Conscious Consuming and Digging for Treasure
An interview with the incomparable Glenn Mae of Trash Panic
As a vintage connoisseur and Midcentury homeowner, Glenn Mae of Trash Panic is basically living my dream life. Having worked in retail, the corporate world, and luxury styling, Glenn has seen the good, bad, and ugly sides of fashion.
Glenn grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and previously lived in Austin, Texas, but is a recent Minnesota resident, adjusting to the cold with lots of stylish, vintage layers. Glenn is finding a home at The Walker Art Center and the vintage shop Hunt & Gather, while getting used to the ‘Minnesota nice’ version of passive aggression, which she “mean(s) lovingly… lol.”
Currently, Glenn freelances as a stylist, creative director, and social media consultant, all while running the wildly entertaining Trash Panic, which serves as a place to share vintage internet round-ups, carefully curated mood boards, and sage style opinions.
Keep reading for Birkin horror stories, conscious buying wisdom, and gorgeous interiors.
You write so much about vintage, what is your background with it? How long have you been a vintage lover?
I would say I’ve been a lover of vintage things in some way, shape, or form since birth, as every parental figure in my life has always had a passion for things with a rich history, whether it be music, objects, or clothing.
Everyone in my life has been a collector of some kind and passed along an appreciation for history and the cool, funky, vintage things that come along with that and I don’t think there was a way I was going to grow up not loving old, weird stuff – haha. My mom loved antiquing and often sold items at local flea markets, where my sister and I would tag along, roaming for treasures. On Friday nights at my grandma’s house, she would show us classic musicals and technicolor films, sparking my appreciation for different time periods, and my dad, a musician and pop culture enthusiast, made it a point to educate us about various music genres, films, and the influential people behind them.
Do you have a favorite vintage piece?
Ooh, that’s tough. I’m just now in a position in my life to really start building out a collection of treasured pieces. Having had to move around a lot in my 20s, I’ve let go of so many things that I want to cry over when I think too hard about them!
Most recently I bought an embroidered floral jacket from the late 1930s at the Twin Cities True Vintage show and I just wore it for the first time to a holiday cocktail party. It’s even better on than I imagined – from the delicate button detailing to the silk lining to the flattering silhouette – it’s a million times better than any fast-fashiony thing I’ve bought this year.
Do you have a favorite era of vintage items to consume?
It’s probably a tie between the 1930s/40s and 1960s. I love the fabrics, silhouettes, and patterns of clothing from the 1930s and ‘40s because everything felt sculptural and architectural, a gentle balance of simple yet sophisticated. There’s an androgynous undertone to women’s fashion from that era (Marlene Dietrich, young Katharine Hepburn, etc) that resonates with my own style. Nothing beats the craftsmanship of that era – the beading, sequinning, etc is always awe-inspiring.
My love for the 1960s is a striking contrast to that – an era defined by bold technicolor, strange funky shapes, and adventurous design, all unfolding during a time when the world was advancing at lightning speed. There are plenty of not-so-great things from that decade I think we could all leave behind, but I do miss the over-the-topness of dressing up for any occasion that the 60s did so well. Bring! Back! Wearing! Hats!
How do you feel about buying vintage in person vs. buying online? You have a disclaimer on your Substack page about “shopping at your own risk,” but do you have a preference?
Haha – my “buy at your own risk” disclaimer is literally a side effect of working in retail/being client-facing and knowing someone, somewhere will blame me if something they order isn’t what they thought it would be! We’ve all been so excited about something that we’ve ordered it without reading the dimensions and been very disappointed when the box comes and it’s 5x smaller than anticipated! But it’s all part of the adventure!
I always enjoy hunting for things in person because antiquing and thrifting is a multi-sensory experience but I do think there’s something pretty spectacular about being able to shop for just about anything, anywhere in the world with the click of a button. Every city and country has its own history and relics and it’s cool to be able to search on eBay and buy something incredibly unique and special on the other side of the world without ever having to leave your home.
But! I’ll always love a lazy afternoon roaming an antique mall or discovering a new thrift store and digging through stacks to find that special thing.
You seem to be a very conscious, careful consumer. How have you cultivated these skills and what mistakes do you still make?
Oh god, I’m glad it comes off that way and that you can’t see my credit card statement!
But really, I think I became a better consumer when I made a conscious commitment to start shopping mostly secondhand and vintage. I left my styling job feeling overwhelmed and decently disgusted with the gluttony/overconsumption problem many of my clients had – people buying things just to buy them or to prove to others they could afford it. I had a client who had an entire closet just for their many, many Birkin bags but they refused to wear them out in public because they felt “too showy” – make it make sense!!
