In the first years of writing this blog, I used to write multiple articles each year about all the secondhand clothing I bought. Now, I feel like the fact that I wrote so many articles each year showed that I bought too much secondhand clothing. It’s secondhand, yes, so it’s the most sustainable option. But besides buying sustainable I also want to buy less and step out of the consumerism trap. In 2023 I decided I was going to write just one article about all the secondhand clothing I bought that year, in an effort to help me buy less. I bought 11 items that year. For 2024 I want to keep this trend going and hopefully buy even less. Here’s all the secondhand clothing I bought in 2024.
1 | White sports bra (January 2024)
I’ve had my last sports bra for almost ten years I’d say. Buying that one was quite a challenge because for sports I want one that’s really tight and most sports bras are looking good, but they’re not made for jumping around if you know what I mean. When I realized the ‘old’ one wasn’t good anymore, I thought finding a new one would be a big challenge. But then one day, I just ran into a white one at the thrift store in exactly my size. I tried it and have used it ever since. I guess it was my lucky day. It cost me 4,25 euros at thrift shop De Boem in Amstelveen.
2 | Black boots (March 2024)
In May 2023 I bought exactly these black boots as well. I loved the look of them, but they broke down after about 7 months. Repairing had already been done once, so they were at the end of their life. They did not last long at all, so I actually looked for different black boots. But I could not find any that I liked. I wanted a certain look, no brand showing and also no real leather. I could not find what I wanted and so I ended up buying the exact same ones again for 8 euros on Vinted. So far they’ve lasted a year already and that’s great.
3 | Black winter coat (April 2024)
For years now, I didn’t really have a good winter coat. I have some sort of in between autumn coat, which I used to always wear in winter too. And sometimes I would lend my mom’s winter coat for a while haha (she has a few). But the last couple of years, I was done feeling cold all the time. I wanted to have a good, actual winter coat of my own. I searched for a sustainable brand for a long time and I even considered buying one new! In hindsight I was very lucky, because the one I wanted new was sold out in my size and then in April 2024, I ran into this one in the thrift shop. I always struggled with finding coats in thrift shops, but this one was perfect and I bought it for 13 euros at thrift shop Het goed in Hengelo. I have to admit, the quality is a bit low, but for the time being it is great.
4 | Loose summer pants (April 2024)
Ever since I was 16, I’ve had one long, loose, high-waste summer pants. I love to wear such pants with crop tops in summer. The one I had was reaaaally worn down at the butt area. The fabric had become very thin and the colors vague. You could really tell that this pants was at the end of its life, it nearly broke. The one I had before that ripped apart one day and so now I chose to start looking for another one before that happened again (I can’t live without my loose summer pants haha). I ran into this purple one at the thrift shop Het Goed in Hengelo and fell in love with it right away. Purple is my favorite color. It cost me 4 euros.
5 | Over shoes (June 2024)
I have a rain coat and rain pants. But I did not have anything to protect my shoes from the rain. The bike ride to the train station was 25 minutes because I lived with my in-laws in 2024. And so when I got to the train station, my body would be dry but my feet soaked (which is a horrible feeling, honestly). I decided I needed some sort of rain attribute to protect my shoes from the rain as well. I honestly don’t know if over shoes is the right name for these things. But these go over my shoes to protect them from getting soaked. So far they’ve done the trick quite often! They cost me 11 euros on Vinted.
6 | Blue bra (July 2024)
Before 2024, I had just one bra. A black one, which fit perfectly. I bought that one new a while ago because I wanted to do it at a professional shop to really see my exact size. And I was happy with it, but it felt a bit boring. I mean, it’s nice to wear something else than black every once in a while. It is not a necessity, because theoretically one bra is enough. It’s just a luxury that I wanted, to be honest. I decided to buy a second bra, this blue one. Since I knew my size, I decided to go for it secondhand. I don’t buy underpants secondhand, but bras are totally different. I bought this one on Vinted for 6 euros and it suits me perfectly.
7 | Bathing suit (August 2024)
A bathing suit was something I had bought new the last time. At that time, I was in a hurry and so I felt like I had no choice than to buy it new. This time I took more time. The one I had was getting way too big because bathing suits usually stretch after a while. Once I noticed that, I started looking for a new one. Just in regular shops, to find the right size (with bathing suits, it’s always different). I found this one at H&M and fell in love with it. Luckily for me, exactly this one was available on Vinted for just 8 euros. The trick works every time. Just shop at a regular store to fit the item, don’t buy it and then look it up on Vinted.
8 | Denim jacket (September 2024)
On my birthday my boyfriend and I decided to go shopping at the thrift shop Appel en Ei in Utrecht. I felt like I needed some pants. I tried many of them, but I did not find one I like. What I did find was this denim jacket. Or colbert better to say. Normally I never buy jackets like these, because I never find them comfortable enough to wear (the inside is almost always made out of polyester too, which feels like you’re wearing a plastic bag). But this one is different. No plastic on the inside and it felt extremely comfy. I found something which looks casual chique, but feels like a comfy sweater! Jackpot. I paid big money for it (60 euros) but so far it’s been worth every dime. This is actually my favorite item that I bought in 2024.
