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Archive through January 14, 2004

The TVClubHouse: General Discussions ARCHIVES: 2006 Jun. ~ 2006 Dec.: Hobby Hall (ARCHIVES): Thrift Store Shoppers?: Archive through January 14, 2004 users admin

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Missy2

Monday, January 12, 2004 - 6:55 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Missy2 a private message Print Post    
I love thift store shopping. I only recently started going because of my lack of money and my lack of wardrobe. Tonight I found some amazing deals. I bought 3 cute long sleeve t's, cardigan / tank set, a pair of jeans, and a new sweater for $13! I LOVE IT! I'm so excited!! ;) Does anyone else thrift store shop?

Tabbyking

Monday, January 12, 2004 - 7:09 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tabbyking a private message Print Post    
i wish we had some here. we have one--open on thursdays, i think LOL, but in a small town, if i bought something, someone would recognize it! i love to go to the thrift shops in more affluent towns--you can find really nice name brand clothes that someone barely wore.

Mamie316

Monday, January 12, 2004 - 7:49 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
We bought the most beautiful dining set at a Thrift store before we were married. That was quite a few years ago, but we got it for $100 and it had all six chairs and it was solid oak. Whoever had owned it had painted a black stripe around the edge but for a wedding gift, my mil refinished it all for us. That was a steal! My aunt used to go all the time and always got the best deals on some great stuff. I haven't been in awhile, I should probably start looking again!

Melfie1222

Monday, January 12, 2004 - 8:24 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Melfie1222 a private message Print Post    
I love thrift shopping too... I haven't been in awhile either, but I used to make a whole Saturday of it. One of my favorite finds is this metal wheeled cart with two trays and curved chrome handles, sort of art deco-ish. I bought it for $2, the trays were red which isn't my color for house stuff anyway so I painted them a dusty coral color. My BF made fun of me, he worked in a hospital and said it looked like the ancient carts they used to wheel the food trays around on. But I love it, won't ever get rid of it (unlike that BF, who is long gone). It sits near my kitchen and holds my cookbooks (glass blocks from Home Depot make great cheap bookends!). I have favorite stores for different things - one is great for books, another for house stuff...etc. OK... maybe I've decided what to do this Saturday.

Jagger

Monday, January 12, 2004 - 8:55 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Jagger a private message Print Post    
We have several around MN, they are great for getting stuffed animals and stuff like that for the dogs. They do not have much in the line of mensware so I usally can't find too much stuff I like. They are also good for dishes and that type of stuff.

One of our thrift stores is run by a charity so that is where I give all my old cloths and stuff.

Egbok

Monday, January 12, 2004 - 9:38 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Egbok a private message Print Post    
About 3 years ago ds#2 discovered Thrift Stores and I cannot begin to tell you how much $$$ he has saved us! He was a junior in high school then and he found "cool" tshirts there and started collecting (buying) some great ones. I've seen some tshirts with logos that are a blast from the past and sometimes he hasn't even heard of the logo and I'll give him a history lesson, LOL! The funniest one that comes to mind was the one with the "Atari" logo on it.

Then he turned to button down Hawaiian print shirts and bowling type shirts. He still wears them as a freshman in college and gets lots of compliments on his "style".

My dd recently went Thrift Store shopping with ds#2 and she found a gorgeous classic wool blazer made in Scotland for only $6.00. It's a beauty and looks adorable on her!


Kimmo

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 2:04 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kimmo a private message Print Post    
Going to thrift stores is something I've loved since I was 6 or 7-- When we'd go up to our grandparents' in Tacoma for the holidays, there would always be breakfast out with the aunts followed by an exciting trip to Value Village! Where we would buy dress up clothes (mostly old nylon negligees, cocktail dresses, wigs and shoes) to play with at Grandma's. :) One Halloween we got to pick Grandma's costume for an Eagles party at Value Village. It was always so exciting to go there.

Then when I was finally free to pick my own clothes (in college) I wasn't into thrift stores because of a certain "look" I was going for, though I remember getting spilled on during a car trip, so we made a quick stop at Goodwill where I got a homemade black slinky tank dress with a nice knee-length full skirt on it for $2. I wore that forever (I only threw it away 2-3 years ago because I stretched it out from being pregnant)!

