Thrifting Life

Today I read this great article, Why You Need To Catch The Drift About Thrift Shopping, and commented that I could blog daily about all of the great finds from my thrift store shopping. Plenty of blog posts on this site are dedicated already to those finds.

In her article, Kim mentioned exactly how I feel about “Adventure Shopping”…

Because let me tell you, once you discover the world of thrifting, which in my family we call, Adventure Shopping, you won’t go back to spending most of your hard-earned money on new stuff.

I don’t even find regular shopping fun anymore. The idea you can walk into a retail store and know exactly what you expect to find is just boring.

I enjoy digging through piles of stuff to see what gem might present itself. I have found so many great books, records, CDs, cameras, speakers and other electronics, all just sitting there, waiting for a new home. This past weekend I even found a great Members Only jacket in new condition for just $6! Often, I’ll buy odd looking records and just listen to them to see if it’s interesting. The price is so low (usually $1), that even if I don’t like it, I can easily gift to a friend or even sell back to my local record store.

Here’s the trick though…you have to be prepared to find nothing. Once you’re okay with not finding something, then great things will appear. If you go searching for something specific, chances are you won’t find them.

I visit the local thrift stores near me every single weekend. Some weekends I find a ton of great stuff while other weekends (like the past two) I will find nothing. It’s hit or miss but that’s what makes it such an adventure.

Give it a shot. Swing by your local thrift store three out of four weekends next month and see what happens. I bet you’ll be surprised.