I just read that another dancing star has headed home. I’m serious. This is on my aol home page and passes for news. The floods, the fires, the relentless march of the Asian Long-horned beetle, the rain that is threatening this year’s fruit crop, all take a back seat to the REAL NEWS. Charlie Sheen, the love child of yet another hypocritical politician; I just get weary sometimes. Our planet will never get her own reality TV show but, trust me, she’s the star in this particular, not-made-for-TV movie.
Let’s talk clothing. I’m on the hunt for clothes. Ben and Maggie are transitioning from Western college students to Northeastern farmers and they need clothes. I’m on the lookout for boots, outerwear, Carharts and flannel shirts as well as work jeans and gloves. My first stop is always the thrift shop, followed by tag sales and the 3rd and final markdown racks. I’ve noticed that the kind of clothing we most want is almost never on sale. That’s because it’s timeless and has actual value. Every once in a while, a store will go out of business and you might come up with a great deal but not often enough to matter.
None of what I want can be easily home-made, at least not by me. It makes sence to lay in a supply. Who knows what prices and availability will look next year. I know there are some mail order places that offer some good prices. So let’s throw out that question. Who has sources for good quality outer and work wear?
Here’s a list of things I want:
Muck boots. I love muck boots. They come in three heights. I can live without the mid-calf but I consider the other two must-haves. I get mine at Florence Hardwear. As I need 6 pair, I’m wondering if I can get them in bulk.
Wool caps. I can sometimes find these at Acme Surplus. I need actual wool, not synthetic. The Army/Navy surplus store is a good bet but the one I frequented closed and I need to find another.
Leather Gloves: You can’t have too many.
Rain poncho. I put those cheap, packages rain ponchos in the same category as a tube tent. They are a complete waste of time. They have the durability of paper napkin. Get a good poncho or slicker.
Flannel shirts. Layers are our friend. Avoid the Wal-mart weight garbage that passes for flannel and get a 6.0 if you can find it. I have gotten a couple from the LLBean overstock catalog. The color was hideous but the quality was good.
Canvas pants. The Carhart brand cost a bundle but Bruce has never worn out a pair and that’s saying something.
Long underwear. Cotton does not wick. It gets wet and stays wet. A sporting goods store will have the wonder fabrics that are light weight. Don’t put them in the dryer. They will last longer and hold their shape better if you hand wash and dry.
Socks. You need wool and you need quality. You also need a darning egg and needle and wool thread. I darn socks. If done right, they remain comfortable and you can get enough use out of them to justify the price. If your feet aren’t comfortable, it’s miserable to walk or work.
sneakers. I like the 3 pair system. One good pair for going out in public without people handing you quarters, one pair that still has life for banging around in and a pair that can get splattered with paint. As each pair gets more worn, it is moved to the next catagory down and a new pair for public wear is purchased. I don’t buy sneakers often but when I do, I spend the money to get good ones and I make sure they fit.
Coats. I often have good luck getting decent ski coats at tag sales as they have a fashion and people who ski want to look good. As I could care less about looking current, they’re silliness is my great coat. I like the system coats with layers that zip together. You get three coats for the price of one.
Vests. I wear a lot of vests. Get a good down and layer it with long underwear and a wool, chamois or flannel shirt and you’re good to go for much of the year. I have pattern for a vest that is really simple.
Jeans. Hit the thrift shop first. People get rid of perfectly good, nicely broken in jeans all the time. I rarely pay more than a couple of bucks for jeans. Or you could pay $100.00 for pre-ripped designer jeans. You could also stab yourself with a pen but really, what’s the point.
While you’re looking over your wardrobe, make sure you have a couple of packages of sewing needles, lots of heavy duty thread, good scissors and patching material so you can make repairs.
May 18, 2011 at 7:13 am
I have had good luck with hardware and farm supply places giving a bulk discount. It’s not much of a discount, but if you are buying 6 pairs of boots, 6 ponchos or carharts, then they might give it too you. We don’t ask often enough at those places for a discount! Even if they say no, it doesn’t hurt to ask.
Put an add in freecycle too!
