Thrifty East Sussex Photographer Uses Instagram To Promote Sustainable Shopping

East Sussex bargain hunter Josie Barnes, 25, started collecting preloved items at 17 and encourages her followers to thrift to help save the planet.

A photographer is using her flair for fashion to help save the planet by showing off her fabulously funky looks on Instagram which are all put together by thrifting.

Josie Barnes, 25, is something of a veteran when it comes to hunting down unique finds in charity and vintage shops, as she started collecting preloved accessories like designer jewellery and handbags when she was just 17.

On first name terms with many of the quirky vintage shop owners in the Old Town of Hastings, East Sussex, where she lives, bargain-hunting is no longer the main driving force for her magpie-style shopping trips.

She said:

“When I started thrifting, I would look for fast fashion labels, but I don’t do that now because that stuff doesn’t last.

“Instead, I buy for necessity and quality and I always ask myself, ‘Do I need this?’ and ‘Will I wear it?’ I don’t buy something just because it is a bargain at £5.”

Josie’s key message to her followers now is to thrift to  help save the environment, by recycling, upcycling and stopping clothes from ending up in landfill sites.

And, realising she was already doing what all the slow and sustainable fashion influencers she was following on Instagram were doing, in 2020 Josie, who studied film production at university, launched a platform for her own fantastic finds.

She said:

“It’s incredibly important for everyone to do their bit to stop unnecessary waste and buying preloved items is a great way of doing that.”

Now chronicling her bargain finds on her Instagram site,  Josie Goes Thrifting, where she has become something of a style icon, her first forays into vintage clothes shopping came  partly as it was a better way to find unusual items to fit her tiny 5ft 1in size 4-8 frame.

She has also always been passionate about protecting the rights of garment makers, so prefers to buy quality items second hand or sustainable brands where she knows workers have been paid a living wage,

She said:

“Once I started thrifting, people were always asking me, ‘Where did you get that?’

“My Instagram page was a lockdown project really. It sat there doing nothing for five months while I worked on my confidence, so I could launch it.”

She added:

“I don’t look like Kate Moss or a Hollywood model and that has always held me back until now.

“It’s hard not to compare yourself, but I’ve finally found my confidence and accepted this is me and this is how I look and the reactions to my pictures on social media have been great.”

Amongst Josie’s favourite thrifted bargains are a bright red retro 1980s ski suit she picked up for £10 and a stunning Gucci designer jumper she found for £5 in a charity shop.

She said:

“I love the jumper because the print pattern is a one-off. It’s red, green and black and I think it’s part of the Angry Dragon Collection.

“I’m an artist, so I love big, bold garish colours. I use colour to express myself.”

Josie currently lives with her parents, NHS hospital development professional Anna, 61,  and Geoffrey, 65, a retired support worker and councillor, and credits her dad with originally showing her the value of second hand or preloved finds.

She said:

“My dad loves antiques. He really loves learning about the history of the things he buys and while I didn’t think that was cool when I was younger, I’m the exact same now, so I think it must have rubbed off on me.”

But, despite being thrifty where possible, she does have some more expensive items she really treasures and justifies their cost by the amount of wear they get.

One of her favourite finds is a Vivienne Westwood necklace she asked her mum to buy her for Christmas in 2020, which cost £80.

She said: 

“I’d been eyeing  it up for months, so eventually asked my mum if I could have it for Christmas 2020.

“She came to see it with me in a vintage shop and loved it.

“While £80 sounds like a lot of money, this is my ‘go to’ piece and something I wear all the time.”

She has also used her nose for quality finds to develop side hustles, by taking a stall at vintage markets and selling items on at a profit.

She said: 

“I was in a charity shop and saw a pair of black Dickies trousers for sale for £2. I know they sell for £20 to £40 in a vintage shop, so I bought them and sold them at the market for £20.

“But I did first tell the woman in the charity shop they should have been priced higher.”

Rising charity shop prices, as retro looks become fashionable, have pricked the conscience of dedicated thrifters like Josie, who do not want people in genuine need to be priced out of them – despite her desire to live more sustainably.

She said:

“I’m still on the fence about all that and haven’t decided where I will end up.

“I can see the good in this becoming a trend, but I can see the bad in it, too.”

She added:

“I worked for six months at a homeless shelter where people told me they couldn’t afford to shop in the charity shops any more and that’s really sad.

“I think the older generation, like my parents, are naturally far more sustainable in their ways and maybe we should learn from them.

“They’ll buy something and keep it for life. And if something gets broken, they’ll fix it, or sew it up again.

“We should all be doing this, too.”

You can follow Josie’s passion for thrifting on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/josie_goes_thrifting/