If you come into the Headway Beeston charity shop any time this month you will find a dedicated area displaying some fabulous vintage clothes, shoes and accessories – all styled by the lovely Lottie from Love at First Sight Vintage. In addition, you will find some of Lottie’s key tips, ideas and styling suggestions with you across Headway’s social media channels.
Headway has a network of 27 wonderful charity shops on high streets across the Midlands and North-West. Supported by a team of incredible and enthusiastic staff and volunteers there is always a bargain to be found.
Love at First Sight Vintage is a sustainable second-hand clothing company dedicated to extending the lifetime of garments. This initiative is run by Lottie Baxter, an entrepreneurial student currently studying BA in Fashion Communication & Promotion at Nottingham Trent University.
Here are Lottie’s top five top tips for charity shopping
1. Make a day of it!
Charity shopping is a form of self-care for me, I like to dedicate a full day (or at least a morning/ afternoon) to touring around my local town centres and sifting through all of the treasure that is in the shops. I’ll always come equipped with my bus pass, several bags for life, and something nice to drink… thrifting is thirsty work. It’s also a really fun thing to do with your friends! I usually take my mum with me.
2. Check out the whole shop
I’m a petite woman, so it would make sense for me to stick to browsing the womenswear rails that feature small sizes, but instead I browse all of the rails in different departments. Don’t be afraid to check out the men’s shirts or blazers, or clothes that are labelled as a larger size- as vintage sizing often runs small and garments tend to shrink over time anyway.
3. If you’re looking for vintage pieces… take someone older with you.
As I’ve mentioned, I often bring my mum to the charity shops with me. Not only is this great fun, but she’ll point out the styles and brands that she used to wear ‘back in the day’. She often shows items to me and says, “Wow Lottie I had this exact Morgan de Toi belt in 1999”, and due to fashion being cyclical, and trends resurfacing every couple of decades, a 90s Morgan belt will be EXACTLY what I’m wanting right now.
4. Get some inspo and maybe create a mood board beforehand.
Each season, when it comes to refreshing my wardrobe, I’ll identify what’s missing, what I’d love to have more of, and which trends I’d like to sustainably participate in. I usually collect images on Pinterest and create a mood board, which gives me an objective when I go thrifting. This can make the experience less overwhelming as I know exactly what styles, textures, patterns and colours I’m looking for, and it stops impulse buying.
5. 
See the potential in a garment.
Often clothes will look better on than hanging up. Something could look not so great on the rail, but it could fit you absolutely perfectly and be jazzed up when styled with pieces from your wardrobe! When in doubt, always try on. Additionally, if you find an item you really like, but it’s too long or has a little hole in, don’t let it put you off. Even if you can’t fix it yourself, there will be somewhere nearby that you can take your alterations and repairs to, and the total cost will no doubt still be less than buying the garment new!
Feeling inspired?
If you would like to see what Lottie has bought together for us drop into our Beeston store, or follow us on social media where we’ll be sharing pieces throughout the month.
Back