One place I was determined to visit on my trip to San Francisco was The vintage store Out of the Closet. I actually didn’t even know about this thrift shop in SF until I caught glimpse of it while passing by in an Uber. Once I arrived at my home stay I was very happy to discover that this great San Francisco vintage store near me was literally only a few minutes walking distance away.
Out of the Closet Review San Francisco
I always think it’s fun to share with all of you the vintage thrift shops I randomly discover. Though everyone has their own special finds when thrift shopping, these are my shopping goals. Vintage style dresses and accessories, kawaii clothing, and any item I can find made in high quality fabric and material. That means that in one thrift shop haul, I may come home with a 50’s dress, anime harajuku platforms, and a 100% silk shirt. What can I say? My style is wide and varied. In this thrift shop review I’ll cover my shopping experience from the storefront itself, products available, store organization, and clothing prices.
The Storefront And General Experience
Of the many local thrift shop businesses I’ve visited, I’d have to say that Out of the Closet boasts one of the most creative window displays I’ve seen. It was actually their window displays that made me fascinated with discovering what was inside – not the bizarre bright pink sign.
I was very pleasantly surprised upon entering the establishment that it didn’t smell like a vintage thrift shop. I don’t mind that thick musty “old things” smell, if anything it can sometimes be exciting. If you’re going to a thrift store to dig around, you should be prepared for some dust, and maybe even the occasional critter. The Out of the Closet vintage store is actually one of the cleanest thrift shops I think I’ve ever visited. It’s also entirely critter-free! Don’t ask, let’s just say I’ve seen some things. While I don’t mind that old school retro presence and aroma, it was very nice to feel like I was shopping in a clean environment.
It was also very nice that the store itself was so large. It could be that I loved the space simply because I live in New York City. I’m used to shopping in overcrowded cracker jack boxes while grazing shoulders with questionable “others”. I liked all of the open space, and I didn’t see many people while I was there. They could easily put up some more clothing racks if they wanted. I do love the ease of walking around, but more clothing and shoes would be nice too!
Store Organization
It’s very easy to shop at Out of the Closet. One of the things I was most impressed by while in the store, was the labeling of the clothing racks. Unlike many other thrift stores I’ve visited, everything at this location was labeled by size. It’s hard enough when you’re sifting through the conglomerate randomness that is other people’s things, without also trying to find your size. I was able to go to a clothing rack that said size small, and look through all of the sleeveless shirt options. I could then turn around, and go through all of the size small sweaters. They saved me probably two hours of frustration that I undoubtedly would’ve encountered otherwise. I found the cute clothes I liked best, made my purchases, and was out of there in about an hour. Picture taking time included!
What Products Will You Find There?
1. Home Goods
If finding sizes was easy, finding the home goods, dresses, accessories, and halloween costumes was even easier. The entire back left wall of the inside of the store contained all kinds of little home objects. When I was there, I saw some tech gear, books, and even some kitschy unique statues and other oddities. I didn’t see anything in the home goods section that was really worth writing home about for my style. However if you’re looking for something for a photo shoot, or party decorations, the prices are incredibly reasonable. If you’re running an online business with a blog like I am, knowing where to get things like that is quite helpful.
2. Costumes
Since it was Halloween season when I visited, I saw some special things. They had two racks in the very front of the building with fun costume pieces. The two holiday themed racks held tulle skirts, masks, capes and cloaks, party dresses and more. They did have a few of what I would refer to as, very legitimate costumes. I did run across an adult’s bumble bee outfit, a sexy devil costume, and even a few period inspired dress pieces. Even if you didn’t find your best Halloween costume there, I think you could make one from a smorgasbord of pieces you grabbed throughout the store. It’s a good place in San Francisco for Halloween costumes without a doubt.
3. Accessories
Accessories were located mostly in the front of the store around the register. Valuable items were kept under lock and key behind the desk too. When I went, they had some very fun brightly colored block style watches. You can also find some cute vintage sunglasses and interesting jewelry like what grandma would’ve worn. There were a few handbags, but not enough to really call it a full collection. There was also a standing display of various hats for the upcoming winter season. I liked some of the hats, but since I was shopping at Out of the Closet in San Francisco, they weren’t exactly NYC weather ready. When I’m ready for a ridiculous fur hat, I’ll get one here in New York.
