Most people know me for my award-winning red bush, which is only matched by my fiery personality, but one of the things I’m most proud of is my blazing hot thrift finds.
I have been thrifting for almost ten years! Thrifting is something I absolutely adore. I just never knew how useful it would be before I started making adult content. I feel lucky to be able to incorporate one of my favorite hobbies into my business. This past August, ManyVids.com awarded me the first-ever crown for “MV Live Show Props of the Year,” which reaffirmed that all the time and money I had put into thrifting had paid off.
I have thrifted everything from school desks to lingerie and costumes, and even a massage table!
Thrifting is my retail therapy. I love finding unique gems that no one else owns and it really adds a unique dimension to my videos when I take the extra time to build a set or use a thrifted outfit. I have thrifted everything from school desks to lingerie and costumes, and even a massage table! What better way to spend your money than to reinvest in yourself and your brand? Also, don’t forget about the tax benefit! Anything that is used primarily for your business is a business expense and therefore a tax write-off. It is very important to keep all your receipts, as Uncle Sam will want to see them in case of an audit.
Thrifting puts me in such a good mood. Some people run, read or play games, but I thrift. It is a great release for me to just be in my own head while I search for cute vintage clothing, costumes and furniture, and the thrift store has me covered. If I had to guess, I would say about 90 percent of everything I own has been bought thrifting. It’s absolutely true what they say: they just don’t make things like they used to. That’s why I can spend hours upon hours at a thrift store looking through racks upon racks of clothing. I just know there is a hidden gem somewhere.
To paraphrase a popular movie, “I have a very particular set of skills … I will find you and I will buy you.” But you have to have patience. The t-shirt section is typically a nightmare. You are literally scanning through local-high-school sports tees, custom shirts made for the Top Regional Quarterly Salesman at InsuranceCo and gaudy graphic tees I would have only worn in 2006. It’s boring, boring, boring... then, bam! A vintage, official-merch Spice Girls tee presents itself to me. I’m quite certain I talked to anyone and everyone about how I found that t-shirt the rest of the day.
OK. Back to adult content creation. Let’s face it, every cam girl’s favorite month is October, so here’s a quick tip for you. Thrift stores ordinarily stockpile Halloween costumes and decor throughout the year and then place them all for sale at the beginning of September. One of my favorite things I have experienced with thrifting is seeing an unloved, dusty globe sitting on a shelf for one dollar and having it spark an idea for a video. “I could be a fortune teller! It’s my crystal ball!” This year, glancing through the Halloween section I found two amazing wigs — sealed in plastic and never worn. I thought of two new video ideas and characters just by seeing them! They were both so much fun to film and I would never have even thought of those ideas without my trip to Goodwill. Keep in mind that right after Halloween, thrift stores will further discount costumes and decor so it’s never too late. Pick some up for next year or cosplay all year long. You can do whatever you want in this line of work.
Thrifting items is also great for the environment and trust me, that $60 Leg Avenue costume you want off Amazon is probably sitting there at your closest thrift store on a rack for $9.99. Why not buy six costumes for the same price? I thrifted a wedding dress for $12! You can’t beat prices like that. It really opens up new ideas and depth for your videos. That $12 could potentially make me much more because I am now immersed in the character people want to see. I will end up getting more use out of that costume than the person who bought it new. Another tip: if you like something, buy it. It won’t be there when you go back, so take a chance! Again, invest in your brand.
Another great thing about thrifting is that the organizations selling the merchandise are doing great things for the community. If you don’t have any thrift stores close by, try looking for yard sales or estate sales. I enjoy looking through someone else’s house and imagining what it would be like to live there. Does everyone do that? No? Just me? Okay, but I have come across some of the coolest houses I have seen while going to estate sales. One house had freaking velvet wallpaper. Yes, you heard me, velvet. I was dying and all I could think of was how cool it would be to film porn there.
I have an amazing collection of costumes, brand new and vintage, that I have completely thrifted. It’s something I do year-round. It is more of a marathon than a sprint in that you have no control over what you might find that day or at that particular store. So the process of finding everything I want for the outfits and props in my videos usually takes quite a while to assemble. Thankfully, it’s also like Christmas for me. The thrill of finding new items is heart-pumping when you finally complete a cosplay entirely out of thrifted items. It really makes the time and money spent worth it and makes me proud of myself when I see the character in its final form and the love pours in from social media. Don’t you want to thrift with me now?
Delilah Cass is an MV Star whose award-winning bush, show props and creativity can be found @DelilahCass on Twitter and Instagram, as well as DelilahCass.ManyVids.com.
