Secondhand Spotlight: Celine of WildCloverThrifts

Happy Friday, thrifty friends! Welcome to the first ever installment of Secondhand Spotlight! I won't make this intro long so that we can get right into the questions, but I'm so incredibly excited to feature Celine of WildCloverThrifts today!

I remember the first time I saw her shop back in June of this year (when I first started mine) and was immediately drawn to her and her beautiful aesthetic! I don't know what it was exactly, but I could just tell she had a beautiful soul. And boy, was I right. I'm so honored to have gotten to know her, support her, and follow along on her journey. So let's dive right into it so you all can get to know her a bit better, too!

ABOUT CELINE

photo by Montana Hart (@_hausofhart)

I’m 21 years old! I’ve lived in the same city my whole life, Fort Wayne, IN. I’m in love with my city - I think it’s so special. A lot of people complain about it, and I just think those people don’t know how to make the life interesting. They need a place that’s bustling to feel alive, but there are 250,000 humans in this city and Forbes Magazine just wrote an article about us. So I’d say it’s pretty neat. 

My mom was born in India and my dad was born and raised here. My mom's parents moved here because it’s notoriously “a great place to raise a family”. My parents met in high school when they both worked at a diner - how classic, high school sweethearts.

They had me at a young age and, all things considered, they did a really impressive job raising me and my sister so well. I look back fondly at my childhood. My entire family, both sides, live in the same city, so that’s been really sweet! 

2. Most of us know you just got married (congrats!!) - would you mind sharing your lil love story with us? How did you & Jonah meet?

Ahhh marriage - it’s been so good. 

Jonah and I met 3 years ago! I worked at this coffee shop and made a ton of friends there. So one Sunday, I joined a few of them for lunch after church and that’s when I met him. I don’t know exactly how or why, but we were, like, instantly friends. I sat by him at lunch and we clicked and chatted the entire time. He tells this story and says “I saw you and my world stopped”. I had short pink hair and that was his favorite thing about me haha.

Here’s the fun part: we were both in long term relationships.

I was with my high school sweetheart and he was dating a sweet girl, both of us approaching our 3 year anniversary. So things got dramatic. I was completely unaware of his feelings for me for months. We texted and hung out with our mutual friends all the time, and one day I started thinking “these texts are a little flirty” lol. I confronted him and told him to knock it off. He did, but then I was sad because I missed him. It was a lot of back and forth and messiness, then I left for 6 months to live in Mexico. I was still dating my boyfriend, but it was rocky. He and his girlfriend broke up. I was gone and just tried to forget about him. But I couldn’t, and when I got home I was still hoping to run into him. I ended up breaking up with my boyfriend a month after I got home. There’s A TON of crucial details I’m skipping here, that would take forever. But all that to say, after a year of pining for each other, the timing lined up perfectly. I knew going into it that I would marry Jonah. On our first date we got dinner and went to Goodwill. I bought a sick green suede jacket that I still have. We have the most fun life together. It’s cliche but he’s totally my best friend. 

3. I've listened to the covers you've sang with your husband and they are BEAUTIFUL. You have an amazing voice! Is singing something you've always loved?

Oh my goodness haha. Yes and no. I’ve always loved singing, but I never really took it seriously. I sang little songs to myself as a kid and I messed around with singing when I started to learn guitar as a teenager. When I was in high school I began leading worship for our youth group, but I stuck to guitar. It wasn’t until our singer didn’t show up one night and I was forced to sing that I stepped into that “singer” role. I lacked a lot of confidence; I still do. It’s really hard for me to sing in front of people and that role of “worship leader” was very stretching. Now, years later, I still very much feel insecure. Jonah really has to twist my arm to get me to sing and, even then, it’s met with lots of “I can’ts” and some crying (lol).

4. Aside from thrifting and music, what are your other favorite things to do in your spare time?

Art, specifically painting, is my first love. That love of art was fostered by my parents and teachers and I was ALWAYS making something. I love crafting, drawing, painting; really I just love making pretty things. That flows into my love for making my house an aesthetic and welcoming environment haha. I also adore reading. I was and still am the person who got in trouble for reading when they’re not supposed to.

5. Describe yourself in three words:

Stubborn, sensitive, dreamer.

ABOUT WILDCLOVERTHRIFTS

1. Now, let's jump into WildCloverThrifts & thrifting! How did you get started? Have you always had a passion for thrifting?

I still remember the first time I went thrifting actually! It was a bad year financially for my family and we couldn’t afford to go to the mall for back to school clothes. My mom took my sister and I to Goodwill for some necessary items (we were young and growing out of jeans constantly lol). I remember not being very excited and a little bummed and my mom kept telling me it’s not “gross” or “bad” and I’ll actually probably find some good brands. And sure enough, I found lots of stuff I’d usually never get! We NEVER shopped at stores like Hollister or Aeropostale - it was strictly Kohl's and JCPenney. I remember finding the “cool” brands and some fun pants and being thrilled. That was around 10/11 so I was pretty young.

We didn’t thrift a whole lot after that, but one day I decided I was sick of the itty bitty shorts at the mall. Like, I wanted high-waisted mom shorts before they were cool and I couldn’t find any. So I made someone drive me to Goodwill and I bought a pair of vintage jeans and I turned them into my ideal pair of shorts. That was probably the real beginning of my love for thrifting. It didn’t become a HUGE part of my life until semi-recently. I’d go here and there and find a gem or two, but nothing like I do now.