I get all my coats at thrift/resale stores. I got two of my favorite coats at the Tacoma Value Village 6 or so years ago. One is a full-length, brown faux fur hooded robe with black frog clasps down the front, black astrakhan cuffs and trim-- $8. The other is a long gray wool double-breasted trench-- $6. You can't find coats this nice in retail for that price! I also have a shorter gray wool belted trench (Pendleton) that was probably $6 as well. That's just 3 out of 8 coats I have.

I also get the nicest skirts at thrift shops-- My favorite is a wool red/black diagonal pin stripe knee-length skirt from Jones New York, $2. Every time I need to update my wardrobe, I go see what skirts I can get at (yes) Value Village and then go to retail stores to get shirts/etc to build around what I get.

Finally, DH and I love decorating/collecting for our home. Of course the house is now totally decorated so we don't need to shop for it anymore, but we'd always go looking for pictures and other wall art for the house. But I can only think of a couple pieces we've gotten that have been from a thrift shop per se (vs. antique shop).

At Value Village we've also gotten a couple lighting fixtures from what look like old closed down restaurants/bars for $2 and put those up at home! DH found an old Cosco stepstool for $3 (just weeks earlier we had gotten a Cosco stepstool for $25 at a collectors' market), also at Value Village.

Also got the neatest Revolutionary War figures to put on the nursery wall (pictured, above crib)-- They were $15 each, so it's not a bargain, but where else would you find these? It's so fun just looking.



Yes, I am now the spokeswoman for Value Village! There are other stores of course. :) I don't know why we go to this one more than others, I guess I've gotten more "hits" there and it's more like a store. But Goodwill has become more like a store now, too.

Kimmo

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 2:08 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kimmo a private message Print Post    
Wow, the crib is really crooked in this picture! I needed more room to bend over and pick baby up back then. It's normally perfectly centered in the corner. :)

Sunrvrose

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 2:18 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sunrvrose a private message Print Post    
Kimmo, when I saw "Value Village" I immediately clicked on your profile to see if you were in the Portland area, and, alas, you are!!!(well, at least in Oregon)

I lived in Portland for 2 years in 1997 & 1998 and discovered the joy of Value Village.

Now getting back OT, I still shop in thrift stores. I just bought a couch/hide-a-bed at a local thrift store for a big, whopping $20.00. I also bought 6 kitchen towels, a bunch of books, and a few home decor items.

And to think that when we (I) were younger, the very idea of wearing, sitting on or using anything from a "second-hand" store was unthinkable.

Skootz

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 4:25 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Skootz a private message Print Post    
I can remember shopping in thrift stores many years ago. Money was not really in the budget to buy new clothes etc. It was nice for me as I could add to my wardrobe..exp. jeans. I never had any and they were so expensive to buy.

I can remember my mom and I hanging around near the store and then we went in when no one saw us. It was something you really didn't do years ago.

Now, if I have a bit of time before I pick up my kids etc., I go slip into one of the 3 in the our town. There is a Value Village in a nearby city that I like going to as well, but you certainly need more time there as it is so big.

I enjoy going to the thrift stores for the deals but also for the fact that I can see something I like and I can buy it....in other stores you have to be pickier because you cannot afford to buy everything you like. It makes me feel good getting good deals. I bring the clothes or what ever I buy home and wash it and it is like new again.

I refer to these thrift stores to my kids as a indoor garage sales. :)

Kimmo

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 8:51 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kimmo a private message Print Post    
Sun, my sister lived in Portland for some years ('91-'01) and she is a much more avid thrift shopper than me! Lots of great stores there. When I'd see her we'd always go to St. Vincent de Paul, it's so huge and so much variety! Salem's doesn't compare.

But she really likes going to estate and church sales too (much more interesting for the decor/ books/ ephemera side of secondhand shopping).

Missy2

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 9:54 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Missy2 a private message Print Post    
Hey Kimmo that is where I shop, St. Vincent de Paul - :)

Lkunkel

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 10:19 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Lkunkel a private message Print Post    
Without a car, I do go into the small Goodwill across the street occasionally, but I've never found anything "good" in there.

It also strikes me as really overpriced. I refuse to pay $5.00 for an outdated reference book, but that's just me.

Maybe I'd have better luck at one of the larger stores.

