July 26, 2012

Best second hand in L.A.

In L.A. you make better deals with second hand items compared to Finland. More people, more stuff to get rid of, so it's obvoious. At second hand stores in L.A. you can always see people lining up to sell their treasures to the store. That means they get a LOT of stuff to sell every day.

Based on my shopping experience in the city of angels, my recommendations for the best second hand store chains are:

1. Wasteland: Wasteland sells both second hand and new stuff, designer and generic brands. I've visited Wasteland in Santa Monica and Studio City. Shopping here is breathtaking both mentally and physichally: first, they play good music, rock and grunge, and the selection is amazing. Second: it is hard to not go through all the items, so it gets exhausting! :) Wasteland is a bit more pricey than other second hand places, so what you go here for are the edgy and personal pieces you can't find everywhere. They also have the best selection of second hand designer shoes, I found 2 pairs of beautiful Jeffrey Campbell's here. They also sell Unif, which has lately become a brand to drool over for me.

Footnote: the clerk in Santa Monica is a Kurt Cobain look-a-like ;).


 2. Crossroads: Second hand and new stuff, both designer and generic. I've visited Crossroads in Santa Monica and Studio City. For general brands and shoes Crossroads is a bit less pricey than Wasteland, and especially Santa Monica seems to have reasonably priced Marc Jacobs clutches on display almost every time I walk in. (Got one for myself, too, check the last photo of this post). You are not likely to find as unique pieces as you are at Wasteland, but then again this place is full of surprises. One good example is a pair of amazing hippie flare pants.


 3. Buffalo Exchange: Second hand stuff, both designer and generic. I've visited Buffalo Exchange in Santa Monica/Venice and on La Brea Ave. Pricewise this place falls in between the upper two. Perhaps BE is not that good for finding designer items, but definitely a place worth visiting. I spent 2 hours at the Santa Monica store and got a parking ticket! If you like Converse sneakers, you will most likely find a nice, cheap pair of them here.

P.S. Am I the only one who didn't know Converse All Stars are generally called also as "Chuck Taylors"? I've never heard anyone call them that in Finland. My American pals sophisticated me with this fact and told me a basketball player Chuck Taylor used to wear and promote the brand. I guess I've never taken a closer look at the All Star logo, or I'm just blind, but somehow I've missed his signature around the star. :S

4 comments:

  1. i love unif!!! i have that denim jacket you pictured there and tons of more stuff from that brand ;) also great brands are one teaspoon and style stalker, minkpink, evil twin...the list goes on... :)

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  2. You do? That's an amazing jacket, too bad I had to leave it on the rack (had already bought so much :)). Need to check those brands, too, although my wallet says no :D.

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  3. Wow! How amazing! Wishing to be able to visit these great places some day!
    I have been thinking about a lot the amount of cool & fashionable stuff at flea markets nowadays. For example, I visited many flea markets & recycling centers during summer hols and found SO many great deals - and this was in FINLAND where people spend far less money on clothes & shoes compared to other Europeans - or even talk about Americans :) In general I think that clothes are too cheap, people wear things just once and then recycle or throw away. Although this means good news for us who love to buy 2ndhand! :)

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  4. These places are amazing, but still I've probably done my best second hand finds in Finland. Yeah, it's sad clothes have become more disposable, but then again, fortunately someone genius came up with an idea of flea markets! :)

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