With half the year behind us, it’s time for my 6-month thrifting check-in! I started doing these a few years ago as a way to keep myself accountable. Even after years of thrifting, I still make the occasional “what was I thinking?” purchase. Looking back helps me recognize those missteps and celebrate the wins, so I can keep improving.
Let’s take a look back at my 2025 thrift winners & losers so far:
January 2025






Winners:
- Cactus hat, $3.50
- Stitch Fix sweater, $9
- Homemade quilt, $15
Losers:
- Merona Cardigan, $5.50
Time Will Tell:
- Coldwater Creek embroidered jeans, $9.50
- Banana Republic scarf, $6.50
All the ‘winning’ items from January have gotten some wear/use over the past few months. However, that Merona cardigan was almost an immediate re-donate. I don’t know what I was thinking when I bought it, but it looked terrible on me and didn’t play well with the rest of my closet. I’ve only worn the embroidered jeans once, but they seem nice. So we will see if they end up getting a lot of wear over the next year or so. As for the scarf, I haven’t worn it yet so it is packed away until next winter.
February 2025





Winners:
- Land’s End cardigan, $5.99
- Smokey Bear Bandana, $1
- MCM California Pottery tray, $4.49
- Nordstrom Rack linen dress, $14.99
Time Will Tell:
- Soft Surroundings wrap dress, $19.99
Lots of winners in February and only one that I’m not quite sure about. Before wearing it, I removed the yellow beading from the neckline of the Soft Surroundings dress, and I feel like it was a big improvement. I wore it to work once and it is very cute. I’m not sure if it will be a long-term closet love:
March 2025




Losers:
- Sage Collective joggers, $5.50
Time Will Tell:
- Athleta cross-over top, $7.50
- Lauren Ralph Lauren skirt, $23
- Charlestown Shoe “Federal” Boot, $7.50
The joggers were new with tags and super silky soft, however; after wearing them a couple times they are just too big. By the end of the day, I’ve got ‘dumpy butt’ and I’m not a fan. If these haven’t already made their way to the re-donate bag, they will be there in the fall when I dig them out again.
For all three of the other items, they have to fall under ‘time will tell’ because I haven’t worn any of them yet! The Athleta top is more winter weight, the skirt is screaming FALL at me and the booties also feel more autumnal.
Spring Break Arizona Haul – April 2025





Winners:
- Zara skirt, $3
- Vintage skirt, $7.29
- Vintage shirt, $9
- Everlane sweater, $7
- Acme cowboy boots, $25
Lots of vacation thrifting winners! I’ve worn all five of the items and LOVE them all. Perhaps I need to go on more vacations for thrifting…
April 2025



Winners:
- Striped + Floral skirt, $7.79
- Loft cardigan, $9
Losers:
- Pure Jill Kimono, $9
Both the skirt and the cardigan fit well into my closet and have already been worn to work. I thought the kimono was cute in the store, but after wearing it as a topper at home a few times, it just feels frumpy. This exercise helped me pull the trigger and this one just went into the re-donate bag.
May 2025
Time Will Tell:
- Talbots 100% silk pleated skirt, $9.99
This was a relatively recent purchase and I haven’t worn it yet.
June 2025









Winners:
- J.Crew Tulle skirt, $3.59
- Lou & Grey shorts, $4.12
- Pleated running skirt, $8.24
- Linen dress, $6.74
- Gap top, $4.87
Time Will Tell:
- Vintage Allison Smith skirt, $7
- No tag dress, $9
- Embroidered top, $7
- Bailey 44 joggers, $6
So far, I know the tulle skirt, shorts, running skirt, linen dress and Gap dress are winners. They have all been worn, and in the case of the shorts and linen dress (turned top), they’ve been worn a few times over the last few weeks. I haven’t had a chance to wear the vintage skirt yet, but finger’s crossed that it’s adorable. I did chop the ‘no tag’ dress into a tank top, but the jury is out on whether it will be put into heavy rotation.
The embroidered top will become a pillow when I have time. And those joggers are most likely a win, but I won’t wear them until the weather cools back down!
Total Spent:
Just to hold myself super accountable, let’s total up all the thrifting purchases from the last 6 months. According to my handy dandy excel spreadsheet that I pulled the info into, my total for 6 months of thrifting was: $281.60, which equals out to about $47 per month. The total is lower than last year by over $60, so that’s nice!
While my thrifting total/monthly breakdown is not an insignificant number, this is my main ‘fun money’ I spend on myself. I very rarely buy books (I use the library and my kindle religiously) and make 90% of my coffee at home, and most importantly… our budget can afford it.
Overall Favorites:
And now my absolute favorite part, looking at all my thrifting purchases over the past 6-months and picking my favorite items!
Home Decor Favorites:


- Homemade quilt, $15 (January 2025)
- MCM California Pottery tray, $4.49 (February)
I love both the homemade quilt and the pottery tray that I found earlier in the year! Finding a huge quilt that had been made with love was an absolute score… and having it priced so low at $15 was incredible. I will cherish it for many years to come and it is currently in my sun room for ease of dog snuggling. As for the yellow pottery tray, it has moved around my house to a few locations so far. I love how bright and cheery it is!
Clothing Favorites






- Everlane sweater, $7 (Vacation Thrift, April 2025)
- Acme cowboy boots, $25 (Vacation Thrift, April 2025)
- J.Crew Tulle skirt, $3.59 (June 2025)
- Lou & Grey shorts, $4.12 (June 2025)
- Linen dress, $6.74 (June 2025)
I am OBSESSED with the Everlane sweater, even though I only had one chance to wear it before the weather got too hot. It is the perfect chunky knit, 100% cotton and slightly oversized. Love, love, love it! Those vintage boots were an iconic Sedona Arizona find! The tulle skirt is so pretty and twirly and fits great. The Lou & Grey shorts are already my favorites for summer. And that linen nightgown looking dress turned into an absolutely fabulous linen top that I have been wearing on repeat!
The first half of 2025 has brought some great thrifting finds, I can’t wait to see what is around the corner!