So I'm only a month out from my surgery but just the 27 lbs I've lost is already making a huge difference in my clothes! YAY!

I literally have clothes in my closets from size 16-22/24 and 0x-3xl so when I tried on a few things that I had that were previously tight, I was excited to find they now fit loosely the way I like them. So then I just started pulling out all the 3x bc most of them no longer fit and some of the 2x were too big as well.

I have a LOT of clothes (and shoes and purses) and while I'm a bargain shopper, I have a lot of things with tags literally still on them that are now too big for me.

I went online and ordered 3 of those clean out bags from ThredUP and already filled one up with some really nice new and nearly new items, I also have a lot of stuff that can go in them but I am curious what experiences everyone else has with them and/or any other resale/online thrift places?

Do you bother with trying to get them altered? I've got a lot of sale items that I paid less that it would cost to get them altered.

I have never really had much luck on FB Marketplace with clothes, has anyone>? Is there a trick to it?

What say you experienced newly skinny chicks>?

I sell a lot on Mercari, PoshMark and sometimes EBay- and local consignment stores and sales… no Thred up experience here- i like the instant gratification of selling my own directly.

Good luck!

I have a lot of plus-size clothes that still have tags... There are items that were too small when I bought them, but I forgot about them and missed my narrow window of opportunity when they would have fit! I never bought really expensive clothes, so there's nothing that I think is worthwhile to have altered, especially when they are the right size for someone else out there. I don't have the time to sell items on my own (and really, I don't have anything that I could sell for much), so I plan to donate them. I'm embarrassed that I haven't gotten around to it more than 2 years after I shrank out of them. It is certainly annoying to think of how much money I spent on clothes that I never wore, but I look at it as a small price to pay for losing the weight.

I've been binge-watching old seasons of Project Runway on Amazon Prime, and there's an episode in Season 4 where women who have lost a lot of weight bring in their favorite outfits from their highest weight, and the contestants have to use the fabric to make new outfits for them. I think it would be pretty cool for someone to start a business specializing in that! But it would definitely not be a practical or money-saving option.

While I'm a bargain shopper, I have a lot of really nice clothes, maybe not top designers, but from places like Macy's, Dillards, Kohls, Belk, Torrid, Venus, etc. Most are current and all are in excellent condition bc I've always taken great care of my clothes, hung everything to dry and such. I also know that to buy them again would be something I could NOT afford. I've realized I will have to do much less volume and be more creative about pairings and figuring out what flatters. I'm fortunate that I'm tall-ish (5'9") so a lot of my dresses and my cardigans can be worn for a long time before they're falling off I think.

I wouldn't mind donating things but I'm also practical in my realization that much of this was bought when I was working and now that I'm retired, I don't have the disposable income I once had. I'm 56 so I've got a few years before I'm sitting on the sofa in sweatpants but not sure how to sell what I have and get back a little cash to re-buy some new duds.

That idea sounds cool with reusing the fabrics but I don't see it being a viable day-to-day business bc it probably wouldn't be practical and while I can't speak for everyone, most of the things I've bought as my fat self were never sentimental or something I'd want to save, I can't wait to be in a size 8 or 10 and hope to never have to buy another piece of clothing with an X in the size! I want to shop at cute places in the non-plus section for Chico's, Boston Proper and Venus and have someone tell me how thin I am

Vain I know but a girl's gotta dream

p

What part of Tn you in? I'm in Crossville, AL, about 45 min from TN/GA/AL junctions on I-59, just south of Ft. Payne myself.

aL

Since I'm not a skinny chick, rather a skinny...what?... di... no, let's go with guy. Skinny guy. As I was saying, since I'm not a skinny chick I can't really contribute here.

For instance, I'm not going to say that by the time I reached a stable weight I also had way to many clothes with the tags still in tact. It was frightening. I tried to not over buy, but that really wasn't in the cards. Being able to be walk through a store and buy something right there was a new experience. I couldn't help myself.

Another thing I might have added is that knowing that people in need really need plus sized clothing, and men's plus sized dress clothes were really needed. It allowed men straight off the street to go on interviews and such. So, I donated everything to charities that focused on getting people back on their feet. Bags and bags of clothes. In fact, I could rationalize over-buying as a way of helping people in need. My vanity became a virtue!

Well, it's your loss that I won't be contributing here.

Good luck,

Tek

21 minutes ago, The Greater Fool said:

Since I'm not a skinny chick, rather a skinny...what?... di... no, let's go with guy. Skinny guy. As I was saying, since I'm not a skinny chick I can't really contribute here.

For instance, I'm not going to say that by the time I reached a stable weight I also had way to many clothes with the tags still in tact. It was frightening. I tried to not over buy, but that really wasn't in the cards. Being able to be walk through a store and buy something right there was a new experience. I couldn't help myself.