9 | Green dress (September 2024)
On that same shopping search where I was searching a pants, I also found this amazing green dress. I have to be honest here: I did not need this dress at all. But do I regret buying it? Hell no. I still have moments where I impulsively buy something and that’s okay. I try to minimize these purchases but I am no robot. I have worn the dress quite a lot already, even during Christmas! It’s a very tight dress but I feel comfortable in it and that is worth a lot. I bought this dress for 10 euros at the thrift shop Appel en Ei in Utrecht.
10 | Ear warmers (October 2024)
I have a very nice secondhand hat for in winter, to protect my head and ears when I bike in winter. But when I buy my hair in a ponytail or anything else I could not wear this hat (because it would ruin my hair). Therefore, I felt like I needed ear warmers. Because at this moment winter was coming and I used to bike for 25 minutes at 6:00 AM and it was cold! I thought these brown ones would fit nicely with my coat. I bought them for 3 euros on Vinted and have been very happy with them ever since. I’ve used them all winter, no more cold ears for me.
11 | Rain coat (December 2024)
This item is very special. That’s because I intentionally bought it secondhand (no impulse decision) ánd it’s a sustainable brand. That’s really the next step when it comes to my wardrobe. No more secondhand Zara or H&M, but Patagonia or ArmedAngels. That’s because clothing from sustainable brands last way longer and I also don’t want to indirectly support brands like H&M because I wear and therefore advocate their clothes. The rain coat I had before this one was secondhand (but originally from America Today) but it was broken and leak. If I biked to the station, I would have to wear a thick vest under it, but at one point both would be soaked after a ride. I was done with it and decided to invest is something good. I bought this Patagonia rain coat on Vinted for 50 euros.
12 | Mixed denim jeans (December 2024)
Like I said, I felt like I needed some ‘new’ pants. I only had skinny jeans in my closet and I think that’s extremely boring. If I want to keep my wardrobe a bit minimalistic, I will have to diversify a little bit. And honestly, skinny jeans are not the most comfortable jeans. Wider jeans are much more comfortable. So when I ran into this pants I was sold. It’s sort of a mom-model and I love that, comfy. The mixed legs are also something I absolutely adore. I like clothing that’s anything but boring. These pants cost me 17 euros and I bought them in thrift shop Appel en Ei in Leeuwarden.
13 | Denim mom jeans (December 2024)
Another mom-jeans haha. And I have to admit again: this one wasn’t necessary either. I could’ve just bought the mixed denim jeans alone. But I loved this pants too much. The color of the fabric is just really my style. And it was soooo comfy. I also have some sort of embroidery project in mind and I might use this jeans for it. Since buying it have worn this pants almost non-stop so I can’t really say I regret buying it. I bought this pants for 10 euros at thrift shop Appel en Ei in Leeuwarden as well.
14 | Denim wide jeans (December 2024)
Like I said, I wanted some other jeans besides skinny jeans. I already found a bit of a mom-jeans model, but I also wanted a more baggy model. This pants is just that. It’s very close to my personal style. I could wear this thing everyday. It looks amazing with a plain t-shirt and that makes me wear it often. I bought this pants for 15 euros at thrift shop Appel en Ei in Leeuwarden as well.
15 | Sleeveless jacket (December 2024)
This item also supports me in my diversify-journey. I have a lot of turtle neck sweaters which I wear all the time in winter. Comfy and quite cute as well, but it becomes boring at one point. It’s great to be able to mix up these outfits with this sleeveless jacket (I don’t know if this is the right name for this item), because it goes over a sweater or long-sleeved t-shirt. I have worn it quite a lot already and it’s very comfy. I bought this sleeveless jacket for 17 euros at thrift shop Appel en Ei in Leeuwarden as well. Like I said, that day I was looking for jeans. But when I found this one I couldn’t help myself.
3 more items that I already got rid of
I have to be honest here. There are actually 3 more items on this list. A bra, a body and a pants. These were fails because none of them fit me. I bought the bra and body on Vinted and they were the same size as the blue bra I showed earlier but they still didn’t fit me. I guess that happens sometimes. In this case I think the bra was worn a lot by someone bigger than me and the body was just a brand that differs in size per item (because the blue bra I have is the exact same size and brand).
The pants seemed great when I wore it in the thrift shop, but when I would sit for a long time in it, my belly hurt. I got rid of it in a responsible way very fast because clothing is supposed to fit me, not the other way around. This was honestly something I could’ve prevented when I bought it, because I just wasn’t honest with myself. It was too tight and should have accepted that. It’s a lesson for next time. I didn’t list these 3 items because I already got rid of them. They cost me 35 euros in total and I will count them in my total score below, for a honest reflection.
How much did I spend on secondhand clothing this year?
My goal is not to buy zero secondhand clothing every year, but my goal is to buy only when I really need something. That’s difficult, to be honest. But I like to challenge myself. In 2024, I bought 18 items worth 271,25 euros! That means I spend almost 23 euros on clothing every month (my budget is 10 haha). I think that’s too much. In fact, there were only two months in which I did not buy something: February and May. For someone who calls herself a minimalist I would say spending 23 euros a month on clothing is too much. So I could have done better. But I have to say, in 2024 I also bought a lot of things I felt like I needed.
If I compare 2024 with 2023 (the first year I listed all the secondhand clothing I bought in one article), I bought more. In 2023 I bought 11 items worth 141 euros. That’s a bit more like what I want. In 2025 I will start the cycle again and try to minimize my secondhand clothing purchases.
Yours sincerely,
Romee