If you have read my blog for any length of time, you will have likely picked up on the fact that I love thrift store shopping! I suppose it is the thrill of the hunt that I enjoy so much, and the fact that I never know what treasures I will find when I walk into a thrift store. Over the years I have gotten really good at finding what I want at thrift shops, but I have learned a few things along the way, so today I present to you my best kept thrifting secrets!
7 Tips for Thrift Store Shopping Success
- Go in with a general idea of what you need, perhaps even jot down a list, but try not to be too specific.
- Keep an open mind. It might not be exactly what you envisioned, but it might be perfect anyway!
- Take a friend. Thrift store shopping is extra fun if you can giggle about the strange things you find or squeal about your good luck with someone else. Take it from me, people will look at you strange if you squeal by yourself. If 2 people are squealing, it barely gets a look.
- Know your DIY limitations. Sure that armoire might be spectacular once the peeling paint is stripped and seven coats of new finish are applied, but if you run screaming everytime you see a paintbrush, this might not be a good project for you to take on.
- Check out Pinterest or Hometalk for inspiration before you go! Both sites are positively bursting with great ideas for repurposeing thrift store items! (Do you follow me on Pinterest or Hometalk already? If not, I would love for you to! Feel free to leave your links in the comments for me to follow you back!)
- Set a budget. You might find a great bargain on a piece of furniture, but if it is outside your budget, sadly, you must remember that it is a “no.”
- Hand Sanitizer. I’m no germophobe, but I almost always rub in a little squirt of hand sanitizer when I leave a thrift store. You just never know where that stuff has been (and of course, that’s half the fun!)
I hope these 7 tips for thrift store shopping success help you have a great experience next time you head off on a thrifting adventure!
Before you leave, will you leave me a comment telling me about your favorite thrift store find of all time? I think mine has to be the play kitchen set I bought Savannah just before Christmas.
I don’t have a specific find that is extra special but I love the strange and crazy tshirts I can find in the mens section! Barrett loves tuxedo shirts the best!
I bet he ROCKS his tux shirts! 🙂
The actual year was 2003, he graduated from high school in 2009! He will be keeping this to pass down to his own children.
I would hope so! Talk about your family heirloom! 🙂
I like to find those stretchy jersey pants with elastic waist that were in style in the 80’s. I wear them for pajamas. I can put the garbage containers at the curb, pick up the mail, answer the door in them and I look like I am dressed, (even if out of style.)
In style or not, they sound comfy and would be a big improvement over me running outside in my nightgown the other morning to rescue a painting project that got left in the rain. Of course a car drove by right then… :-0
I love finding furniture to put back into use as something different! We changed an Ar moire into a Computer Desk, to close when not in use. My favorite is a small Entertainment Center that I turned into a Coffee Center, for my Dining Room. I was able to put my cups & mugs on the shelf below the coffee pot. Everything for coffee is all in one place and convenient. I also have the electric Can Opener and Toaster there. It frees up my counters, so they don’t look cluttered. I love it!
Coffee. Repurposed. Thrift store. That is more awesomeness than my brain can compute. May I move in? Please??
I love Thrift Stores in general because they are the perfect resource for putting together parties, decorating, or clothing your kids on a budget. I think my favorite find, though, was a velvet lined jacket (Liz Claiborne) for $8.00….oh and I can’t forget the the set of mugs from Princess House that gave me a set of eight. Our thrift store gives 50% discount one Saturday a month so it’s a perfect time to hit the racks to find treasures! 🙂
A thrift store discount day! Heaven! Mine gives coupons if you bring donation items, so I bring a donation to the back door, get my coupon, then go park and find something I can’t live without to use it on. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
My favorite thrift store find was in a small town thrift store a few months before my youngest son’s bar mitzvah in 2009. I just jokingly asked if they ever got in any Jewish items; the lady got real excited and asked me to come with her. She pulled out from underneath the count an antique velvet tallit & tefillin bags. Acting casual I opened them up and found a mint condition tallit, and tefillin. She said that they had gotten them five years earlier when they first opened the store & she knew that they were something special. The price? $25 for all! I learned later that they were pre-WWII and apparently came from Poland (most of the Jewish people there were either killed or they left).
Needless to say my son wore them with pride, and we always wonder who they originally belonged to. Anyway, the next time we went through that town here in Oklahoma, the thrift store was gone!
Oh wow! Thanks for sharing, that actually gave me chills to read! What a special find! It’s amazing that you thought to ask at that exact time and place! I would say that $25 is certainly a bargain for something as special as that!
I live in an area of 7 thrift stores…they buy truckloads of new items from pottery barn, target and many of the stores around town. it may be a little older merchandise but new and very cheaply priced…our whole house is pottery barn!!!
It sounds like you live in thrift store paradise! Can I move in?!?
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