Another thing I might have added is that knowing that people in need really need plus sized clothing, and men's plus sized dress clothes were really needed. It allowed men straight off the street to go on interviews and such. So, I donated everything to charities that focused on getting people back on their feet. Bags and bags of clothes. In fact, I could rationalize over-buying as a way of helping people in need. My vanity became a virtue!

Well, it's your loss that I won't be contributing here.

Good luck,

Tek

You don’t have to be gender specific to contribute at all, quite frankly most of my gay friends always had much better fashion sense than my straight ones.

You certainly don’t have to be skinny ? because I certainly have a long way to go before I am in any danger of anyone calling my fat arse “skinny” but I am certainly willing to admit it is a goal of mine to be called a skinny “b—-h by some of my friends?

And again, I’m not opposed to giving things away, BUT, as I mentioned I am retired and on a budget that doesn’t allow me to just buy clothes the way I used to before I had to quit working. I would love to recoup some of the money that I have invested in the literal hundreds of articles of clothing and dozens of pairs of shoes that are already too big, I don’t think that makes me a bad person, what I can’t sell or trade off I’ll be happy to donate!
so please Tek do share your thoughts, insights, humor, feelings and ideas as I certainly hope you feel ? welcome

pennyinAL

1 hour ago, PennyinAL said:

You don’t have to be gender specific to contribute at all, quite frankly most of my gay friends always had much better fashion sense than my straight ones.

You certainly don’t have to be skinny ? because I certainly have a long way to go before I am in any danger of anyone calling my fat arse “skinny” but I am certainly willing to admit it is a goal of mine to be called a skinny “b—-h by some of my friends?

And again, I’m not opposed to giving things away, BUT, as I mentioned I am retired and on a budget that doesn’t allow me to just buy clothes the way I used to before I had to quit working. I would love to recoup some of the money that I have invested in the literal hundreds of articles of clothing and dozens of pairs of shoes that are already too big, I don’t think that makes me a bad person, what I can’t sell or trade off I’ll be happy to donate!
so please Tek do share your thoughts, insights, humor, feelings and ideas as I certainly hope you feel ? welcome

pennyinAL

I was actually playing with your last line "What say you experienced newly skinny chicks?" If I took it seriously or thought my reply would be taken seriously I wouldn't have bothered. I apologize if I hit sensitive points.

Can you please point out where I claimed anyone was a bad person for making any choice they made and I'll be happy to apologize for doing so. I wasn't criticizing your or anyone else's choices. I was expressing my choices.

I appreciate your permission to share my thoughts, etc. I also appreciate your welcome to the website.

Good luck,

Tek

Edited August 27, 20233 yr by The Greater Fool

Poshmark is a great way to sell your gently used or new items, plus you can use the credit to purchase clothes in your new size for less than retail prices. Or you can always cash out your earnings. Shipping is simple--just print the provided label and drop it in the mail. The hardest part is just taking pictures that display the clothes effectively, but its all done within the app and on your phone, and you can get good ideas from other listings

On 8/26/2023 at 11:11 AM, BigSue said:

I've been binge-watching old seasons of Project Runway on Amazon Prime, and there's an episode in Season 4 where women who have lost a lot of weight bring in their favorite outfits from their highest weight, and the contestants have to use the fabric to make new outfits for them.

Thanks for mentioning the Project Runway episode 5. I watched season 4 years ago but watching it now, after losing weight, I can better relate and enjoyed seeing it again. I liked Penny's outfit best.

I've been tempted to keep a few favorite clothing items that I've outgrown but I can't sew so.... ?

I have a local consignment shop where I may take a few things if they're still decent, but I have to confess, my wardrobe lately has been absolute crap. I had bought some cute stuff in a 1x back around 2018, but I gained weight and was wearing 2x and 3x when I moved in 2020, so I got rid of everything. I didn't want to buy an expensive new wardrobe at a higher weight, so everything I have now is cheap Walmart stuff that I'm happy to donate.

Thinking about the future, though, I am embracing the idea of a capsule wardrobe, where you buy maybe 10 pieces of clothing that can all be worn mix-and-match, and you change up the look with accessories. When I think about how much clothing I will be getting rid of, it sickens me a little to contemplate buying all of it again. Especially since I only really wear a handful of things regularly. If I had two pairs of leggings, a skirt, a dress, 5 tops, and a lightweight sweater, that would pretty much cover me for 99% of my clothing needs each season. Now to remind myself of this when temptation rears its head the minute I can shop off the rack in all those stores that have nothing in my size right now.

I was thinking about this the other day. I wonder if alterations is worth it.

I always shop for nice clothes and mainly shops in Maxmara for their plus size brands like Marina Ronaldi and Persona. Lafeyette 148 NYC is another brand I buy a lot. I still like my clothes and think they are good quality, so in my case I think will probably alter the one I still like from my good quality clothing.

Of course I buy other bargain clothing as well. If it didn’t cost me much I think I will just buy something new and donate the one still in good condition.