valuable insights into the art of thrifting, including the importance of patience, exploring all sections of stores, and targeting mid-week visits for fresh finds.
3. Sustainable Fashion Advocacy:Through her Instagram platform, Mix and Match Closet, Amber hosts weekly sales and showcases her favorite discovery—a stunning jacket from Messina Bottle. She underlines the significance of sustainable fashion choices and the joy of mixing and matching unique pieces.
4. Inclusive Styling:Addressing the challenge of finding vintage plus-size clothing, the guest champions body confidence and emphasizes the importance of fit over size labels. By using a plus-size mannequin and herself as a model, she offers inclusive styling advice and encourages mix and match versatility.
5. Promoting Mix and Match Merch:By focusing on showcasing a range of sizes from large to 4x, the guest aims to provide a diverse audience with stylish options and inspire confidence in individual style expression.

Tune in to this episode for a deep dive into the world of sustainable fashion, body positivity, and the transformative power of thrifting in creating a unique and inclusive style narrative.

We want to hear from you! If this episode inspired you in anyway take a screen shot of you listening on your device and post it to your Instagram stories and tag us, @designersplantsandcoffee , @mix.n.matchcloset and @eatnstyleblog

[00:00:00.000] – Zahiyya

Welcome to the Designers, Plants & Coffee podcast, where we discuss how to succeed as a designer while staying true to yourself, finding peace in the process, and making money doing what we love. Subscribe on YouTube and wherever you get your podcast.

 

[00:00:12.520] – Amber

Okay. So I started Eat n’ Style blog about seven or eight years ago after a bad breakup, and I knew I wanted to say stuff, but I didn’t want to say bad stuff about him. So I was like, Oh, let me figure out what I can talk about. I wanted to talk about food and fashion because those were two things that I love. So that’s how Eatin Style blog began. I had my own blogging website, and then I also started blogging for Greater Washington Goodwill locations as well. Listen to match closet then grew during the pandemic. I decided that I wanted to sell some of the clothes that I wasn’t wearing because I wasn’t going anywhere. And people seem to like the style. So it’s grown in the last four years.

 

[00:00:49.730] – LaTisha

You mentioned about the Goodwill. So can you talk more about how you actually got started with that?

 

[00:00:55.360] – Amber

So I’ve always been a thrifter. I’ve been thrifting since I was a kid. My dad took me If Greater Washington Goodwill came along. One of my good friends actually coerced me into reaching out to Finding Your Good, which is their blog site, to be able to become a blogger. I just said, Hi, this is me. This is what I do. I do what you all do. I like what you all do. And that’s how it started. And it’s a great organization to be a partner with.

 

[00:01:22.610] – Zahiyya

What tips would you give someone who wanted to get into Thrifting?

 

[00:01:25.870] – Amber

First of all, patience because people think that you go into any store, period, and you’re not going to find everything your size, all the things that checks off your list. That’s not always the case. The other thing is to shop all the sections. Some of their stores are a little bit more organized than others. So you may find something in the men’s section that isn’t supposed to be there. Don’t get discouraged at all. Another tip that I can give is a lot of stores similar to Goodwill, a lot of people donate their items during the weekend. It’s best to go there a Tuesday or Wednesday after they’ve been processed through the store. Then they actually hit the floor. You’re not getting the stuff from last week. You’re getting some of the things that has just hit the floor. Also, go out to other areas or neighborhoods that are not your own neighborhood. You’ll be surprised for the things that you find when you go a little further out.

 

[00:02:12.560] – Zahiyya

How can people buy from you?

 

[00:02:13.910] – Amber

People can buy from me through Instagram. I have a page, mix and match closet on Instagram. I have weekly Sunday sales, closet sales.

 

[00:02:22.760] – Zahiyya

What would you say was your best find that you said you’re not going to sell?

 

[00:02:26.230] – Amber

My best find, which I have been asked many times if I will sell. I don’t know if ladies are familiar with Messing a Bottled. In Baltimore, it’s a Black woman-owned apparel brand. I found one of her camel jackets, and on the back it says, Something along the lines of queen, you can rule like a king. I found it at a Goodwill for over 75% off. I did a blog about it for finding your good, and I get asked all the time, You want to sell that jacket? No, I’m not going to sell that jacket.

 

[00:02:55.250] – Naima

Are you taking clients for consignment?

 

[00:02:57.640] – Amber

I do take clients for Consignment. A Believe it or not, I love shopping, but just like anything, it can get tiring. I love to see some of the other items from other people’s closets that then I can move into newer people’s closets. It doesn’t even always have to come from my closet. They’re just able to contact me through Instagram or email, and then we can set up how we can do consignment of their items.

 

[00:03:20.610] – Zahiyya

How do you see yourself in another, I would say, year? What do you see yourself doing?

