The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: Thrift Store

  • Eco-Groovy Clearance Outlet opens in Arcata

    Eco-Groovy Clearance Outlet opens in Arcata

    by Zack Mink

    If you have ever wandered around the Arcata Plaza, you are certainly familiar with Eco-Groovy Deals and their wide range of second hand clothes and home goods. You might have also been someone that would walk out of the store without purchasing anything because you were looking for a wider range of affordable furniture, home utility tools or just sticking to a personal budget. 

    Jayce Walker, owner of Eco-Groovy Deals, has heard your calls and opened the Eco-Groovy Clearance Outlet on 513 K Street just five blocks away from the Arcata Plaza. The store opened on Jan. 10 after months of work and stays open everyday of the week from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Students can purchase items tax free until the end of this month.

    With this new clearance outlet store, Walker’s goals are to provide the budget furniture, home utility tools and affordable clothing the community has been asking for.

    “People say, ‘what’s your secret to success?’ Listening to what people need and want,” Walker said. “Trying to find that and doing it in a way that is as sustainable as possible.”

    Unlike Eco-Groovy in the plaza which is 75% clothing and 25% refinished furniture and home products, Walker’s goal for the outlet store is to utilize the larger space and have 75% budget furniture, hardware and home goods. 

    “There are items that we were stashing to fix that started to build up. And when people said, ‘don’t they have budget furniture?’ It’s like well, I do have some,” said Walker. “That wasn’t something I could do in the plaza.”

    Other goals for the clearance outlet store are to continue Eco-Groovy’s textile recycling program which lends support to smaller non-profit thrift stores, and do more furniture repairs extending the life of useable items which contributes to their sustainability focus. 

    Walker’s goal for the clearance outlet store is to continue their textile recycling program that supports smaller non-profit thrift stores. This program contributes to their focus in sustainability as they hope to do more furniture repairs. 

    Walker’s set of founding principles are held at both of her stores. 

    1. Reduce local landfill
    2. Create local jobs
    3. And serve the community

    In the future, Walker would like to expand the impact she has in Arcata, both interpersonally and environmentally, by doing more upcycling of clothing, shoe repairs and turning the empty outdoor space into a community garden to host community members.

    “My passion is more about community service than it is about padding my pocket,” Walker said. 

  • Rent up, doors close; KRAVE thrift store transitions to online

    Rent up, doors close; KRAVE thrift store transitions to online

    by Zack Mink

    Arcata’s beloved thrift store Krave has been a safe place for community members, with affordably priced clothing and a community pantry with free food and personal hygiene products. Unfortunately, due to high rent prices, the current location on H street in downtown Arcata will be closing at the end of December. 

    Krave originally opened its first location in Sunnybrae. After a consistent lack of foot traffic, Kai Flores, owner of Krave, decided to move locations to the current neon green store front by the Arcata square. Although Flores is pushing through financial challenges, their mission to provide affordable goods continues through the stores closing, with 50% off everything aside from consignment items and three one-dollar clothing sections making the prices more affordable than ever. 

    Despite the financial difficulties, Flores is keeping the spirit of Krave alive because of the positive impact it has had on the community.

    “The goal was never about money… the goal was about community, and trying to be different. And, it worked! It’s hard to keep your faith in humanity sometimes but [Krave] restored it,” Flores said.

    Flores will be continuing the essence of Krave by prioritizing their interactive social media presence and keeping their official website, krave.shop, updated with more of Flores’ upcycled pieces and a large curated plus-size section. In addition to their active online presence, Flores is hoping to have Krave pop-ups and other interactive experiences to keep providing affordable clothes and other resources to students and community members.

    “It was cool having my own little spot but I don’t feel like that’s necessary for me to still make Krave a thing, ” said Flores. “It’s not an ending, it’s just a revision.”

    Another priority for Flores is finding a new host for the successful community pantry.

    “That’s gonna happen. Somebody’s keeping [the community pantry] alive and I will keep it pretty,” said Flores. 

    To make donations for the community pantry, you can reach out to Flores through Instagram direct messages @krave.arcata. With such high demand for Krave’s community pantry, Herb + Market at 427 H Street has volunteered to become its new home on Dec. 4, continuing the positive contributions Krave brought to Arcata. Despite closing the brick-and-mortar store, Flores will keep providing this resource, as well as clothing related contributions to the community by working with Oldtown Community Alliance, Humboldt Center for Harm Reduction and possibly OhSnap’s on campus clothing drive. 

    “I’m a community guy,” said Flores. “I’m definitely still trying to get stuff to the people.” 

    Reflecting on their time at 1073 H street, Flores shared some of their most memorable moments at Krave.

    “I’ve had from the cutest to the most raunchy things happen in this shop, and all of them were somehow the most pure and beautiful things I’ve ever seen,” said Flores. “From the tiniest little boys running around in high heels… to my favorite strippers doing a cake show in the most safe space they’ve ever been in. It’s been incredible to see.” 

    Flores also cherishes the feedback they received for their extensive curated plus-size collection.

    “I had a plus-size person come in and shop, and then tell me this is the only store they feel really comfortable shopping in,” said Flores. 

    Flores also appreciates the customers who got to explore their gender identity through their clothes.

    “I had one fellow try on a dress for the first time because he had always wanted to twirl… so he got to do that here,” said Flores.

    These special moments and the connections people have built motivate Flores to continue the essence of Krave throughout this difficult transition.

    “Love. Love, that’s it. It’s brought so much love into the door… that’s really what keeps me going in this world, realizing that there are these little beautiful connections,” Flores said. “People really do want better for each other… that gives me hope.”

