A teensy bit grossed out by one of my thrift store finds... - YouLookFab Forum

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A teensy bit grossed out by one of my thrift store finds...

Tara

(website)

Veteran

I am hesitant about posting this but...oh well, here goes, the perils of thrift store shopping!

I picked up a great cardi yesterday by Dotti for $5 from Vinnie's (St Vincent de Pauls). It's super flattering, good condition, and has sweet big buttons. I also quite liked the colour.

So being me, I had to wear it asap so put it on today. Without laundering it. I figure, hey, they launder the items right? Or they would if it was clear it hadn't been laundered...

Anyway towards the afternoon I realised the strange smell I'd been catching a whiff of every now and then was ME! No, not specifically me, but the ARMPITS of the my new/old cardi!!! YUCKKKKKKKKKKKKK!

Clearly the previous owner thought it was appropriate to donate an item to a charity shop with smelly armpits in. I was sooo grossed out about it...I feel so invaded! But I was really grossed out that it hadn't been laundered at the shop! Maybe they figured, hey, it's knitwear, it wouldn't have been right against the person's skin. WRONG! Some people sweat a lot!

I am still quite miffed about this. I will definitely be laundering EVERYTHING I get from a charity store now unless it looks and smells freshly laundered!!!

Anyone else ever had an experience like this? I am SOOOOOOO grossed out I can't even begin to explain (has a fit...)

General

31 replies

Latest reply was from Goldie

Katiepea

(website)

Veteran

Oh poor you! I hate it when that sort of stuff happens. If it makes you feel any better, one of my students managed to drag dog poo into the classroom today. Oh the joys of smelling it, seeing it, and then having to clean it up! BLURK!

Megan

gross.

My bestie bought a pair of jeans from Target to wear on a date that night. She wore them for a few hours, was a bit itchy, took them off when she got home and went to bed. She woke herself up scratching a little while later and had welts that were almost an inch in diameter.

She had to go to hospital and have a shot of steroids to relieve some of the allergic reaction- the doctor said it was likely a reaction to some kind of chemical on her new jeans that was used to treat the fabric

Sally

Veteran

I got a vintage armani velvet dress from an op-shop(thrift shop) the other day. When I told my colleague, she said that's gross...they get their clothes(from this particular shop-not a charity thrift shop) from the recycling bin...it probably hasn't even been washed. I am definitely taking it to the dry cleaners now. but like you I usually just wear things as soon as I get them

AJ

Veteran

I don't think thrift store have a policy of washing items before they put it out for sale. At least our thirft stores here in the U.S. get tons of stuff brought to them everyday and I can't imagine that they have the time or money to pay their workers to wash, dry and iron it before setting it out. I feel that it's just one of the hazards of thrifting...always wash before you wear.

Louise

Veteran

Ewww gross. I wash everything before I wear it anyway even regular shop bought items you never know who's tried them on before you! x

Theresa

(website)

Veteran

ewww sorry for the smelliness Tara!

I also wash everything I ever buy - new or not.

I actually had an allergic skin reaction once to a shirt I'd bought off ebay & washed upon receiving, but its previous owner had washed it in a detergent that my skin didn't like, so I now have a rule that if it smells at all (like fancy detergent or smelly people!), it gets an extra 2 or 3 loads through the washing machine before it comes anywhere near me!

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

This would physically have made me vomit.

stringy

Veteran

Ewwwwww!

Dusty

(website)

Yuck! I definitely don't expect thrift store items to have been washed, though. Even if they have, I only have to think of the unwashed masses that go through there that may have tried an item on to make me want to boil anything I buy there.

April

Veteran

Pretty sure they're not washing anything in thrift shops -- sorry, Tara, that sounds like an unpleasant experience, to say the least.

I'm also sorry to say that I don't think that particular problem is fixable. It might be if the item is washable and you can put something antibacterial in the wash water, but if it's dry clean only, that aroma is probably not going to come out.

marianna

Veteran

Ew.

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

Yeah- they do not wash, mend, or look very closely at things coming into thrift shops- that's why you have to be careful when you buy.
You should wash everything you buy before wearing it- even if you buy it new.

Queen Mum

Veteran

I'm with AJ on this one... it's not the thrift store's job to wash the clothes. It's the shoppers.

Sihaya

Veteran

Blech!

Ariadne

Veteran

Yeah, they definitely don't wash stuff they get in--it just gets a once over for major damage that would make it unsellable, and then gets either trashed or put out in the store! Regardless, GROSS, sorry that happened to you!

taylor

Veteran

AND the very reason I don't thrift. I can't deal with not knowing who wore it last.

