For all of the flashy buy-it-now New Year’s Eve ensembles that are currently filling my inbox with promises of emptying my wallet, my favorite piece for the end-of-year holiday is hands down a dress that cost less than my weekly grocery bill. I picked it up at the Garment District in Cambridge, Massachusetts—a thrift store famous for its heaps of dollar-a-pound piles of clothing, as well as its sections of throwback glitz—during my time as a perpetually broke college student. Surfing through racks of spangled ’80s dresses, one stood out: a long-sleeve tunic smothered in hokey sparkle, made completely of white sequins with illustrations of flowers in candied shades of green, red, and pink. And then there were shoulder pads! From afar, the dazzle-strewn number seemed made for a blinged-out granny who favors the slots in Boca Raton. And sure, it may have had a faint odor of Chanel No. 5, and it did weigh about 15 pounds, but for $20, I was sold. Plus, after some careful adjustments—I sliced the shoulder pads out and steamed the scent away—it no longer looked like a cheesy shirt for a fancy geriatric: It became a thigh-skimming minidress. I wore it that year on December 31—why not!—raked in the compliments, and I’ve never once looked back.
I’ll always stand by thrifting a special-occasion look, but it feels especially right for New Year’s. Eternally pressure-packed and over-hyped as the most (and last) hotly anticipated event of the year, the holiday never quite seems to measure up, let alone warrant a big expense for an outfit. And as it turns out, secondhand shopping is actually the best route to find something for the night, rather than rush-ordering an expensive, wear-once-and-toss glossy dress. Upscale vintage stores like Amarcord Vintage in New York City have a party-ready rack of flounce and flou (think everything from early ’90s Chanel and 1970s Saint Laurent to Comme des Garçons and more), but those searching for a more temporary fix should hunt amongst the mildewy army jackets and ribcage-hitting mom jeans hanging in true, aggressively priced secondhand stores. “The 20-year cycle crosses over to all areas of culture, like music and art, but especially fashion,” Carrie Peterson, the founder of consignment mecca Beacon’s Closet told me in an email. “There’s a nostalgia factor; people find comfort and familiarity in pieces they saw in the pop culture of their youth. Twenty- to 30-somethings want to relive some of the things they adored as children or weren’t really old enough to partake in the first time around.” Which means that as Sarah Mower pointed out in a piece earlier this year, young designers are harkening back to an era that peaked with their own adolescence, making what you’re reaching for in those racks not so far from what’s popping up on the most recent runways, from the flouncy frocks at Lanvin to the slinky slips at Emilio Pucci and Studio 54–inspired dresses at Sonia Rykiel. And let’s just say that Nicolas Ghesquiére, genius though he may be, didn’t exactly invent the lantern sleeve.
Another benefit to thrifting an NYE look? Anything you find most likely can be altered quickly and easily. “I always thrift—you’re going to find something that no one else is wearing,” says Vogue.com Beauty Editor Mackenzie Wagoner, who favors Lurex in her consignment hauls. “But if you do find something that is a bit on the dowdy side, you can bring it to the tailor to give it a more modern shape and length.” Plus, as Vogue.com Fashion News Editor Alessandra Codinha points out, “picking up something that was pre-loved rather than off the one-and-done—and then likely in a landfill—fast-fashion racks seems like the right step to ringing in the new year the right way. And then if you never wear it again, unlike that crazy expensive dress you ordered, you really won’t feel guilty.” The best news of all? You’ve got at least one more full day of shopping before that countdown to the ball drop begins.
Ruffles! The perfect solution to holiday dressing:
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