FIRST FRIDAYS

As our way of giving back…
On the first Friday of every month we will be giving 5% of total sales to a charitable organization. So every first Friday of the month know that a percentage of your purchase is helping make lives better!

October 2009:

Thorne Ecological Institute
PO Box 19107
1466 N. 63rd Street
Boulder, CO 80308
303-499-3647
www.thorneeco.org

The Thorne Natural Science School has connected over 30,000 kids to nature since 1957. Experienced teachers lead enthusiastic kids outside to explore the wonders of the Front Range. Founded in 1954, Thorne’s mission is to build Earth stewardship by connecting kids to nature through hands-on environmental education.

We have in some truly gorgeous bags right now!  This Gucci one takes the cake.  We honestly don’t think it has ever been used!  Originally over $1,200, at Rags for $798.  Perfect for any time of year.

Stay tuned because we’ll be posting many of the designer bags…or just come in and see them for yourself!

*DISCLAIMER-LITE: We are continually updating our site with fabulous and fun finds from Rags, but we only have one of each item in the store, and can’t guarantee that what we post is still available.  Sorry!  We do, however, have over 3500 other items in the store, so… have a look around.     xo – the girls at Rags

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*DISCLAIMER-LITE: We are continually updating our site with fabulous and fun finds from Rags, but we only have one of each item in the store, and can’t guarantee that what we post is still available.  Sorry!  We do, however, have over 3500 other items in the store, so… have a look around.     xo – the girls at Rags

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Treat yourself…

Marc Jacobs…

*DISCLAIMER-LITE: We are continually updating our site with fabulous and fun finds from Rags, but we only have one of each item in the store, and can’t guarantee that what we post is still available.  Sorry!  We do, however, have over 3500 other items in the store, so… have a look around.     xo – the girls at Rags

***

*DISCLAIMER-LITE: We are continually updating our site with fabulous and fun finds from Rags, but we only have one of each item in the store, and can’t guarantee that what we post is still available.  Sorry!  We do, however, have over 3500 other items in the store, so… have a look around.     xo – the girls at Rags

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As our way of giving back…
On the first Friday of every month we will be giving 5% of total sales to a charitable organization. So every first Friday of the month know that a percentage of your purchase is helping make lives better!

July 2009:
Dairy Center for the Arts
2590 Walnut Street
Boulder, CO
www.thedairy.org
303-440-7826

The Dairy Center for the Arts provides an affordable home for artists & art organizations & encourages appreciation & advancement of the arts in Boulder and surrounding communities through programming, education, advocacy & outreach.

So many great fashions … so little time. Consigning has already been over the top for August too! Come in, consign, make a little $$$ out of your closet & shop for new. Hope to see you soon. Love, The Girls at Rags

We always have the cutest cowgirl hats in.  Wear one this summer.

Remember, we are constantly updating our site with what is fabulous and new at Rags Consignments.  Things sell out quick..so get what you love before someone else does.  xo – the girls at Rags.

Everytime you consign with us at Rags, we ask, if it doesn’t sell, would you like us to donate it?  So many of you donate your clothes that don’t sell…this makes all the difference.  So many people appreciate it.

Here are just a few place things have gone over the past year.  We’ll keep posting donation destinations too!

We have made big donation deliveries over the last year to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota (in coordination with the group Conscious Alliance who deliver food along with our clothing).

We contributed a huge quantity of winter clothing to the Niwot group collecting for the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming this past winter.

We also helped the Denver Children’s Home in Denver clean out their closet of their old clothes and they were able to start fresh with our youth oriented clothes.  Both the counselors and kids were “over the moon” with their new fashionable and quality clothes.

We’ve donated about 100 39-gallon trash bags to the Denver Children’s Home.  Needless to say, they love us.

We love all of you too!

A Truly Green (and Frugal) Fashion Choice: Thrift Stores

by Karla Zens

It feels like a new socially responsible fashion line emerges every week: handbags made from organic hemp, sunglasses fabricated from 100% renewable materials, jewelry crafted from recycled gold and responsibly mined gems. Green fashion is almost mainstream: you can purchase your organic cotton t-shirt from Barney’s…or from Old Navy. Don’t get me wrong, these are all wonderful developments, but they continue to feed our insatiable appetite for consuming “new stuff.”

