Thrift Shopping Around Palm Springs

Before I get in to this, I know it feels like this was a long time ago, given the news cycle, the fires are still very much a problem, and people are still suffering and struggling in their aftermath (Palisades fire is actually only 69% contained….Eaton less than 90% , two weeks later…). Please consider donating to a family on this list of Black residents of Altadena and Pasadena who were displaced during the Eaton fire, or this master list of people’s GoFundMe accounts from the Palisades and Eaton fires. There are a lot of ways you can help, but most people really need money, more than anything, and even if you can give $10, it can do a lot of good.

---

At almost the start of the fires, my family and I packed up and headed to the desert. Our home is close to the Palisades fire (it’s still standing) and we needed to leave on the day they started. We ended up staying out in the desert for much longer than initially expected, and on one of the afternoons, while my kids were at art camp at Art Major, I snuck off to do a quick trip to a thrift shop.

Growing up, I loved thrifting, and went all the time - especially in Austin. Living in New York, and now LA means the thrifting situation is harder - vintage and resale shops comb the best thrift stores for things to resell, so the real gems are fewer and farther between. I knew though that thrifting and vintage was great in the Palm Desert, but obviously things were…busy while we were there…so I only got like one hour to hit up one store.

Like I mentioned in last Saturday’s Snack, I’ve been wearing the same seven or eight things since before Christmas, so I was eager to play dress up a little. My challenge to myself was a full style out - multiple looks, head to toe (I kind of failed on that part), but full fantasy, have fun, playtime. I wanted to hit up more than one store, but that’s life. I didn’t have time.

So, here’s what I came up with + my general tips on thrifting.