May 18, 2011 at 8:11 am
Hi Kathy, I love your book and blog. I have had pretty good luck with http://www.sierratradingpost.com. They have overstocks and imperfects. I’ve bought wool socks from there at a pretty good price. Hope this helps.
May 18, 2011 at 8:22 am
I found sturdy Carhartt boot socks on sale at Tractor Supply, and I will never wear anything else. Comfortable feet make everything else possible in the garden, so thick, durable socks are worth every penny spent. Best wishes!
May 18, 2011 at 8:51 am
If you can’t find it used or local you can always check http://www.sierratradingpost.com I’ve bought Carhart,boots, coats and other gear from them before. They often have coupon code so you may want to call them before you order and ask them if they are offering any coupons at the moment.
May 18, 2011 at 9:23 am
When I get weary of all the “news”, I go on a news fast and for a week, I just avoid it all. Somehow the world seems to keep right on turning even if I’m not up to the minute with all the tragedy and trivia.
May 18, 2011 at 10:40 am
I also recommend Tractor Supply and sierra trading post for good deals. In my experience if you can buy several items in bulk – like boots, socks, leather gloves – a store will often be more likely to give you a discount, sometimes up to 15% but usually 10%.
Also, if you have rudimentary sewing skills you can alter much too large sizes to fit. I’ve often found XXX and up sized flannel shirts on sale. A down jacket with worn cuffs can have the sleeves removed and you have a vest.
Are you near a military base – especially Navy? Sometimes when a service member is leaving they will sell clothing. Watch caps, wool pea coats (are they still wool?), fatigues, are usually good, well made items.
Wool hats – if you can find good wool yarn including unraveled used wool sweaters, they are quite easy to knit or crochet yourself. Red Heart and Lion brand have good websites with lots of free patterns.
May 18, 2011 at 10:43 am
No idea on most of these, but if anyone needs a darning egg, Knitpicks.com sells them at a good price.
(I also think I’ve descended too far into knitter land, because I was momentarily confused by the idea of buying wool hats or socks.)
May 18, 2011 at 10:54 am
Thanks for your lists. I think we’re going to be doing some major stocking up on these sorts of things this year. We may just get our mortgage paid off before my husband loses his job. If so, each month he’s still employed I plan to re-purpose that mortgage payment into something that will prepare us for life with very little income.
May 18, 2011 at 12:06 pm
I’ve had good success with vests, coats, and flannel shirts at the Salvation Army store in Hadley. Wednesdays they have 4/5 of the clothing at half price….
May 18, 2011 at 12:28 pm
Oh, Kate! I’m so sorry. What a blessing that the mortgage is nearly paid off. It saved us when Bruce was downsized. Your husband is lucky to married to someone as resourceful as you are. It will make it easier.
May 18, 2011 at 1:02 pm
For any kind of outerwear and shirts, T-shirts I’d think the Salvation Army and Goodwill stores any where are very good.
Those dancing stars are supposed to go home, one a week, so that isn’t news at all! It’s just silliness.
Kate, best wishes to you and your family.
peace, shamba
May 18, 2011 at 2:20 pm
lol..Ivy I was thinking the same thing but I am a knitting addict as well:)
I scour our local thrift stores for most of our kids clothes. We live in an area of Maine where Carhartt pants are worn as commonly as underwear and we have much luck finding them at thrift stores.
We have this great store in Maine called Reny’s. Around the beginning of November they have a big holiday sale where Carhartts are 30% reduced. If you ever find your way this far north, November is the time to come:)
May 18, 2011 at 10:01 pm
I’m another one who was confused by the idea of buying wool socks and hats, LOL! Hats especially are easy to knit, and it is easy to make watch cap styles double-layered. When the edge is turned up, you have 4 layers over the ears. WEBS in Northampton is the place to get high-quality knitting wool for less by shopping in their warehouse (or online by clicking Closeouts).
May 19, 2011 at 6:36 am
Kathy and Shamba, thanks for the good wishes. I didn’t mean to invite sympathy. We’re in much better shape than many, and we’ve known for a long time that my husband’s job has a likely terminus date (Feb ’12). We’ve had a lot of notice to prepare for him to lose this source of income, and we’ve done so, though of course I’d prefer that something happen to allow him to keep it. I’m keenly aware that many others have not been so fortunate as we have been.