 

[00:03:24.490] – Amber

I would love to do more. I’m actually organizing a pop-up for next month in DC area. Also, when I started doing mix and match closet, my goal was also to do closet revamp. But because of COVID, I wasn’t able to go into people’s homes. I would love to go into different people’s closets and see what they have and remix what they have. Because again, it’s not always about going out and shopping and finding new things. There’s so many gems of people’s closets that they don’t even think about.

 

[00:03:51.340] – Zahiyya

Basically, you’ll just be a stylist for stuff people already have.

 

[00:03:54.090] – Amber

I would love to. We can add little things here or there, but people have pretty good base items that they don’t think that they can use?

 

[00:04:02.250] – LaTisha

Especially with going to thrift, have you noticed some of the discrepancies with maybe the vintage finds?

 

[00:04:10.730] – Amber

Yes, that’s a good question. There are a lot of great vintage items, but unfortunately, what they consider vintage plus size then is not the shape and size of us women nowadays. Even though they are great items that have lasted through time, sometimes it’s hard to find those plus size items. But they are still out there and they are there to be found.

 

[00:04:33.690] – Zahiyya

With all the upcycling now, do you find it harder to find good pieces now as opposed to before?

 

[00:04:40.540] – Amber

Yes. Thrifting is the new thing now, and I’m like, Why you all in here? But I mean, I welcome it, though. It’s good for people to educate themselves and know that it’s about sustainability. They don’t have to pay a lot of money for great items. We’re all helping each other. And that’s why the tip that I gave about maybe going a little further out to be able to find things things that you normally wouldn’t find in your own regular community or neighborhood that’s close to you.

 

[00:05:04.520] – LaTisha

What’s the furthest distance you’ve gone to to visit a thrift store?

 

[00:05:08.180] – Amber

The furthest north I’ve gone is Boston, and probably the furthest south is North Carolina. Whenever I travel, even if it’s for work, I try to incorporate some thrifting if I can.

 

[00:05:19.380] – Zahiyya

When you’re posting your stuff online, how do you go through the photography and the right angles and all of that stuff?

 

[00:05:25.170] – Amber

Good old iPhone, but I have a plus size mannequin that I got a couple of years ago, and I I use the mannequin. Also, I use myself. Just about everything I try on, I tell the ladies how it fits on me, how tall I am, what my measurements are, what my inseam is. They have an idea of, okay, it looks like this on her. Maybe if I’m shaped similar. But yeah, I try to be as honest as I can. Most things are secondhand. I do find some new things as well. But some things are secondhand. I’ll show you if there’s imperfections or anything like that. But I’m also not going to sell anything that I wouldn’t wear myself.

 

[00:05:58.090] – LaTisha

Check your measurements. Don’t worry about the that’s on the label because it may be a size 6, a 4, and a 20. It all depends on what that brand has decided.

 

[00:06:08.500] – Amber

I wish a lot of more people would think that way and stop looking to be so size inclusive because it really is about the fit. Even how you want it to fit on you. Now people are wearing stuff more oversize, so people are going up more sizes to have a certain look that they want to go for. I do have size sixes that shop with me. I was like, You have that in a 2X And I have to catch myself sometimes. I’m like, why? Because I love to take care of my curvy girls. I’m like, why are you over here? But people have visions for what they want their items to look like or what they want their look to be.

 

[00:06:43.850] – Naima

I know you use yourself as a model and you use your dimensions, but how do you encourage?

 

[00:06:48.830] – Amber

Because sizes are scary. I just encourage women just to love the body that you’re in. It’s beautiful. And that confidence and that joy comes from within. Yes, you’re right. So many people are scared of the numbers or the sizes or anything like that, but just love what you’re showing. I try to show that to women, that no matter what their sizes are, I offer between a large two or three X, sometimes a four X, if I can find some good 4X pieces because everyone deserves to be cute, be fly in the items that they want to wear and the style that they want to be in.

 

[00:07:24.010] – Zahiyya

If anybody wants a T-shirt, where can they get that?

 

[00:07:26.560] – Amber

Actually, one of my friends made this T-shirt for me. Oh, the problem. So yes, I will gladly take orders and bring them back to her. If anyone would like a mix and match closet, that would be great. I would love to see people walking around with mix and match merch.

 

[00:07:39.850] – Zahiyya

So how can people follow you online to get up to date with all the sales and stuff that you offer? Great.

 

[00:07:45.170] – Amber

You can follow me on Instagram, Eaton Style blog, also mix and match closet, and both pages will take you to each one.

 

[00:07:52.900] – LaTisha

Thank you all for watching. I’m LaTisha Winston of Keeping You a Stitches, along with Naima Dozier, of Fearless Zahia from Region Design Lab, and our special guest, Amber from Mix & Match. See you next.