Monday, February 18, 2013

thrifting tips and tricks

We love thrifting. That is in no way at all an exaggeration. There was a point last semester when I had a particularly bad day, so I called Leah up, and we went to the Et Cetera shop, our local thrift store. I guess the best kind of retail therapy is when things only cost a quarter.
Thrift Finds
We rounded up some of our favorite/recent finds. There is so much more too! Clothes, furniture, etc. Over break Leah found a pair of clogs that she knew I would want and were in my size and snatched them up for me.
Thrift Finds
We feel like we have pretty good luck digging through piles of used goods. Here are some of our tips for a successful hunt.
1. Give yourself enough time. Thrift shopping generally is not a "quick trip". It's hard to find good stuff if you just dart in and out. Allow yourself enough freedom to have a leisurely venture.
2. Leave the party poopers at home (sorry). If someone isn't into the whole thrifting idea, don't force it upon them. If you're going to look at every single item in the store, you know they're going to get bored, and you're going to feel bad, and then no one is having fun anymore.
3. Look through EVERYTHING. Many times, the treasures are hidden. You really have to dig! Sometimes things won't stick out to you either, and your only hope of finding those little gems is by looking at everything on the rack. One of my family traditions is going to the Goodwill Bins over Christmas break - you literally pay by the pound and it is wonderful. It is exactly as it sounds though - bins of stuff. They somewhat separate it into clothes and everything else. You really have to get your hands dirty (sometimes literally but you get over that) to root around in there, but it is so worth it.
4. Trust your gut. If you only kind of like something, but are really on the fence about it, you probably don't actually want it and will never ever use it. Sure, it may be kind of cool, but you could be highly influenced by the low price. If you take that home it will end up just being put away and forgotten about, and adding to your clutter. Then, next time you purge your things, you'll probably just end up donating it right back to the place you bought it from. Circle of life, I guess? Or you're just supporting their business. That's cool too.
Thrift Finds
Thrift Finds
Thrift Finds
Thrift Finds
Thrift Finds
Thrift Finds
Thrift Finds
Thrift Finds

Thrift Finds
Leah found these awesome chairs in Wichita, we're so excited to put them in our apartment this summer! What awesome things have you found?
-e (plus l)

3 comments:

Ester DurĂ£es said...

I'm somehow happy we don't have thrift stores here or I'd probably go crazy knowing how much I love a good bargain! ;)

Drawing Dreaming

The Photogramps said...

Ladies! I am seriously in the midst of doing a similar post. We're totally on the same brainwave. I just found a beautiful etched silver tray to put all my bathroom goodies on for $2!
xo
ashley
www.thephotogramps.blogspot.com

Brewed Together said...

These are great finds! I'm loving these tips and tricks. These are things we might think about, but not organized like this. It's good to see these written out so we can make a point to think about these before thrifting. Really love the colorful quilt find. Thanks for sharing! Xo, M&K at BT

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