May 19, 2011 at 9:29 am
Our newspaper this morning had an article about emergency preparedness, first responder training that was held at our local army reserve base (atterbury). It was for a possible major earthquake along our 2 faults. Wonder if this is going to affect peoples’ idea of being prepared? Of course, if we get hit with a major earthquake, it might affect my house and therefore my stockpiles. have any good ideas for ‘off-site’ storage?
May 19, 2011 at 2:39 pm
Kate, I am also sorry to hear about your dh’s job. 5 years ago my own dh quit his job of 27 years. The reason is we knew that the business was going down. We had seen it before. And we decided that with my dh’s age we better jump for another job while we could. It meant a huge cut in hours and wages as well. We all of a sudden were living on half of what we had before. A huge shock. But we made it. And now the other place of course has gone down. And dh loves the job he has. He is now full time and making very good money. Way better than before. Plus it is a job that is easier on his health. Which is also a huge plus.
It has been a very busy week here for us. We got our bees on Monday and yesterday we got an older but new to us garden tractor. And it has a nice big tiller behind it. My dh is so proud of it. It does need to have some stuff done to it but that is ok. We will work around that.
I do make the winter heavy flannel shirts for my dh. I have even been known to reline a winter jacket to make it way warmer. I used polar fleece and it sure makes a huge difference. I can knit hats, as well as socks. Or crochet hats or even make them with the sewing maching from polar fleece. I even have a pattern for long johns that I down loaded a long time ago. And then bought the thermal fabric just haven’t gotten it done yet. When I am in a sewing mood then I love to sew.
May 19, 2011 at 3:15 pm
I love a small chain of stores in the midwest called Farm & Fleet. I wear small women’s gloves and can always find durable leather choices there that fit and all sorts of durable farm clothing. I stock up whenever I’m visiting my mom.
If you have the sewing skills time, felted sweaters (buy them cheap and shrink them) can be made into great boot liners, hats, and mitts.
I like the idea of cutting down oversize flannel shirts which definitely proliferate in the thrift stores around here.
I always buy jeans new on the best clearance deal I can find and wear them to pieces. I don’t have much success on jeans in the thrifts.
May 19, 2011 at 4:00 pm
Kathy, I thought you might like to know about a trend I’ve seen in the thrift stores that is happening more and more often.
Used to be a time when the thrift stores sold all jeans for one price or all shirts for one price. The stores these days have “brand researchers” that do nothing but check out the brands of clothing items being donated and the prices.
The item prices are being set based on the brand research. Often the price is very near or at the same price as new even though it’s sold in a thrift store.
May 19, 2011 at 5:09 pm
That would be at the top of my “that stinks” list.
May 19, 2011 at 7:04 pm
“You could also stab yourself with a pen but really, what’s the point.”
LOL. Seriously I just scared the dog! A note on the “brand researchers” my favorite thrift store does this as well but I’ve found that they don’t really know the top end outdoor brands. They will charge top dollar for Columbia or Northface but I’ve gotten Mountain Hardware, MSR, and other high end brands for just a few dollars.
May 22, 2011 at 2:27 pm
I don’t know if it’ll be too late by the time you see this but Carharrt is offering 40% off already reduced prices for women’s wear until 11:59pm ET TONIGHT.
http://www.carhartt.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/HomeView?storeId=10051&catalogId=10101&fullsite=
I’ve not tried them, but Country Woman gave a good review on Red Ants Pants (women’s work pants). They’re pricey, but may be a good investment.
http://www.redantspants.com/
Our local ‘Value Village’ thrift is often a treasure trove – I wish I’d kept track of the money I’d saved on items I’d found there! Even better – I wish that I had banked it – oh, what I could have done in the garden with that!?!!
(Sorry – I inadvertently posted this originally as a reply to your previous post. I’m reposting here (where I had intended) and apologize for the repetition. I’m not sure how to delete a post while it’s awaiting approval.
September 19, 2011 at 8:03 pm
I just interviewed a darner over at my blog:
http://tinyurl.com/4yyt2sq
Perhaps you, too, should consider setting up shop? @:-)