This, on top of working retail for so long and seeing “behind the curtain” really shifted my views on how I was consuming. I was buying a lot of fast fashion to “look the part” at my job and keep up with trends and none of it was bringing me any joy or making me feel good. It was definitely the birth of my “trash panic” – spiraling thinking about how so many of the things I had bought and already donated were likely ending up in a dumpster somewhere.
I still fall victim to the scarcity mindset, though – I’ll panic buy the occasional trendy piece I am convinced will sell out and oftentimes end up hating or never wearing the thing and wondering why I thought I “had to have it” – I’m learning though! It’s a process!
What modern brands are you inspired by?
I browse runway shows pretty frequently to get inspired by colors, textures, proportions, etc and some of my favorite designers are Simone Rocha, Dries Van Noten, and Alessandro Michele (people can hate all they want but I love Michele’s vision)… I like what Julien Dossena is doing at Rabanne right now. They all mix feminine silhouettes with a slightly punk or macabre edge (on top of all mixing color really, really well) which is a sweet spot for me within my personal style. I know I love to talk shit about Bode, but I do think she does a great job building a vintage aesthetic that doesn’t feel too in your face and I still enjoy experiencing their stores in real life when I’m near one.
Outside of fashion or interiors, what are you inspired by?
Art, nature, people watching, music, travel, history, books – there’s so much to be inspired by and knowledge is power! I’ve been really trying to limit my mindless scrolling time by replacing it with something new – listening to a new song, watching an obscure old film, or flipping through an old magazine or book. I have a membership to one of the art museums here, the Walker Art Center, and sometimes I will move my schedule around to be able to take a weekday afternoon off and roam the museum and be in my own head. I always leave inspired whether it’s from the art, a change of scenery, or sitting on a bench and people watching. Creativity thrives in an ever-changing environment, even if that’s taking five minutes to step outside and stare at a wall.
You’ve recently moved into a gorgeous house in Minnesota. From the pictures I’ve seen, the space is so beautifully decorated. Have you always been interested in interiors?
Making a space feel like home has always been really important to me, especially as someone whose “home base” shifted a lot as a kid. I take great pride in my ability to make any space feel welcoming and cozy, even if it’s temporary. My grandmother always did a wonderful job in making her tiny mobile home so welcoming through textiles and lighting and having art everywhere and I think it’s just something that rubbed off on me over time. I think a space is a direct reflection of who you are and I want people who come into our space to have some understanding of who we are and what we like.
I really want this space to be filled with things that we absolutely love and want to have for a very long time, which has meant it's been a very slow process to furnish and decorate and that is really hard in our era of instant gratification and Amazon Prime shipping. I’m writing this staring at our TV room, which literally only has a small couch in it and nothing else – and that’s ok! Until I find the perfect vintage weird thing, it will be a little empty and that’s what will make this space feel even more special as time goes on.
Has living in the Midwest changed how you dress?
It’s refreshing to live in a place with four seasons, where you can truly experiment with how you approach getting dressed during different times of the year and making your wardrobe seem multi-functional. I am also so so so so happy to no longer be living in 115 degrees five months out the year – Texas zapped my motivation to get dressed so much that being here has been a rediscovery in finding joy in getting dressed, even if it means putting on a million layers to stay warm! I finally have a reason to collect vintage coats and gloves and hats and for that I am very happy!
Over the years I have slowly come to terms with outwardly expressing myself through my clothing and being okay that many people won’t “understand” it and will stare and that’s ok! But more than anything I’ve realized that being that person in public often gives others an opportunity to understand that it’s okay to not look or dress like everyone else. Most of the compliments I’ve received since living here and dressing up when I go out are people “wishing” they could wear what I’m wearing, etc etc. It usually all comes back to having the confidence to just wear and express yourself the way you want to, which has been a long, long journey for me.
You’ve lived in California, Texas, and now Minnesota. Have your aesthetic interests changed with each move?
The blessing of being able to live in other places is diving into the history and learning and seeing what of that you absorb and want to celebrate (not appropriate!) – living in Texas had me down a lot of rabbit holes in western wear and work wear and definitely redefined how I approached more casual dressing and how to find cowboy boots you’ll have forever… I had so many interesting conversations with hat makers, leathersmiths, farm supply workers, etc etc that completely changed my perspective on a lot of clothing and trends and styles that I never knew the history behind. America is rich with history (good and bad) and knowledge is what will truly grow your personal style more than anything else, which is more than anything what I’ve taken with me as I’ve moved around.
Subscribe to Trash Panic and follow Glenn on Instagram to read all about her vintage finds and keep up with her iconic mood boards.
Thank you so much for letting me yap at you about my life! ✨