How much would you spend on reuse?

I just spent 50 bucks on resoling shoes that I bought for less than 20 at the thrift store. It's my fault, because I didn't ask the cobbler beforehand how much it would be. I just assumed (you know what they say) that it wouldn't be that much since I had heels reheeled for 15 or so. I don't precisely begrudge the money, because now a pair of shoes is usable that otherwise would have just been thrown away, but I feel kinda silly about spending that much money. (The shoes are not a designer brand or anything - they say Nordstrom but nothing else...) Do you have some kind of calculation about how much you'll spend making something work, and does it depend on how much you originally spent, or its original price if you get it secondhand, or...?

13 years ago

Dressing

12 replies

Latest reply was from Laurinda

Deborah

Veteran

Laura, it all depends of how important the item is to me and how it functions in my closet. I have a pair of inexpensive booties that after a season of wear need the heels repaired. I think I will pay the money to have them done as they are a perfect pair of booties for me, I haven't seen anything similar to replace them with, and since they have been out of action I have reall missed them i.e. they have created a hole in my wardrobe.

13 years ago

Jyoti

(website)

Veteran

What a coincidence! I just dropped off a pair of boots for repair.

It's gonna cost me $20-$25 to replace a zipper on one of them, and I decided to go ahead and do it, even though these boots were about $35 from Forever 21 and have already been through one season where I wore them A LOT.

It's expensive compared to the original price I paid, and also expensive considering the quality of the shoes. I wouldn't expect these to last too long, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE the style and haven't seen anything similar anywhere. I even tried to just replace the boots instead of repairing them, but I'm very picky about my flat tall boots. xD

So I went ahead with it, but declined the cobbler's offer to resole the shoes, as I'm not sure how much longer they're going to last. They've held up absolutely marvelously so far, but I don't want to tempt fate. xD

In summary, I don't really have a calculation, but I look at if I really love the item, how long the rest of the shoe is going to last, and what I originally paid for the shoe.

13 years ago

Aziraphale

Veteran

Well, I have to get things altered fairly often -- and I'm talking new items, not thrifted ones -- so I do factor that into the cost of the garment. I've got a pretty good idea of what alterations will cost, since I've had so many. A simple jeans hem will be $8 to $12, for example, so no biggie, but darts in a skirt will be more like $25, so I have to really like the skirt to go for it. If something has to be taken in at the shoulders, however, it's about $50, so I generally won't do it for anything except a coat. I don't have a mathematical formula or anything, but coats and jackets tend to be pricier, so an added $50 somehow seems worth it for a perfect fit. Also, I have far fewer coats than tops or skirts, and I wear them more. Those are factors too.

Thrifting is not one of my hobbies, but supposing I did find something really cool in a thrift store, I think I would pay more than the cost of the item to have it tailored to fit. (I'm a big fan of a proper fit). That's assuming that the thrifted item wasn't super-pricey to being with, of course. In the case of those shoes, I would absolutely have paid $50 to make them wearable -- if I really liked them.

13 years ago

harmonica

Veteran

I echo what the others here say and agree that if I really love the item, I'd pay extra for alteration and calculate that into the total price. I really like thrifting, so I actually got a skirt and a dress for $3 each this summer. I knew they both needed to be altered to be wearable and asked the tailor about approx price before I agreed. In this case I was willing to pay up til $80 for alteration, or if the tailor could not see potential, I'd purge it with no regret. Win some, loose some - especially when looking for second hand and vintage

13 years ago

Irene

Veteran

I usually wear expensive shoes (not super expensive, but good quality & leather boots have quite a cost), so it's normally worth the money for me to repair them. My cheap boots, that I might add to my wardrobe from time to time for pure fashion love, I wouldn't spend a dime on them, but then again, I usually do not wear them so much that they need repairing.

13 years ago

Jjsloane

Veteran

I try to calculate the replacement cost against the item, but if it truly is a one of a kind I might spend a bit more. I once refused to replace the zipper in a beloved coat because the zipper would cost $40 and I'd only paid $30 for the coat on sale. I had a struggle replacing it and the eventual one cost me $70 so I learned my lesson.

13 years ago

Anonymous

Wow, I had no idea it cost so much to re-sole shoes. I still think you got a good deal. Your shoes are probably really well made (I have a pair of Boutique Nordstrom and they are leather inside and out including the soles) and will provide you with good CPW. I like the idea of looking at it like an alteration. And you saved them from going into a landfill. Seventy dollars for a fine pair of shoes is not outrageous.

13 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

In my experience, cobbling can be much pricier than alterations to clothing. The simplest cobbling jobs seem to cost far more than simple tailoring jobs. At least in my town.

I get a lot of alterations done (sleeves, hems, dresses and shirts narrowed, etc.) I usually do factor that into the cost, both of new and consigned or thrifted items. But frankly, in general the cost is so low for this that I don't really give it a whole lot of thought.

Shoe repair and alterations I DO think hard about. If I had known that it would cost more than $30 to put rubber soles on my Report booties, I don't know if I would have bought them! I had no idea their soles would be so sloppy; once they arrived and I loved them, I had to have them soled or I couldn't wear. Altogether, given duties to Canada, they were very pricey shoes for me. But I love them and wear the heck out of them, so I guess it's okay.

13 years ago

lyn*

(website)

Veteran

I only do expensive things like resoling if I know that the rest of the boot isn't going to fall apart in the meantime. That means I'm more likely to resole a pair of real leather boots that I've worn for 3-4 years vs. Forever 21 one season junk :p

13 years ago

(website)

Veteran

Can't say I even know where a cobbler in my area is . . . but as for alterations I have spent more than the original price of the item.
I took in my wide leg style matte satin trousers to be narrowed into cigarette legs. The pants only cost me $10 on sale originally. The alteration was $20. But I love them now! And I know I would not have found comparable new pants for the total ($30) spent on both purchase and alteration of the old pair. Win/win in my book.
Now, on the other side of the coin, I took a bridesmaid dress in to be shortened to a cocktail dress. $30 was the estimate. I left the dress behind. Yes, it was only a third of the original purchase price, but it was not worth it to me in the end. I'd rather find a new cocktail dress (which I did) that I truly love, instead of 'fix' a dress that I don't totally love just to make it wearable.

13 years ago

cinnamon fern

Veteran

I'm with Mo on this - it doesn't matter how much you originally spent (that's a sunk cost), just how much use you will get out of the item once it's fixed.

And I am shocked at all you non-cobbling people! Probably 2/3 of my shoes have been reheeled or resoled. I think I must walk funny ...

13 years ago

Laurinda

Veteran

Food for thought...
It is not that repairs are unreasonably expensive, it is that new things are ridiculously cheap.

13 years ago

Category