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Woman in disbelief after receiving text message about item found in thrift store: 'I didn't think at all that anything could've been missing'

"It was a really feel-good moment."

"It was a really feel-good moment."

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Thrifting is great for discovering hidden treasures, but did you ever think you'd find something you had previously lost in a thrift store? That happened for one woman in Illinois with a piece of clothing she hadn't seen in about 45 years. 

According to The Record North Shore, Highland Park's K-Solo Vintage store had a blue 1980s bomber jacket with "Stacy" embroidered on it hanging since its November opening. While there were no takers, many people loved the coat. It was small, so it stood out and became the store's unofficial mascot. 

Then one day the jacket caught the eye of a thrifter, but not for themselves. They texted pictures of it to their friend Stacy Karel. She recognized the jacket, which included "her name, address and phone number scrawled on the inside tag in her 11-year-old handwriting," per The Record North Shore. She called and emailed the store.

"She sent us the picture that her friend took and said, 'I'm Stacy, and that's my jacket,'" K-Solo Vintage co-owner Taryn Fisher said.

Fisher invited her to the store and told her they may have more of her items. 

The store also had a prom charm and a keychain from Six Flags that had come from Karel's memorabilia box. The skating jacket and box ended up in her parents' estate sale in 2024. 

She drove from Lincoln Park to reunite with her items, and just in time. She's an alumna of the Northbrook Icettes, a synchronized skating team, and was able to wear the jacket after skating in an alumnae number for the Northbrook Park District ice show.

Imagine if the jacket had been discarded. It would be lost forever. Luckily, it didn't end up in a landfill. According to Earth.org, 11.3 million tons of textile waste end up in landfills every year. And that's just in the United States. 

Roadrunner explained that it takes 200 years for clothes to break down once they reach a landfill. While it does this, it creates a toxic gas called methane that warms the planet. Chemicals from the materials also leach into soil and water, contaminating them. 

By donating items and buying from thrift stores, you can cut down on textile waste, save money, and maybe be reunited with items, too.

What's your primary motivation in shopping at thrift stores?

Cheaper clothes 🤑

Trendier items 😎

Reduced environmental impact 🌎

I don't thrift 🚫

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Both the store owner and Karel were pleased with the reunion.

"I was super excited about it; I didn't think at all that anything could've been missing (from the box). So, it wasn't until I got the notification that K-Solo had the jacket that I even remembered its existence," Karel said.

"It was a really feel-good moment," Fisher said.

Karel said, "It's so small — I was happy that I could get it on!"

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