Thrifty Threads: Viral rap song inspires used-clothing trend

GRANDPA sweaters. Pro Wings, with Velcro. Fur coats, extra fluffy. Fringed brown jackets. Footie pajamas - for adults.

All cheap. All used. All . . . the height of fashion?

Absolutely, according to the song "Thrift Shop," which occupied the No. 1 spot on both Billboard's Hot 100 and R&B/hip-hop charts for most of February.

The creation of Seattle rapper Macklemore, producer Ryan Lewis and vocalist Wanz (who performs the addictive, Barry White-like hook), "Thrift Shop" is more than a sketch of West Coast trends, more than a YouTube sensation, more than a huge crossover hit.

It's an anthem for a sort of secondhand style that's been part of Philly culture for a while now. And, it's getting bigger by the day.

Exhibit A: Sara Semborski, the hip, 22-year-old manager of Circle Thrift on South Broad. This past Christmas, she hosted brunch for friends. For this special occasion, Semborski donned "a pair of footsie pajamas, pink, with snowflakes on them," she said.

It wasn't an exact replica of the getup glorified in Macklemore's lyrics, referencing "flannel zebra jammies" with built-in socks.

But nor was Semborski's outfit just another old pair of saggy PJs.

Instead, her pastel blanket sleeper was part of an "ugly things are cool" trend, she said, a hipster look that includes "weird patterns, bulky sweaters, anything that's kind of awkward. Sweatshirts and sweaters with deer or cats.

"It's taking that rough something, like acid wash, and mixing it with some bling. Things that are contradictory go together now," she explained. "You can wear stripes and polka dots if you want. You can even throw plaid in there."

It's all about irony, about looking good despite dressing bad. It's an antifashion phenomenon that, if you've spent time in certain cooler corners of Philly, is nothing new. (After all, we're home to Urban Outfitters, America's greatest proponent of youthfully ironic dressing.)

What is new, however, is that Macklemore, whether he meant to or not, has helped turn an edgy trend into a phenomenon that People Paper fashion photog Reuben "Big Rube" Harley dubs "mainstream."

These days, said Harley, the object is to "look cool for less." Which is a new direction, especially for the hip-hop scene.

"The hip-hop audience tends to spend a ton of money on clothing," said Rakia Reynolds, owner of boutique Philly-based PR firm Skai Blue Media. "It's drilled into your head to wear Louis Vuitton and red bottoms [Louboutins], and Macklemore's shopping in thrift shops and saying, 'I can get that same sort of style.'"

What's more, added Semborski, since thrift-shop stock is mostly random, their customers get the feeling, "I found this. This is the only one."

Scoring something one-of-a-kind, explained Harley, is part of the thrill of thrifting. "You just go in there, and it's open season," he said.

Veteran thrifters like Harley and Reynolds are experts at scoring vintage gems from the city's low-priced treasure troves.

To find decades-old clothing in mint condition, said Reynolds, "You have to have a great eye. You have to be a curator. You can't just put 25 things in your bag and have a wardrobe."

On the other hand, if you make like Macklemore, it's a free-for-all. Just grab whatever catches your eye: "They had a broken keyboard. I bought a broken keyboard," he raps.

You feel like you're on a shopping spree: "I'm gonna pop some tags. Only got 20 dollars in my pocket."

"Macklemore is making it fun," said Reynolds. "Go spend $20 so you can get a whole bunch of stuff."

That's what shoppers do at Philly AIDS Thrift, a 7-year-old, 12,500-square-foot operation at 5th and Bainbridge streets where most shirts cost $3 to $5, jeans will set you back $5 to $10, and there's a whole dollar room to explore.

Store founder Christina Kallas-Saritsoglou said she's always catered to an eclectic set of shoppers. Nowadays, among her clients, "You see more college kids, or mall rats who wouldn't normally go to thrift stores."

She recalled one young shopper who knew record albums were cool but couldn't quite figure out how one actually worked. "She was like, 'Once you get it out of the sleeve, how do you hold it?'" Kallas-Saritsoglou remembered.

Old stuff is cool. One-of-a-kind stuff is cool. And, in a slumping economy, cheap stuff is cool, too. "More middle-class people are shopping [at Circle Thrift] because it's savvy on their wallets," said Semborski.

But will the Forever 21-shopping class - especially the demographic that tunes in to Q102 and Wired 96.5 - forever swap their inexpensive designer knockoffs for "grandpa style?"

Said John Turner, of ORT Resale on 19th Street, "I'm not surprised at anything anymore."