It’s time to start thinking about a fashion choice that doesn’t come with a “feel good” eco sound bite: your local thrift store, vintage shop, or a clothing swap between friends. With the economic downturn, shoppers have started to wean themselves off Macy’s and learned to love pre-owned designer merchandise. (Oh, and if you’re turned off by thrift store cooties, I’ll help you get past that a bit later.)

For the eco-minded out there (those of you who shop locally, bring your own bags to the grocery store, monitor the parabens and bisphenal A in your life), it’s time to take note: besides being a way to snag high-quality, fashionable threads for a bargain, second hand shopping is one of the most socially responsible shopping choices you can make.

Just consider today’s most rampant “disposable fashion” item: a cotton shirt, available for less than $20. This fictional shirt started out as cotton in a pesticide-laden field in the US. It was shipped to China, where it was milled, woven, and then dyed using harsh chemicals that leaked into the local water system. It was cut and sewn by children working in appalling conditions, before being shipped back to the US and sold. It’s a process that keeps the price low at the expense of quality, the environment, energy resources and labor practices.

And even your sweat shop-free, organic, vegetable dyed, carbon offset garment has consumed energy. Some virgin materials were likely used. The item was produced, packaged, and shipped, perhaps several thousand miles. It was likely marketed in some way, maybe on the pages of a magazine that was printed on virgin paper.

Comparatively, no energy is spent to create a second-hand item. If you purchase a shirt from a thrift store, you’re basically saving it from landfill (according to the EPA Office of Solid Waste, Americans throw away more than 68 pounds of clothing and textiles per person per year). Another benefit: second hand products have also likely finished “off-gassing” their most noxious chemicals. Many new items such as clothing, carpet and furniture release potentially harmful gases (including VOCs: Volatile Organic Compounds). Off gassing usually decreases as products age, are washed, etc., making second-hand items a safer option for your home.

If you think thrift stores are home to nothing but pilled sweaters and 1980’s prom dresses, think again. You may have to weed through a lot of fashion crimes, but you will find amazing designer clothing that looks like it’s never been worn (and quite often, it hasn’t). I have found a drawer-full of pristine cashmere sweaters, designer handbags (including a gorgeous white Ferragamo purse), Ellen Tracy blouses and a Benetton suit with the tags still on…along with a closet-full of other fashion scores. Oh, and I rarely pay more than $8 for any item! And if you’re tired of “throwaway fashion:” items that wrinkle, bunch, tear along the seams and shed buttons, go to your thrift store, where you can suddenly afford cashmere, wool, silk and designer labels.

Thrift stores are also a fantastic way to support your local community in these tough times. Your money is almost always going towards a charitable cause, and the stores themselves often serve as job training programs.

Not into wading through heaps of junk? Head to a chic vintage shop, an upscale consignment store, or a resale chain such as Buffalo Exchange or Crossroads Trading Co. You’ll pay a slight premium for the benefit of an organized and well-edited shopping experience, while still reaping the benefits of thrift store shopping.

Finally, if you’re squeamish about thrift stores and the “pre-owned” factor: have you have ever stayed in a hotel? Are you sure they washed the comforter or wiped down the remote? If you eat food from restaurants, do really know what’s lurking under the salami in your sub sandwich? And if you’ve tried on pants in a store, chances are they’ve made contact with someone else’s crotch, and you’ve been exposed to just as many cooties as you’ll find at the average thrift store. Carefully inspected and then laundered, second hand fashion is cleaner than the escalator handrail at the mall.

So give recycled fashion a try: it’s cheap, chic and truly green.

Hey Ladies – we are always excited to talk about change.  In fashion things always change.  Spring is a fabulous time to come in and revamp your wardrobe a little.  We encourage you to be mindful and for every new item you find to add to your closet, bring a  few things into to consign.  Keep the fashion recycle & restyle wheel moving.  Also always bring in any extra shopping bags you have, we will reuse them too.  xo The Girls at Rags.

Come in and find the accessories and necessitates you need for spring.

Gorgeous baubles dress up any look.

Lots of Dosa lovelies just hit the wooden hangers.

Fabulous shoes – like these ecoChic Charmone – are a must.