  • Buy, Sell, Trade: Daydream

    Buy, Sell, Trade: Daydream

    by Zack Mink

    Thrifting for second-hand clothing has become a hobby and part of the culture for many Cal Poly Humboldt students, making the community an eclectic and stylish one. This combats the destructive industry of fast fashion. At Arcata’s new thrift store, Daydream, you can buy high-quality clothing and make money by clearing out your own closet.

    Daydream, is a new buy-sell-trade second-hand clothing store on the corner of 9th and H St. across from the Arcata Plaza. The store provides a space for students and locals to make some cash while discovering a new sense of style. The warm-toned inviting store opened two months ago and is one of three local second-hand clothing stores co-owned by Jayna Nix and Ben Blair. Open seven days a week from noon to 6 p.m., you can go in to buy, sell, or trade any time before 5 p.m. and walk away the same day with cash or store credit.

    What makes Daydream unique in comparison to the many other second-hand stores in the area is that they buy everything from the public and provide compensation either with store credit or cash on the spot. This process can be quite quick and is guaranteed to be completed within a single day. The store’s warm, clean, and inviting energy is represented in its curated racks of vintage clothing, rows of used trending shoes, and a wall filled with scented candles and accessories. Styles range from cottage-core to street style to retro and everything in between.      

    Photo by Zack Mink. Daydream boasts a collection of cute and colorful vintage.

    Unlike the duo’s other stores, Redwood Retro and Modern Finds, both in Eureka, Daydream brings a focus to the art, styling, and sustainability of fashionable clothes. Rather than organizing the racks by gender, they are organized by size, style, and even season. This not only represents their push for gender and size inclusivity, but it encourages buyers to be more intentional and thoughtful when purchasing seasonal clothes that will last a lifetime.

    The buy-sell-trade business model is also unique as the entire store relies on customers and locals bringing in their clothing to exchange. 

    “It creates a community hub where people come in, hang out while we go through their clothes and shop,” Nix said.

    Daydream’s high standards for buying and trading clothing does highlight a downside of this model, which is that the sizing availability takes a hit when locals don’t have petite or plus-size clothes to bring in.

    “We can’t control what people bring to us or the sizes we have… although we want to have more size inclusivity,” Nix said. With this being said, they are always looking for more variety in the sizes that are being traded and sold.

    Despite facing challenges curating wide size ranges, Nix’s goal to recycle as much high-quality, sustainable clothing as possible is easily attainable with their buying standards and community support. 

    “Part of our mission is sustainability and recycling clothing. We try not to accept more

    of the fast fashion brands and the buy-sell-trade model creates a space where we can recycle… what we already have,” said Nix.

    Rather than buying clothes from fast fashion brands or selling old heirlooms to help  partially cover monthly bills, Daydream is the place for students and Arcata locals to step up their style game, be financially responsible in a struggling economy, and stay committed to having a low impact on the environment.

  • SCRAP Humboldt: Saving the Planet One Scrap at a Time

    SCRAP Humboldt: Saving the Planet One Scrap at a Time

    Affordable art supplies with environmental consciousness in mind

    Doohickeys, thingamabobs and whatchamacallits galore. One local craft store has it all and does so with purpose to provide a community with creative inspiration and affordable art supplies while reducing, reusing, recycling and repurposing.

    SCRAP Humboldt is a craft supply store with hundreds of items available for creative reuse. The store started as a temporary holiday season shop in 2012 at the Jacoby Storehouse and later became an established organization aimed at repurposing items that society would typically deem as waste.

    Malia Matsumoto first began volunteering her time with SCRAP Humboldt and later became the director of the organization in 2017.

    “As an artist, I taught classes at Scrap and volunteered my time to come take care of the store,” Matsumoto said.

    • The storefront counter of Scrap Humboldt in October 2018. | Photo by Chelsea Wood
    • Shelves stocked with various sorted trinkets and supplies in the storefront of Scrap Humboldt in October 2018. | Photo by Chelsea Wood
    • Shelves stocked with various sorted trinkets and supplies in the storefront of Scrap Humboldt in October 2018. | Photo by Chelsea Wood
    • Shelves stocked with various sorted trinkets and supplies in the storefront of Scrap Humboldt in October 2018. | Photo by Chelsea Wood

    As director, she coordinates events, reaches out to similar organizations for cross pollination and manages staff and volunteers at the center. SCRAP Humboldt also works with other local organizations for mentoring programs like the Humboldt Area Foundation.

    SCRAP Humboldt relies heavily on donations and receives items for reuse from community members, businesses and even Humboldt State University. Steady donations also come from partnerships with local businesses that aim to reduce their product waste. Local donors include Los Bagels, Kokatat and the Humboldt Bay Coffee Company.

    Donations are sorted into respective categories and then placed on the store’s floor. SCRAP Humboldt has supply sections for sewing, painting, scrapbooking, holidays, jewelry-making and crafting.

    “Because everything is donation-based, it’s a really low price point,” Matsumoto said. “As an artist or a maker you’re able to get more materials than you would if you went to a traditional brick and mortar store like Michael’s or JoAnn’s.”

    The variety of conventional and unconventional up-cycled items SCRAP Humboldt has to offer gives locals access to affordable art supplies. The organization also hosts weekly tutorial classes to teach the community how to complete projects with repurposed materials.

    Matsumoto and the crew at SCRAP Humboldt have a passion for diverting reusable waste from landfills by finding creative ways to repurpose items that typically wouldn’t be thought of as art supplies.

    Matsumoto said that once people start making things on their own, they begin to see the hard work it takes to create something. Matsumoto said people also learn to give more value to scraps while seeing the potential for an old thing to become new.

    The SCRAP Humboldt team spreads this message and their passion for waste reduction and art creation with the community by offering summer camps for kids, creative reuse classes and a space for an artist-in-residence program.