Kimmo

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 12:40 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kimmo a private message Print Post    
L, I agree thrift shops aren't a good place to get books...Used bookstores are much better! :)

Though a friend of my sister's lives off reselling books-- He found a 1st edition hardcover of "Death in the Afternoon" for $2 at Goodwill a couple weeks ago (worth $350)! He buys books in bulk from estate sales, library sales, thrift shops, etc to resell and look for "gems". I couldn't do that.

Mamie316

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 12:40 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
We have a wonderful used book store right around the corner. It's great!

Kimmo

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 12:45 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kimmo a private message Print Post    
We have two really big used bookstores in town that I like going to... There is a little one just up the street from me that is primarily science fiction, fantasy and mystery/thrillers-- But they also have a good kids section, and their literature section isn't bad.

Lkunkel

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 12:56 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Lkunkel a private message Print Post    
The one used bookstore in my walking distance just does 1/3 to 1/2 off cover price. I've given up finding "cheap" books--except at the library.

Juju2bigdog

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 8:21 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Juju2bigdog a private message Print Post    
We have great thrift shops in the little town where I live. I am thinking it must be because we live so close to Seattle, and folks there are relatively wealthy. I can find all kinds of new and like new brand name stuff for peanuts.

I got a brand new lambs wool and maybe angora Gap sweater, so soft you don't want to stop petting it, for about $2. I am sure the original owner got rid of it, and nobody wanted to buy it because it had a tiny hole punched in it. I carefully mended the hole, and I could never even begin to find the mend spot again.

Then I got a brand new pair of Italian leather shoes at Value Village for 99 cents. I took them home and looked them up on the internet. They were from an exclusive shop in Seattle, where the owner personally goes to Italy to purchase shoes and brings them back and puts her own exclusive label on them. Valued at about $200. Now, Value Village did realize what they had there because they originally had them priced at $17.99, which is VERY high for Value Village. But, if they don't sell in a month, and then don't sell in a week at half price, things go to 99 cents. I have worn those shoes to the foo-foo shoe store in town, and instead of trying to sell ME shoes, the clerk who sells $150 shoes all day long wants to know where I got my shoes.

I normally would not even look at used shoes. I mean, ewwwwwww, and I don't know what possessed me to look at them that day, but it was a lucky find.

And then, there is, of course, the pair of gloves we bought and gave to Bigdog's friend, Rover. They were brand new and still fastened together with the store tags. There was a rock of crack hidden inside them!

Yessirreee, just never know what you are going to find at the thrift stores.

Tess

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 8:25 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tess a private message Print Post    
I completely forgot about Rover's rock of crack. Makes me laugh every time.

Egbok

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 8:48 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Egbok a private message Print Post    
Tess??, my CyberMommy....what's a rock of crack???

Tess

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 8:55 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Tess a private message Print Post    
I dunno. Just something Rover found in his glove from the Thrift Store. They must have been having a special that day. or something.

Egbok

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 8:58 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Egbok a private message Print Post    
.......alrighty then!

Allietex

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 10:16 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Allietex a private message Print Post    
I love thrift stores. Not long after I moved into my new home, I was rummaging (pun intended) around in a thrift shop when I came across four 8x10 paintings in very sturdy silver frames. They were of mimes and were all in shades of silver with just a tough of pink in each one. They were georgeous. I got them for a dollar each. They looked beautiful grouped over my new cherry sleigh bed. My neice came for Christmas and spent the night with me. She used to work for a photographer and she told me the technique of doing the paintings on silver paper was very expensive, and the frames were also very expensive, and was astonished when I told her what I paid for them. I have found some really neat stuff in thrift stores but I guess that was the best thing I have found.

Juju2bigdog

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 - 10:40 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Juju2bigdog a private message Print Post    
Eggie, Tess said to tell you a rock of crack is just another way of saying gravel.

Lostintheglades

Wednesday, January 14, 2004 - 5:55 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Lostintheglades a private message Print Post    
Okay...I'm still swamped...but I had to pause to say a little cheer for all the thrift store shoppers!!!

If I didn't tell you'd never know that 75% of wardrobe comes from thrift stores. I bought a toaster for $5 15 years ago and it still works great.

Wow...it feels so good to come out of the closet!!