Michelle

(website)

Veteran

And this, my friends, is why I can't handle thrift stores. I have never once heard of a second-hand shop that launders the clothes before making them available, and so I naturally assume clothes on those racks are in less-than-perfect condition.
Ugh, what a gross experience, Tara. Hope the smell can be perged.

Ele

(website)

Eurgh, barf. Sorry, Tara

Not really surprised, though. Thrift stores don't generally wash things before putting them out, and aren't that picky about checking them, either. Consignment stores, on the other hand, tend to be very stringent. My Mum, sister and I take a lot of things to a consignment store near where my parents live- and they insist that everything is washed and pressed or dry-cleaned before you bring it in. They inspect it quite closely before accepting stuff, too!

On another topic, am I weird for *not* washing items before I wear them? I mean, obviously thrifted stuff or underwear/swimwear would get a clean, but jeans? Blouses? I love that "new clothes" feeling that you only get with a store-fresh purchase.

Melissa

Ick, Tara, sorry that happened!

I get that many people don't thrift because of the ick factor, but I just wanted to point a couple of things out. Firstly, in my opinion, one should wash ALL newly acquired clothes, thrifted, gifted, and new before wearing, full stop. Seriously. If you think "new" clothes are ok to wear before washing, think again (warning, this is not for the faint of heart):

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/gma-.....id=9482373

That said, people have different levels of tolerance for "icky," and I respect that. Personally, I take the attitude that used clothes (when purchased judiciously) can be laundered to be as safe as laundered "new" clothes, and I am ok with buying, laundering, and wear both used and new clothing. I also recognize that there are more germs out there than I can avoid, and I just do the best I can.

As a side note, I have found that my local Goodwill stores spray some kind of chemical disinfectant on their stuff that is difficult to get out and gives me horrible headaches. Unless someone can advise on whether it will go away after repeated washing, I'll have to give up Goodwill.

puffenstuff

(website)

Veteran

Oh dear Tara that is quite gag inducing!! Let this be your mantra from now on "Must wash everything before wearing" I know it's hard to resist but then you dont have to risk smelling like a homeless person!

Louise

Veteran

Very informative link Melissa, I've always washed new stuff anyway but I'd never have realised it was this important, that's disgusting the traces they found on those new clothes x

Anonymous

I've found old tissues in pockets in clothing from thrift stores and even consignment shops.
Another reason for washing everything: This week some national morning TV show (for get which one) had a section on the dismaying epidemic of bedbugs, which they blamed on more international travel. They said to be careful of clothing and bags you bring home from retail shops and that even high end shops have needed the exterminator to try to control the problem. They are harder to get rid of than anything. The young nymphs are very tiny and hard to spot. The expert said to wash everything and put it in the dryer. I think it was a temp of 113 F that was needed to kill the critters. I may be sending more things to the drycleaners rather than use hot water and dryer...not an enviromentally friendly solution.

Louise

Veteran

Eeeew it's all nearly enough to make me never want to shop again!!!!!

Theresa

(website)

Veteran

I actually rarely take my girls into a clothing section of a big store because just being amongst all the new clothes with their processing chemicals etc can cause them to react quite badly (They both suffer from Multiple Chemical Sensitivity), so I figure if just breathing in the chemicals on a shopping trip can affect these two little people so badly, I would hate to know what would happen if they were to wear an item...

A little tip one of our specialists gave us was to soak brand new clothes in Washing Soda (Sodium Carbonate I think it is) overnight, then wash 2 or 3 times and line dry in the sun - this will help to break down any chemical residue and then hopefully remove it all. So far it seems to be working well for the girls. I must admit I usually am not quite so rigorous for myself, but probably should be...

Dawn

(website)

Eeeeew...

I'm the same as Taylor: one of the many reasons why I don't thrift shop.

Maya

Veteran

I'm fine with thrifting but there is NO WAY I would wear something without washing! Please never do this again!

I'm surprised you were only a teensy bit grossed out. I would have been markedly grossed out

Lisa

Veteran

Yuck! So sorry this happened to you.

Tara

(website)

Veteran

Lol, well let's just say it was a very ick-inducing, embarrassing lesson to learn! But I have definitely learnt it!

The item looked ok and it wasn't immediately apparent...which is why I didn't notice. But I definitely won't make that mistake again!

Sorry to have grossed you all out...but it serves as a warning to everyone who doesn't launder before wearing!

And that gma link seriously icked me out even more and makes me want to dive into my closet and throw EVERYTHING in the washing machine with hospital grade disinfectant...

M. Jantz

I have been told that a 1 to 1 mixture of white vinegar & water sprayed on sweat-stinky areas can get rid of the odor. I've been meaning to try it out on a costume.

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