In theory, I should be a good thrifter. I'm cheap, I like hunting down the exact right thing I'm looking for, and I like to dig through things to find bargains. I'm also surrounded by people who are fantastic thrifters. There's my mother-in-law, who seriously finds amazing things at the lowest cost possible and also sees a potential solution in something I wouldn't have even looked twice at. There's my sister, who strives to live simply and be eco-friendly, and if buying used things doesn't go with those philosophies, I don't know what else does. And then there's my mom, aunts, and grandmothers who have given me a taste for everything vintage.
But, the truth is, I'm a horrible thrifter. I see all of these bloggers taking thrift store finds and turning them into something super amazing with spray paint, paper, etc. And I look at the process and think, I could totally do that. But, the project requires me to have some sort of thrift store find, which requires me to not only go into a thrift store, but to find something.
This is probably going to make me sound kind of snobby, but thrift stores stress me out. Generally, there are tons of people croweded in the small aisles, and they're generally on a mission and I'm scared to get in the way. Some thrift stores smell funny, and there always seems to be a ton of noise. The amount of stuff is so overwhelming, yet I can never find what I am looking for or even anything that has potential. And then I just leave empty-handed and go buy something new.
I recently got an invitation to join pinterest and found some thrift store awesomeness I just had to mimic. The first was a solution for organizing file folders: a thrifted dish drainer. And the second is repurposing a silverware organizer for keys, wallets, phones, and all of the other stuff that seems to just end up on our kitchen table. So I decided to try and conquer my fear to find said items.
I went to a Goodwill yesterday and didn't find anything that fit my needs. Today, I stopped by another Goodwill and again, didn't find anything. On my way home, I passed St. Louise Gift and Thrift, which always has gorgous window displays and essentially calls my name every time I drive by. And it was there that I found what I will call Thrift Store Heaven. Seriously.
Everything in the store is displayed nicely, organized appropriately, and labeled clearly. It was easy to look at things and not feel like I was digging, and it was almost like shopping in a department store of used products. There was quiet, spiritual music playing and it was actually not super busy. And I found exactly what I was looking for and more.
I'm going to show you my thrifted treasures in use in my next post (trying to make up for being MIA this week!), so now I'll end by telling you what I didn't buy.
-Vintage Pyrex. This is all the rage over on pinterest, and it was so tempting because I found two sets. I might have to go back for it.
-Vintage copy of The Long Winter. Wanted it, but so particular about matching books that it seemed to be more of hassle than something I really wanted.
-A star-shaped candy dish. It would be so cute for the upcoming holiday.
-Picture frames. At 75 cents each (for 8x10), the were the right cost to buy in bulk for our recently-painted basement stairs and spray paint red, but I thought we should design first, buy second.
And there you have it--my adventures thrifting. I'm not sure if a good experience at St. Lousie's will help or hurt my apparent snobbery for other thrift stores, but maybe it's just something that takes practice. Or maybe I just need more pinterest motivation!
But, the truth is, I'm a horrible thrifter. I see all of these bloggers taking thrift store finds and turning them into something super amazing with spray paint, paper, etc. And I look at the process and think, I could totally do that. But, the project requires me to have some sort of thrift store find, which requires me to not only go into a thrift store, but to find something.
This is probably going to make me sound kind of snobby, but thrift stores stress me out. Generally, there are tons of people croweded in the small aisles, and they're generally on a mission and I'm scared to get in the way. Some thrift stores smell funny, and there always seems to be a ton of noise. The amount of stuff is so overwhelming, yet I can never find what I am looking for or even anything that has potential. And then I just leave empty-handed and go buy something new.
I recently got an invitation to join pinterest and found some thrift store awesomeness I just had to mimic. The first was a solution for organizing file folders: a thrifted dish drainer. And the second is repurposing a silverware organizer for keys, wallets, phones, and all of the other stuff that seems to just end up on our kitchen table. So I decided to try and conquer my fear to find said items.
I went to a Goodwill yesterday and didn't find anything that fit my needs. Today, I stopped by another Goodwill and again, didn't find anything. On my way home, I passed St. Louise Gift and Thrift, which always has gorgous window displays and essentially calls my name every time I drive by. And it was there that I found what I will call Thrift Store Heaven. Seriously.
Everything in the store is displayed nicely, organized appropriately, and labeled clearly. It was easy to look at things and not feel like I was digging, and it was almost like shopping in a department store of used products. There was quiet, spiritual music playing and it was actually not super busy. And I found exactly what I was looking for and more.
I'm going to show you my thrifted treasures in use in my next post (trying to make up for being MIA this week!), so now I'll end by telling you what I didn't buy.
-Vintage Pyrex. This is all the rage over on pinterest, and it was so tempting because I found two sets. I might have to go back for it.
-Vintage copy of The Long Winter. Wanted it, but so particular about matching books that it seemed to be more of hassle than something I really wanted.
-A star-shaped candy dish. It would be so cute for the upcoming holiday.
-Picture frames. At 75 cents each (for 8x10), the were the right cost to buy in bulk for our recently-painted basement stairs and spray paint red, but I thought we should design first, buy second.
And there you have it--my adventures thrifting. I'm not sure if a good experience at St. Lousie's will help or hurt my apparent snobbery for other thrift stores, but maybe it's just something that takes practice. Or maybe I just need more pinterest motivation!
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