An Honest ThredUp Goody Box Review From a Cheap Girl

I do not consider myself a trendy dresser. I consider myself to find cute clothes for cheap. A few years ago, I discovered online thrift stores. I was thrilled, but I still am the type of girl who wants to try it on, make sure it fits and think twice before I buy something.

I didn’t really get that with buying shirts online. I’m more comfortable grabbing these popular clothing deals I shared from Amazon, but I’m a Prime member. So being a member and knowing I can send stuff back had a mental shift for me.

All that changed when I decided to give Thredup a try.

*This post is NOT sponsored 🙂

Related: Check out how to shop Goodwill clearance centers for clothes under $1. It really is the ultimate thrift store shopping.

What is Thredup?

Thredup is the largest online consignment and thrift shop.

From their site, “We’re the world’s largest online secondhand shopping destination with thousands of like-new styles from your favorite brands at up to 90% off estimated retail.

“We make sure every single one of the 15K new arrivals we add to the site every day is 100% authentic and in such good shape anyone could mistake them as new.

There are no knockoffs here—just knockoff prices. Find high-quality used women’s clothing and used children’s clothing from fashionable closets just like yours. Specially curated by our style experts.”

Thredup is similar to StitchFix but a cheaper alternative.

Why I Tried ThredUp

Backtrack a few months ago, I had a writing conference to attend, and all of a sudden, I started to doubt my own wardrobe.

I knew things I wore 10 years ago weren’t the image I was going for. I was attending the conference to pitch a book idea, be on my way as an author.

Motherhood swifts and sways and leaves us feeling vulnerable when it’s time to “dress up.” I know I was feeling all of the above when shopping for some business casual outfits. I would wear jeans and a hoodie every day if I could.

I also like the grown-up side of dressing up for a fancy dinner with my husband, but I usually wear the same outfit since that happens twice a year!

I needed a stylist. That’s what I came down to. While searching online for style ideas, I came across Thredups Goody box now called Thredup Rescue Box.

You can shop their site without doing anything with this subscription box. In addition, they run promotions frequently; as I type this now, you can take an extra 20% off your first order with coupon code NEW20.

The 20% promo is over, but you will get $10 off your first order when you sign up through my link HERE.

What’s a Goody Box? ( This is now called a Thredup Rescue Box as of 2023)

• Now in 2023, you can get a Thredup Rescue box. This is similar but a stylist isn’t shopping for you. Instead you pick from a box of random clothes, or specific items like a box of shoes, purses etc. It’s still similar and a fun way to try new apparel items.

This is the name of the Thredup surprise box of fashion.  After answering a few questions on their website to get to know your style needs, you get a box mailed to you with 10 unique finds starting at $20 each.

There is no obligation to have boxes sent to you every month. It’s a one and done need to order again if you like it deal.

The part that gets me as a frugal girl is $20 per item isn’t the cheapest I can find.

You can hit TJMaxx, and Marshalls and get something brand new for less than $20 a piece.

What you are paying for, though, is for someone else to pair items together for you. Take the guesswork out of it.

This appealed to me because I am not often in the mood to shop for clothes. It’s overwhelming, and I’m too cheap.

With my conference only weeks away, I decided to take the plunge, use my blogging money, and go for it.

I ordered my first Goody Box with Thredup.

It took a good two weeks to get my items. This isn’t something to try if you need items sooner rather than later. Prepare accordingly if you have an event coming up to order well in advance.

It is indeed a huge box.

Inside the box, everything was packaged neatly and had its own tag. Remember, everything is used. After reading about how much waste the clothing industry brings, I was excited knowing this was a fun secondhand shopping experience helping the environment.

Inside, you get a sheet with every item listed and the price. I told myself NOT to look at the price before I tried anything on. I’m that girl that says this is only $8? I’ll make it fit… I’m learning and growing friends!

They put the estimated retail value, which helps you feel like you are scoring incredible savings. For me personally, I immediately think that retail value is a complete joke, and it gets me more aggravated at the prices they charge!

I enlisted my husband to help me with this. As you can see, taking a selfie wasn’t really working. So I also went out on a limb and had him tell me which ones he liked best.

I didn’t look at the prices and kept those. But, of course, the shirt I didn’t care for, he said was his favorite, and I wore it out on date night and felt pretty confident.  I kept thinking about how these items seem brand new.

They were not worn out like the ones you typically find at Goodwill or Salvation Army. We now have a really decent Goodwill thrift store in our area. I can find so many items that are top-selling brands in like new condition.

 

Let’s Start With Outfit 1:

Now can I say I adore my husband, but well, he isn’t a born cameraman! I didn’t get any shoes in the box. This was just a shirt and pants.

I said no to both.

Outfit #2

This was my husband’s favorite outfit and the one I kept.  The jeans are really comfortable. The shirt felt a little showy at first. After wearing it out and seeing this picture, it is a bit more revealing, but my husband likes it, and that means something, ladies 😉

This was my favorite outfit. The material is lightweight, and I liked the cut. The jeans were not bad, but I liked the jeans from the above outfit better.

I’m not too fond of sweaters. That’s all.

The jeans were the same ones in the last picture. My least favorite shirt so far!

Well, this sweater is better, but no. My husband didn’t say much about it, and I was too cheap to keep everything, so this one didn’t stick. However, I do think it is a nice sweater.

I liked this black shirt, but my husband said he liked the blue one better, so I went with it. However, it came with that long gold necklace that felt very strange to me. I don’t wear necklaces once a year, so this wasn’t for me.

I liked they gave you a necklace, though, as something to think about. It’s nice to see what completes an outfit when you are someone who doesn’t wear necklaces frequently.

Here are all the clothes laid out I received in the box. Doesn’t include the necklace.

The outfits are all name-brand items for around $20. 

• I chose to keep the J.Crew jeans for $22.99- Retail $125
• 7th Ave. Design Studio Blouse $18.99 – Retail $71
• Women’s Express Blouse $17.99- Retail $60
• Pay $10 for the service fee

Total Paid: $69.97

I did another Thredup box here– if you want to compare to what a couple of different boxes look like.

Now in the last year, I discovered we have a Goodwill clearance center! That my friend is the ultimate cheap way to get clothes. You pay by the pound and I usually get clothing items for $1 or less, and some still have the original tags on.

Give it a Try- Save $10

That had me gasping for air. The more I think about it, though, it was a really nice treat—something I could see myself doing a couple of times a year. There is a big catch-

You only have seven days to try the items on and return what you don’t want. If you hated every item in the box, you would pay $10.

Otherwise, you pay for only the items you keep. The shipping label and bringing it back to the post office was easy to do as long as you did it quickly.

Interested in giving it a try? You can use my referral link to get $10 off– basically, you won’t pay anything if you try the box and hate everything inside!

You can choose from theme boxes, too, like Fall, Business Casual, Weekend Warrior, Custom, and more.

If you hate shopping and are willing to spend a little more on the convenience factor, I think it’s totally worth a try.

If the prices are too high for you, I will stick to shopping TJMaxx, Marshall’s, etc.

Have you tried Thredup before? What are your thoughts? Will you be giving it a try? 

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