Merry Thriftmas! The etiquette of second-hand holiday gift giving

Jess Braga and Daelyn Carroll were both raised on second-hand shopping. 

Growing up, they would shop at thrift stores and garage sales with their respective parents, which is why the two women are embracing giving away second-hand gifts this holiday season. 

"My friends do Thriftmas," said Carroll, who co-organized a second-hand holiday market this December. "Having been in school for so long, we can't all afford to go to the store, have a $25 budget and not be able to buy even one thing."

They can usually find cheaper price points at thrift stores and vintage shops, she said. 

Braga and Carroll, who both run their own vintage clothing businesses, are just two Londoners giving thrifted, vintage and re-gifted presents to friends and family this year.

"Me and my family have been doing this every year for probably close to 12 years now," said Braga, who co-organizes the market with Carroll. "I come from a line of people trying to do everything the most cost effective way and the way that's best for the planet.

Some people shopping at London thrift stores over the weekend said they are also partaking in Thriftmas, with the goal of saving money and keeping items from going to waste.

"People give away good treasures thinking that it's had its time in the world so it's just sitting there," said Londoner Amber Snider. "Yes, [thrift shopping] is a little more affordable but there are also amazing products waiting for their second life and people look past them."

Second-hand gifts a sign of effort

Other Londoners said second-hand gifts had less to do with money and more to do with finding somebody a unique present.

"It's almost like finding a diamond in the rough," said Nick Gillette, who works at the second-hand music store, Grooves Records.

Gillette said he's bought his friends all kinds of second-hand gifts, including something for his friend who is a fan of the Buffalo Bills football team.

"A lot of the stuff I could get from the official brand store, but there's a million of them," Gillette said. "Being able to shop second-hand and put a little more effort and thought into it, I was able to find a really cool pullover."

The process of finding a good second-hand gift can require some extra time, said Aaron Bakker, who runs vintage clothing store, DugOut Vintage. 

"In a mall, you can go in and there's 60 stores, so you can probably find something for someone. With second-hand, everything is one-of-a-kind," said Bakker, who added that vintage shopping can happen in stores and online.

"It might take some dedication, it might take scrolling through eBay every day for three weeks," said Bakker. "It's tough, but that's part of the fun for me."

For other Londoners, shopping second-hand is no different than shopping at the mall.

"Thrifting for some people isn't like second-hand shopping, it's just shopping," said Snider. 

"As long as I'm still buying something for somebody that I know they'll like and putting in that effort to find something that will connect with them, it's still a brand new item for me and the person who's getting the gift," she said.

No socks, no underwear

There are limits to what kinds of items to give second-hand.

Some thrifters in London told CBC socks, underwear and bedding are all items they would be wary of gifting. Others said they would never give a thrifted item to friends and family who they know wouldn't like it. 

Carroll and Braga said they always wash the items that they sell at their businesses and would recommend gift givers also clean used items, whether it's wiping down furniture or washing stained clothes. Meanwhile, Bakker said clothing stains and holes can tell a story, if that's something the gift recipient appreciate. 

"I think it really just depends on the person," Bakker said. "I probably wouldn't give my grandparents something with holes and stains because they still make the jokes of, 'Oh, you've got holes in your jeans,' when that's the whole idea."

Londoners are divided on whether to tell their gift recipients that their gift was purchased second-hand.

"You probably should, but sometimes I score and get things with the tags still on it so in that case, I definitely don't say anything," said Jodi Pardo, who has secretly given someone a second-hand gift before.

She and her daughter, Sydney Norton, are avid thrift shoppers, but Norton has a different opinion: "I don't really think it's a problem to let them know [a gift is second-hand], especially because a lot of people I know also thrift so I don't think they would be offended by it," she said.

Gillette said that more often than not, he thinks people can tell if a gift is second-hand and will be transparent about it.

"If somebody asks, I don't see a reason why you wouldn't tell them," said Gillette. "If they act like a baby about it, then you just take the gift back. Now it's yours."