This past weekend, while assessing the eyeroll-inducing Vintage in my new hood, I happened upon a friendly face. I’d been to Monk Thrift Shop in Brooklyn; the Park Slope merch, while cheap, was ultimately kind of Meh. Apparently, the good stuff gets left in the city.
The only plausible explanation for the awesomeness you’re about to see is that Monk’s owner is a bonafide Dude and, as such, is unaware of what brands like Theory, Tahari, DKNY and Free People feasibly cost. We’re not just talking a fraction of retail price here, chickadees. We’re talking Salvation Army numbers. (It’s worth noting that, in addition to underpriced thrift, Monk also sells overpriced Vintage – all offending garb is clearly marked as such. So, to Yelp’s $$$ review of Monk and to the comments bitching and moaning that it’s like, sooo overpriced, I’ll say only this: You dummies were clearly browsing the wrong racks).
Let’s start with an item that gave me a little chuckle: This “one of a kind article by zachary’s smile,” i.e. a sweatshirt concocted from previously worn clothing scraps. Cool, but obvs not worth the eighty or so bucks Zachary’s Smile probs charged. Revenge is pretty effing sweet.
Next up: Two crop tops, because you know how I feel about layering and the eighties both. I don’t usually buy Forever 21 secondhand, but the navy number was in condition I couldn’t say no to (plus it has that semi-Goth flared sleeve thing going on – me loves it). The lettering on the mustard LOVE crop reminds me of L.A.M.B., so yaay. The navy was $6; the mustard was $12.
This cream, Club Monaco mock turtletank thing still had its original tags and was, at $20, the single most expensive item purchased. It’s so versatile that I’ve already worn it thrice; once with the belt pictured below.
The blue tank is Generra; a brand who usually charges at least $50 for its cotton basics. Where the Theory top’s concerned, I’ve saved the best for last.
It was the first thing I found, and that’s because the ONE DOLLAR RACK is located at the front of the store.
To sum up my haul: One ‘original’ sweatshirt, two crop tops, three springy basics and one belt – that’s seven items, Theory and new Club Monaco among them – for a grand total of sixty-two buckaroos.
Not half bad for a shopping spree.
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