Vintage shop on Garosu-gil, Seoul: a Polo padded vest find at Balbal

What is Balbal Vintage Sinsa?

Balbal Vintage Sinsa (발발빈티지 신사점) is a vintage shop in Sinsa-dong, located in the basement of 41 Garosu-gil. Secondhand clothes shopping has been so fun lately. I've been to Dongmyo, I've been to Euljiro, and these days even when I go out to Garosu-gil, I find myself looking for vintage shops first.

It's a different kind of fun from buying new clothes. There's no telling what you'll find — you just scan through the hangers and stumble on something unexpected. That's the charm. This time, since I was already at Garosu-gil, I stopped by the Sinsa vintage shop Balbal Vintage Sinsa.

Finding Balbal Vintage on Garosu-gil in Seoul

Garosu-gil has no shortage of shopping, but these days browsing vintage shops like this is more fun than regular shopping. At Balbal Vintage Sinsa too, instead of picking something right away, I took a slow lap around the store first to look at the clothes.

The charm of a vintage shop is that you can't take it all in at a glance. Each rack has a slightly different style, with varied colors and designs, so at first I just scanned the whole space, then went back to look more closely at pieces that caught my eye. Even styles I wouldn't normally wear, once I saw them hanging there in person, I'd take a second look. "This could look cute styled a certain way." "This is better than I expected." There's a real pleasure in looking at each piece with thoughts like that.

Why vintage shopping is more fun the slower you browse

Vintage clothes are definitely more fun to see in person than online. You can actually feel the fabric and fit that photos can't quite show, and check the size right away.

Most of all, vintage pieces aren't stacked in multiples of the same design — if you like something, it's often the only one there is, which makes the whole shopping process feel different. So when I go to vintage shops, I don't rush; I go through the hangers one by one. This time too, I only meant to browse, but I ended up finding something after all. 😆

The pick of the day: a Polo padded vest

What I picked this time at Balbal Vintage Sinsa was a Polo padded vest. These days when I buy clothes, looking good matters, but whether I'll actually wear it often matters more. Especially in winter, when I'm out and about a lot with my kid, comfortable clothes are best.

For drop-off and pickup, and for chasing my kid around on weekends, throwing a padded vest over a sweatshirt or knit is often more comfortable than wearing a thick padded jacket. So the moment I saw this, I thought, "This is my winter parenting battle gear." 😂

It looks good with jeans, and it's easy to just throw over casual outfits too. It's a basic design that won't really go out of style, so I think I'll wear it a lot this winter. When I brought it home, my kid thought it was theirs and put on a little fashion show.

Looking for a vintage shop in Sinsa-dong?

If you're into secondhand clothes shopping like me these days, it's fun to stop by a vintage shop or two whenever you're out in Sinsa or Garosu-gil. Grab a coffee, do some shopping, wander the alleys, and pop into a vintage shop.

Even if there's nothing specific you need, it's fun just to look around, and if you're lucky, like I was this time, you might come away with something you really like. I'm satisfied with bringing home a Polo padded vest from Balbal Vintage Sinsa. These days, one piece I found myself sticks with me more than a perfectly put-together new outfit.

I think I'm starting to understand the fun of secondhand clothes shopping. This winter, I'll wear this Polo padded vest properly as my parenting battle gear while chasing my kid around. 🤎