Then one day, Montana from @_hausofhart and I got coffee together and hung out all morning. Like actual hours. And then she was like “I planned on going thrifting today - want to join?” So I did! And we got a HAUL. It was exhilarating! About a month after that I was struggling financially and I took a leap of faith and spent the last of my money on clothes at Goodwill. I started my page and desperately tried to grow it. And on my first drop, none other than Mandy (Amanda Taylor) binned an item. I made a profit. And I ran with it. So here we are.

2. How did you come up with the name 'WildCloverThrifts'? It's so pretty!

Ugh! I’m actually lowkey annoyed at myself for this. Before I started this page, I was working on starting an Etsy for my art. I had a lot of name ideas and my favorite one was “The Wild Dahlia”. So, when I instead started this page on a whim, I took that same concept and used Clover, which was another name idea. Clover is also what we called my sister Chloe growing up, so I joke that I named my business after her. All that to say - I was annoyed that I stole that name from myself, and I had to come up with something different for my art page. But I’m glad, I think it’s cool that people know me as “WildClover” haha. 

3. What has been your proudest moment since having this lil business? Most difficult moment?

Hm. It’s hard to pick a “proudest moment” because I think I had a lot of those moments where I was like “whoa...I can’t believe I did this”. And then I grow more and look back at the last “moment” and laugh cause it seems small. And I keep doing that; having a proud moment and then a few months later having another one that makes the last one feel silly. Does that make sense? I think if I had to pick a moment, it’d be when I saw that I could do this full time and be financially stable. And I was proud that I took that step. Not necessarily that I could, but because I took the big step to make it happen. So I was proud that I was brave enough to do the big thing. 

One of the hardest things was figuring it out seemingly by myself. Especially with taking photos and finding my aesthetic. I knew what I wanted it all to look like, but it felt impossible to achieve as I didn’t have any of the tools. I don’t have a camera, I lived with roommates, and I had a tiny little room so I lacked the space, and I hardly had time between work and when the sun went down to get any chance at taking a good picture. Nothing looked the way I wanted and so I felt like that affected sales. But with time you learn to work with what you have, utilize your tools, and accept any help that’s offered. 

4. If you could go back and give yourself one piece of advice when you first started, what would it be?

Oh gosh. I think it would be to follow your gut and not necessarily just shop for trendy brands. I remember specifically when people liked Tommy Hilfiger, I picked up every Tommy shirt and denim skirt I found and had a whole TH drop. It was a total dud and I sold like 3 things. That to say, there ARE going to be times when you pick up a good, sought after brand, and you should put it back because it’s outdated or just not cute. Trust your instinct and also, rely on your ability to style an item well! Sometimes, an item looks absolutely horrible on a hanger, but you pair it with the right jeans or accessories and it’s GOLD. 

5. How would you describe the thrifting community as a whole? What do you love most about it?

The thrifting community is just such a special place. My husband and I have tons of conversations about this because as you may know, he’s a full time musician. His job is YouTube and Spotify and his online “community” is sooooo different. An obvious example of this is the competitiveness of musicians in big cities AND the lack of genuine encounters on social media. Not that it’s all bad, but it’s nothing like the thrift community, where we are all hyping each other up and shopping together and promoting each other’s accounts just as much as our own. Another not-so-obvious way the thrift community is unique is IG engagement. It is absolutely INSANE how much engagement I get solely because of the personal nature of this community. That’s why I love it - I feel as though *most* of us are genuine individuals seeking wholesome goals.

6. What is your fav thrift store & which section do you go to first?

I have different stores for different things! The Goodwills in my city almost never let me down. I think that’s why they’re my fav, cause all my disappointing experiences have mostly happened elsewhere haha. I usually head to women’s sweaters, although in the summer I head to the blouses. Depending on my mood, I’ll hit up home goods first cause that’s my favorite haha. If I’m seeking something a bit more “high end” or boutique vs vintage, I head to Clothes Mentor. I prefer not to go there just because you spend a lot more and there’s no chance of finding vintage, but it’s a great place to find on trend brands (like Free People) for fairly cheap. In Fort Wayne, it’s pretty rare to find brands like that at Goodwill, and if you do, they’re probably outdated. 

7. What has been your favorite thrift find EVER?

Gosh - I have no clue. Sometimes I still feel like I’m waiting for that item that I’m like “this is the coolest thing I’ve ever found” ahaha. Also, maybe this is wrong, but I don’t include Plato’s Closet or Clothes Mentor in my head when thinking of my best thrift finds. That doesn’t feel like “real” thrifting haha. If I counted those, my favorite find would be my “unicorn” bubble sleeve I got at Plato’s; a very colorful knitted sweater from UO. If I’m just thinking about Goodwill/Salvo, I’d say my favorite item would be my trusty vintage Rustler denim jacket. 

8. What items are you currently on the hunt for to add to your own closet?

I can never have enough vintage sweaters. I’m obsessed. But I’m picky when it comes to those so I rarely keep them. I’d also love to find a really unique pair of plaid trousers that FIT. I love colorful + unique items. 

SPEED ROUND