I don’t want to say that I liked or disliked the accessories offered. I’m a customer looking for kawaii pink gloves, or 1950’s broaches, so the selection didn’t necessarily cater to me. A thrift stores’ landscape is forever changing, maybe in a week I would’ve found all of those things.
4. Dresses And Clothing
If you’re wondering why I’ve separated out the used dresses, then you probably haven’t been to too many of your local thrift stores. Those of you who are frequent attendees such as myself, feel my frustration! A lot of us ladies, especially retro dress lovers, go to thrift stores with the sole purpose of finding that one amazing vintage dress. Since dresses also happen to be one of the most purchased women’s clothing items, it should come as no surprise to you that even brick and mortar stores tend to keep an abundance of them.
Every woman entering a vintage store looks at the dress section in either complete excitement, or utter dismay. I was exhilarated to discover that Out of the Closet dresses are kept on a tall rack in the very front of the store. Listed once again in order from small to plus size, it was a piece of cake for me to look at a glance and pull every kawaii dress I wanted. For this reason and this reason alone, I would already tell people to visit this store.
Used Clothing Prices
When I talk about prices, keep in mind that I’m coming from a New York state of mind – haha, yes I hear the song too. When I visit mom and dad at home in Kentucky, their Goodwill sells things for around $3 to $15. By my standards that’s an absolute steal! The NYC Goodwill is the most expensive thrift shop I’ve been to, selling bad dresses and musty blouses for $20 and higher(don’t even get me started). If I do NY thrift shopping, I always go to Housing Works instead. How did Out of the Closet compare?
The San Francisco Out of the Closet location has the best vintage store prices of all of the locations I just mentioned. I could name many more, but this is a good sampling. Their secondhand store prices are some of the best I’ve seen in the last 6 years. The two tops below were only $5 dollars. The one on the right is a Zara modern bralette style top that I thought was sexy but still professional. The left knitted top was by a company I don’t know, but it felt very nice. I wish I’d had the space in my suitcase to buy it too!
Out of the Closet Vintage Boutique
Not every secondhand store is the same, and they each have their own downfalls and specialties. With that said, here are few secondhand clothing store items you should definitely look far, and maybe a few that you’ll want, but won’t find.
What You Should Buy There
I don’t know where they find their secondhand items or who does the pricing. What I do know is that someone who works there knows their fabrics! Something I found at the thrift store Out of the closet that I don’t see a lot elsewhere, were very high quality fabrics.
My first goal entering a thrift store is to find the best retro dresses. After that, I look for kawaii Japanese used clothing items, and lastly, good fabric material. While I wasn’t able to find any great kimonos, nor vintage dresses, I did find high quality materials. When you’re visiting their store, be sure to look for 100% silk, cotton, and leather clothing pieces. They not only have them, you’ll only pay a few measly dollars for them. I was fortunate enough to walk out with some amazing pieces. I purchased a structured sheer white top in real silk, a block cut shirt in real leather, and a kawaii off the shoulder pink dress.
What You May Want But Wont Find
I’ve said it once, but I’ll say it once more – I am a difficult customer. If I can’t find an authentic vintage dress, a Chinese top or a kimono of some sort, that’s a bit of a disappoint to me. With that said, I try to be reasonable. I don’t expect to find those items in any vintage store every single time I visit. I didn’t see any real vintage dresses in any size while I was there though, and that’s something I would expect. If you have your heart set on a retro dress, then Out of the Closet is not for you. While they did have some cute secondhand dress options(still worth looking at!), vintage pieces just weren’t among them.
If you’re looking for designer secondhand items, that’s something you’ll have a hard time finding at Out of the Closet. I was curious if the lack of designer clothing was just in my size section or not. To find out, I made sure to visit other sizing racks. For the sake of writing this blog piece as best I could, I wanted to do a thorough check. I didn’t find any designer clothes worth writing about unfortunately. I saw a few of what I would label mid-level designer pieces only. One or two Ralph Lauren dresses, and a great jacket that was so obviously handmade by a skilled seamstress. Below are two items I liked that weren’t authentic vintage dresses, but very nice none the less.
Out of The Closet Locations
Interested in finding an Out of the Closet nearby? Depending on where you live, you may be lucky! They have stores in Florida, Georgia, Seattle, New York, Texas, Ohio, and many in California.
Out of the Closet San Francisco Store
