rags that leave you richer pt. 1

Like I always opine to anyone who will actually listen to my sarcasm-laced tirades: a city is only as good as it’s thrifting.

If this be the case, and it is (because I’m never wrong about these things): Los Angeles is one pretty damn good city. It’s cleaning up it’s downtown, revamping it’s Metro, hosting championship-winning teams (my Lakers, ahem), and boasts some of the best vintage/thrift stores you’ll ever see.

Guess why. . . Yeah, because movies are made in LA, which means this city is a hot bed for cheap costumes and great vintage finds.

One of my favorite places: Jet Rag.

Why? Dollar Sundays. The $1 sale is on Sundays, hence my nickname for it. And yeah, I totally just stated the obvious, but you read this blog, so you already know I’m a master at that.

Nestled in West Hollywood, this jem will require you to pay for metered parking (don’t even get me started on how metered parking in WeHo is counter productive), but trust me, it’s well worth the pocket change. Be sure to get there early, with a trash bag to stash your goodies in, enough singles to make people think you’re a stripper, and quick hands: those little d-bag hipsters (who always manage to look so contrived with their fake, nerdy glasses and greasy hair) will outscore you 10-0 with their raging tendencies to bull-dog you out of the way. That’s right, elbows will be thrown. Artfully mussed hair will be pulled, and if you manage to snag some clothes in between territory wars with the oh-so-ironic youngsters, you will not be disappointed.

Here’s how it goes: dudes come out with vacuum sealed bags full of “the goods.” They line up these giant bags in rows. After opening the bags, the dudes then cut the wires banding all of “the goods” together. Then people go crazy trying to scoop up as much stuff as possible. Hint: grab as much stuff as you can, not bothering to examine it first, because you waste precious time doing that. Most folks hord and then sort. Got me? I said hord and then sort. Let that be your game plan, because chances are if you don’t like the fur-lined leather vest you’ve come up with, some pixie-like, olsen doppleganger will be at your side hoping to exchange your cast-offs with her cast-offs. Again, hord- then sort.

Got it? Good. It’s fun. Trust me. It’s kind of like a game. You will get in to it.

As for weekday shopping at Jet Rag, I rarely bother, but it’s usually pretty decent. I’m always too busy or too lazy. Maybe you, RogueRanters, can shop and report back?

For your viewing, a few photos from a sale I went to last year (click to enlarge):