why do people think second hand is manky?

[WhereAreMyAirpods]

Why do people think second hand things are manky/dirty/unsafe? Have just read a comment on another thread about second hand jewellery not being safe because it's dirty.

Really? Are there really lots of people out there who think just because something has been in someone else's house for a while, it's unclean? Do these people not own washing machines or have a bottle of soapy liquid to clean things with?

To be honest, I had that attitude too for years. It was more snobbishness coming from a place of insecurity then anything else. These days I love second hand shopping and the majority of my clothes comes from charity shops. Though I do draw the line at second hand shoes, I do find that idea a bit unhygienic and I also think the shoe probably is shaped to the previous owners feet. But clothing is fine for me. Everything goes in a washing with some oxygen bleech for desinfection as soon as I get home and after line drying it has zero smell left if there was any.

As someone with OCD about germs i can kind of see both sides. There are certain items i would never buy second hand, but plenty that i would and do!

Yes: Jewellery (i LOVE a bargain vintage gemstone ring, so much cheaper than new) Clothing, games consoles/games, dvd's, and even shoes (i like to collect fancy heels, especially iron fist) providing they're very good condition and only tried on/worn a few times. You'd be surprised how many gorgeous pairs are bought and only worn for one/a few special occasions then rot in a cupboard. All get wiped down well with antibac wipes/washed with a bit of laundry sanitiser.

No: Books (too many people read on the loo!) Dry clean only clothing, and soft furnishings (sofas, mattresses, anything that cannot be put into a washing machine) cars.

Basically, if it can be fully cleaned and sanitised either by being a hard material and antibac wipes, or washing machine with sanitiser, then yes. Anything that cannot be sanitised/washed, no. Sofas/mattresses/seats in second hand cars, you never know if someone has had an accident and peed/crapped on it and it's soaked in beyond the surface you can wipe. As such we had to throw a 3 piece suite armchair away in great condition when keeping the rest of the set after someone passed out and wet themself in it, and it soaked down the sides and back of the seat into the foam. Had quite the shock when it showed up in a skip outside our house 10 years later! Someone saw it at the end of the alley and took it, said people eventually ended up renting next door and left it behind when they moved out. (was custom made so def same chair!)

My job brings me in and out of peoples homes and many other people's hygiene is beyond questionable - I've seen shit of floors and beds, utter utter grime, rodents, smells that would make you heave - then there is the nits, bed bugs, cockroaches.....it's unreasonable but it's ruined the 2nd hand market for me unless I know the person I'm afraid.

I couldn't care less about what other people think about buying second hand. However, on saying that if I go to the second hand mart I will park my Lexus in some obscure spot so as not to be noticed. I can't see the point in paying over the top for new when I can buy excellent second hand clothes with exclusive labels for a fraction of the cost. For my children and myself.

It feels good to buy secondhand when you have the choice but not when you don't.
You can potentially come unstuck with woodworm and bed bugs though.

The "snobbishness coming from a place of insecurity" which @LaBellina mentions rings a lot of bells with me as this is the attitude which many of DH's family has. They are not desperately poor and didn't grow up in desperate poverty either. But they were not "well off" in that every penny was accounted for and there were never extravagant purchases. DH's sister would NEVER contemplate buying anything second hand, she thinks people would judge her for it, pity her because "she couldn't afford new". Her adult daughter won't even buy new clothes which have been reduced in the sales in case someone sees her and thinks she can't afford the full price. That's the kind of attitude I just don't understand at all.

And as for the poster who rejects all second hand because of her upbringing - there is loads going on there. Not everyone who grew up in that way has the same attitudes about used/second hand and reacts in different ways. And I am presuming too that @TheLionTheWitchAndTheChesterDraws acknowledges WHY she has an issue with it, and doesn't pile into threads saying things are manky, or screwing her face up when someone offers her a bag of hand-me-downs.

Actually many second hand clothes have hardly been worn yet they are on the second hand rack for huge discounts to new.I have no compunction whatsoever buying second hand clothes and shoes for that matter. Some look as though they have only been used once. Wherearemyairpods is right. Some people don't want to be seen anywhere by second hand yet will let their children wear rags. Doesn't make sense. The children don't care unless the mother has engrained into them that second hand is a NO NO. The only thing I would not by are personal under garment attire. and other clothes that have obviously been well worn.

Because sometimes they are manky. Of course not always.

and because some people have really skewed ideas about germs and cleanliness and post a lot on mn to make others doubt themselves.

When I was poor everything had to be second hand as I couldn't afford anything else. But I got a thrill from a bargain so didn't feel ashamed or anything.

Things I wanted new (or did without), bras (sizing more than anything), underwear, breast pump, cutlery, brushes, mattress, sheets, duvet/pillows, closed shoes (sandals ok).

The worst thing I've seen in a charity shop was an opened and used bottle of shampoo. I mean who would donate/ want that? (Not a nice brand)

That’s the thing @WhereAreMyAirpods people often buy stuff not for themselves but for how it will show off to others their status in society. I don’t give a shit of others know my clothes are second hand, if they judge me for that then they’re idiots anyway. But I had to outgrow that mindset that your in laws family still has, and now that I’m in my 30s I no longer care for labels or status, only for quality. And I love paying less for quality so the second hand shop is my favorite place to shop now 😄

My very posh freind in an affluent part of London, shops exclusively in second hand shops and junk/antique shops. She says the less she spends on herself, the more she can spend on her pets, animal charities and rescue centres.

Who would want a half used bottle of shampoo for (say) 20p? A woman who needs to wash her kids hair after she has been to the food bank and cant afford the £1 a full bottle would cost.

I can't stand second hand clothes and will never buy I can vividly remember been bullied at high school for having second hand clothes by two girls from the family that had given my mum the clothes. I donate good clean clothes to charity shops but I'll never buy. If people give us clothes I thank them but pass them straight on to the charity shop.

People talking of childhood memories reminds me of a vivid memory of my own childhood.

We were not poor by any mark, my parents were boomers who were careful with their money and while we werent rich, we never went without.

A girl in my sisters year at school lived down the road from us. My sister got nits and her mum and our mum were talking and mum was moaning about the cost of nit lotion, girls mum said she had some that mum could have which was a nice thing to do and mum was grateful. Girl then told the whole year that we were poor as her mum had had to give our mum nit lotion as we couldnt afford it. My sister said "Well she said she had it left over as you had nits so you must have given them to me". My sister was mad that we were being called poor, and the girl ended up being called "Claire who has nits" forever. It wasnt Dsis intention to do that but be careful what you say!

Weirdly, I went to a parents evening with DD a few years back and "Claire who has nits" was her English Teacher! I freely admitted to DD, Ma and DSis that I couldnt remember a thing she had said about DD as all I could think about was the bitch way she had tried to take Dsis and our mother down and failed!

Lol I just seen this post people can be disgusting at times and yes I've brought second hand all my life but not anymore people are too dirty I'm not risking infestations in my place I miss the old days when people had respect for what they are selling you don't know what you are bringing back to your home in this day age and depends what area you live in 👍

I don’t know that many people who turn their nose up at second hand anymore. The ones that do tend to be a bit thick. I wouldn’t get second hand ending or underwear though. I buy second hand shoes but trainers or converse that I will risk in the washing machine if they are cheap enough

You wouldn’t notice if someone was wearing second hand unless it was pointed out though