The Joys of Thrifting

I love this. I would add, the hunt!

Military Spouses Clubs traditionally have Thrift Shops at bases/posts…lots of bargains from donated items plus proceeds go to support the military community with scholarships for children and spouses along with supporting other projects. (Thrift Shop at Tinker AFB in OKC opened in 1959!) I love being able to volunteer my time to a worthwhile cause…and be with my friends!

Thrifting/antiquing is one of my favourite hobbies, we call them “museums where you can touch stuff” in our family, since there’s always something interesting to look at, even if you don’t take it home. A few of my favourite finds include a very expensive cashmere sweater that I bought for $10, a beautiful antique teapot dating to1914, and a first edition copy of Julia Childs The Art of French Cooking vol II which I nabbed for $5 at a Value Village (some other shopper was pissed when he realized what I had in my hand, tried to get me to give it to him, but I won! haha I think Julia would have approved of my feisty attitude). I love how thrifted finds make someone’s style and home decor feel more like who they are at there core essence. Even if its a massed produced item, it feels more curated to that person taking it home, than if they had bought something similar in a Target. Plus, spend 2 hours in a thrift/antique store and you’ll soon realize there is just so much STUFF in the world, so it’s nice when you get to re-home something that’s already in existence rather than it going to a landfill.

There’s also the “wtf, this is terrible, i love it” moment–I have experienced this mostly while browsing the t-shirts :)

I’m trying to find my sense of fashion again now that I’m finished having kids. My body and needs are completely different! Buying secondhand is letting me buy nicer pieces and experiment without breaking the bank. I’m shopping at thrift stores and also ThredUp. I’m currently wearing a chambray shirt and sweater that I picked up from Goodwill a few weeks ago. Score!

My two daughters are rabid thrifters. My older daughter thrifted a nice thermal shirt, and when she got tired of it, she gave it to me. It was a little big on me, and after looking at the tag, I realized that it was a men’s shirt. My younger son needed more long-sleeved shirts, so I gave it to him. Hand me up, hand me down… it’s like the sisterhood of the traveling pants.

This year I’ll only shop for clothing at consignment and thrift stores. The selection is SO much better anyways!

I thought I was downsizing and then ended up buying an even bigger house that is now furnished almost completely through thrifting. I found myself buying things for what I called “practice”. What size chair will really works there, is that the color I want? Then I either make it work or wait until I find the perfect one and donate the original one back. And along the way I have somehow ended up with a collection of rotary phones.

I have an adorable little lamp that I bought at a thrift store for $1.50 30 years ago. It was on my nightstand in one apartment, on an end table at another, and now sits on the dining room table in our house!

Thrifting is the best and there are so many thrifting apps, not to mention old-fashioned thrift stores, where I’ve found great pieces. CoJ, I’d love for you to cover thrifting-themed sites/tips/fashion influencers in the future!

Ooh, a rainy afternoon of thrifting (or junking, depending on the shop) is one of the best things ever. My treasures are vintage straw handbags, Haeger pottery planters, and Frankoma coffee mugs. I will empty out a bookcase packed floor-to-ceiling if I think I caught a glimpse of a Frankoma mug handle in the chaos. So much fun!

I just thrifted a gorgeous plate from Japan. I clearly need to go to Japan so my real life can match my thrift life.

I pretty much only buy 2nd hand things, and y’all, if you’re in the US, you need to test anything you intend to drink out of or eat on for lead. There weren’t any regulations about lead levels in our dishes and cups until 1973! It’s easy, you can get a lead testing kit on Amazon. They’re like little q-tips that you dip in some vinegar and rub on the thing. Then it turns a color and you’ll know. Happy hunting!

I LOVE thrifting (and I have a 15-year old who I shuttle around to thrift shops with her friends). It makes me happy to find treasures! A few weeks ago, I found a Ralph Lauren “cowgirl” shirt for $3.75 … so cute. And I will never buy wineglasses anywhere else anymore. Happy thrifting!

I am OBSESSED with thrifting and antiquing. It’s both fun and sustainable, a win-win!

So much gentler for my wallet to go a size up in jeans due to menopausal weight gain. And my teen daughter loves it too. She’s found sweaters, jeans, and mock Doc Marten boots (Target brand).

I have a thrift date with a friend this afternoon! More fun for meeting up for coffee or drinks AGAIN.

In re: The Little Mermaid, I admit that I might have slept with someone in college because he deadpanned “…and why does it, what’s the word, burn” in the middle of a conversation about something else.

I will forever refer to those as “Little Mermaid Moments”

Thrifting scratches an itch deep within my inner-neanderthal hunter-gatherer brain!

The men’s cashmere sweaters that I wear all winter!

YES! reduce.reuse.recycle ♻️💚🌎

Oh man, me and thrifting! It’s become on e of my favorite things to do in my spare time.
In some ways, I’m looking for my past. My parents were very stylish mid century folks, so Dansk pieces, and Scandinavian glassware stand out to me in the midst of Target discards.
Last weekend I hauled home a giant clamshell. It’s more than a foot across. A little research tells me that it’s a Bear paw clamshell from the South Pacific
Crazy things end up being donated!

I love when I find items that enjoy a new home with me. It also makes it so much easier to pass on to someone else who might truly need something (work clothes, nearly new shoes that weren’t right for me, etc.) as well as those items that can find a new home too – wall art that’s passed on now watching over another family! 😄