I got a chance to go on a little thrifting expedition with my shopping buddy Jane today. We headed 100 kms south to several smaller country towns where we scoured local op shops, the local tip shop and even a second hand barn that was full of surprises.
As soon as I saw furniture stacked to the ceiling I had a good feeling about this place!
When I share my thrifting adventures with friends they often ask how I score such good things and why it is that they never seem to find the same treasures I do, so today I thought I’d share some of my. . .
If you are intimidated by the thought of shopping at a thrift store/op shop or just plain clueless about where to start, have no fear my thrifting tips will get you on your way.
When to shop. . . this is important because every shop has a best day or days of the week. You will have to go often and at different times to find out the best times for your favourite shops. Speak to the ladies who work there and ask when they get most of their drop offs. From personal experience, I’ve found in my area that mid week seems to provide the most variety.
Find your thrifting groove. . . elite athletes prepare for competition and it is no different with thrift shopping my peeps. You have to get yourself into the MOOD. Just like those elite athletes you are going to need stamina, energy and fortitude! There are mountains of junk treasure to sort through you know.
My tip: if you are thrifting with friends be sure to fuel up on coffee and cake first. . . you may be thrifting for hours!
Wear the right outfit. . . thrifting is not for the faint hearted. It can be dirty, is often smelly (in a musty kind of way) and probably germy too! If you are serious about finding treasure you will be down on your knees one minute checking out hidden boxes and climbing to great heights the next. I wear pants and usually something old and comfortable.
I’m not generally a thrift clothes shopper, although one of my girls is. . . I strongly suggest wearing an outfit that can be quickly thrown off or one that you can try clothes on over the top eg. leggings.
Who to shop with. . . OMG, this topic’s dicey. Who do you shop with?
Hmm… sometimes it needs to be a solitary endeavour, especially when you are on a mission to find specific items and may need to search tirelessly. You won’t want whinging friends complaining about the smell, filth or boredom.
On the other hand, shopping with friends can be great fun, especially if you have a crew of skilled thrifters to share your joy. Turn the trip into a day out with lunch thrown in.
This is Jane checking out some old books today. . . have a look behind her at all that treasure piled high.
Tip: Be wary of shopping with friends who have the exact same taste or are seeking the same items. . . it could end in disaster if you both reach for the same item.
So now you are in the mood and kitted out ready for action. . . Let’s go shopping
Have a list . . . Know what is on your priority list – these will be the items you are into right now. You might be on a quest to stock your cupboards with quaint bone china tea cups or old music manuscript and this way you’ll seek these things out first.
My rule of thumb is to divide and conquer. Some thrift stores are large and well laid out while others are dinghy dark caves filled from floor to ceiling with bulging boxes. Don’t walk around aimlessly or let it overwhelm you, ‘hone in’ on your list section first and work methodically from there. Look through everything and hang onto anything that might be a possibility.
Sometimes the real treasure is hiding out of eye sight (down low or up high) hidden by other sneaky thrifters in the hope no one else will find it before they return. How do I know this . . . umm, I may have had to do this once or twice when I didn’t have enough cash!
Tip: If you find something amazing, don’t leave it alone. You’d be amazed at how quickly another eagle-eyed shopper can swoop in.
Think outside the box. . . okay I have just given you one of my best secrets right there. Be prepared to search all areas of a thrift store with a view to repurposing or up-cycling. Keeping an open mind can lead to many new potential projects using thrift store treasure.
Bring the cash baby!! Most thrift stores deal with cash only, so make sure you are cashed up and ready to go.
My final tip. . . is be friendly and courteous to the volunteers at your local thrift store; they do an amazing job. Besides, being nice can often pay off; staff are usually very willing to help you find your ‘wish list’ items.
Later in the week I’ll share some of the treasure I found today.
Hugs ~ Kerryanne
Great tips! I always thrift with my Lovely Man…he leaves me alone and does his own thing but he also grabs anything he knows I will love before someone else does! I think me make an excellent team! Oh and he NEVER gets bored but we do have a rather large surplus of luggage and bags at our house…he has this thing you see 🙂
Sounds like you had a very fruitful time.
We could do with a few more of these sorts of places over here – most of our venues are either charity outlets or house clearance folk. Unfortunately, they have become very expensive and not very good sources of goodies.
Thank you for sharing your tips.
Toni xx
Great post! For me I find that when thrift shopping with friends it’s best to split up, so we avoid that finding the same thing at the same time. I will just make sure to head to my favorite area first and then hit the others and usually we will both pick up items along the way that we know the other one might be interested in to show them for their approval or not. Then when we meet up we have a show & tell of treasures! It works out fairly well. One more tip I can think of–go together in the same car! May sound odd, but I have one friend who will meet me in town (and we only live a couple of blocks away from each other) and instead of riding together we go in separate cars–who knows why. Well the thing is as I’m finishing one shop, she finishes up quickly and runs to the next shop and by the time I get there she’s found many treasures–we have too similar of tastes and then for the whole day she’s a shop ahead of me. Needless to say I don’t thrift shop much with her. LOL!
Love Thrift stores,and I would have been like a kid in a candy store,lucky you,keep on thrifting,you have great taste….
I wish we had such places to visit. There is nothing like that anywhere I live. Envious? Just a tad. Love your work Kerryanne.