Thrifting

[jason_carreira]

@bruschetta normally I do, but in this case it really is just right. The sleeves are perfect, and the chest and waist are slim and fitted to me... If I were skinnier it'd probably need to be taken in Not needing tailoring was one of my criteria, 'cause I just dropped $100 at the tailor on 2 other coats, and I've got another $67 to pay when I pick up stuff this week.


I created a sale / trade thread for the coat if you're interested

[glen_delossantos]

@BenR - I actually really like that tie. It's nice to find items of quality that hit home.

[LesserBlackDog]

Are any of my fellow thrifters looking forward to the end of Halloween as much as I am? I'm getting pretty tired of competing with giggly high-schoolers and hipsters.

[heimdal]

Was thinking the exact same thing. All the stores near me are packed with teenagers and other folk who just came in to poopoo the clothes and leave a mess.


I'm looking forward to the end of December - mid-january. Expecting the annual post holiday pre-tax season thrift windfall.

[glen_delossantos]

My area has a ton of halloween costumes in the thrift stores and most people gravitate to those areas. Not as much of a problem for me, thankfully.


In terms of mid-January, I will be all over that!

[glen_delossantos]

Coming soon: Harris Tweed, Hickey Freeman, and Brooks Brothers.


Been extremely busy last weekend. And regretfully not for Halloween partying

[LesserBlackDog]

Picked up a camel hair sport coat the other day. It's a touch too big for me at the moment but it's pretty darn close in the shoulders. I think a bit of tailoring ought to fix it up. I also randomly came across a nice wool ski hat with the logo of my hometown ski area on it (for reference on how unusual that is, my hometown is about 600 miles away from here). It seemed like serendipity so I picked that up, too.


I successfully laundered both items at home. I was concerned I might wreck the sport coat but I'm quite pleased with the results, as a good cleaning has really brought the camel hair back to life. Now I just need to drop it off at the tailor - probably when I pick up trench coat up on Friday.

[LesserBlackDog]

Here's the camel sport coat (post laundering):


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v207/theantiduck/P1060128.jpg


It may not show in that photo, but the jacket's going to need some serious work to fit correctly. I need to get the waist and sleeves narrowed, but I also might need to have it taken in slightly at the back seam. The shoulders are really just SLIGHTLY too large, but when I pinch it slightly at the back they fit well.


The buttons are pretty worn so I will probably need to replace those at some point but I think they're fine for now.

[jason_carreira]

Yeah, that's why I've stopped getting things that need much, if any work... Unless it's something amazing like an Oxxford suit or something...


That $10 thrift blazer quickly turns into $50+ with the tailor bill

[LesserBlackDog]

I've left quite a few "close but no cigar" blazers on the rack for that reason - I generally don't buy them unless they fit well enough that I could wear them out the store with no qualms. But I don't mind splurging a little to get this one tailored - made in the USA of 100% camel hair, good quality construction, and in good physical condition (other than being a bit wrinkled pre-washing). Even with $50's worth of tailoring, that still seems like a pretty good deal to me.


Plus the length of the jacket and the sleeves is pretty much spot on for me. The tailoring, while somewhat extensive, won't be especially complicated or compromise the proportions or overall look of the jacket.

[chern]

I saw a super heavy duty blue Sero OCBD today that fit really well but left it because it was a little faded and there was the slightest fray in the collar. Afterwards I looked it up and found out Sero was manufactured in my hometown (New Haven, CT) and was Gant's main competitor. My mom told me that we're related to the founders of both (or something) and she and her best friend used to just go through the factories and pick out whatever they wanted. Unfortunately, that was before they sold the business years ago...


I'm gonna have to go back to that Salvo ASAP and get see if it's still there, if only for cool sentimental reasons.

[LesserBlackDog]

Found 4 knit ties... picked up the two I liked best:


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v207/theantiduck/P1060135.jpg


I also got a black and white plaid flannel shirt from J.Crew.

[jason_carreira]

I had some spare time and I went back to the same place I saw the old Aquascutum overcoat... Scored a good condition Aquascutum trench coat which is unfortunately a 44L (and available for sale / trade):














The only bit of wear is at the end of the belt:





I also picked up a Gieves and Hawkes tweed sport coat... Unfortunately a 39 R and too small for me, so also available. It's a little rumpled, but in good condition:

[bruschetta]

Jason, that tweed sports coat doesn't look half bad! Nice find.

[glen_delossantos]

Nice finds, guys.


@Jason - other than the fact that it's too small, any idea on how the sport coat fits?