I love to live a first-class life using secondhand things. lol. My car, my home, some of my clothes, furnishings, even my husband..lol. Now I wouldn’t call them used things, I would call them ‘vintage’ to make myself feel better. “One man’s rubbish is another man’s treasure.” In England, Oxfam was my go-to place. You need time (and I had the time then, 20 something years ago, single, no kids, too much time on my hands) to sort through the stuff people donate. I would visit regularly. I would also spend some of my weekends at antique stores, flea markets, car boot sales. Honestly, you’d be surprised what treasures you find. I love a good hunt and bargain find.
The iconic bargain-hunting thrift store, Goodwill, with its smiling face logo is where one goes to find bargains or donate old clothes, books, and houseware. I am no stranger to treasure finds in thrift stores as I am always looking for cheap eclectic finds. As a family, we also donate to Goodwill (the American Version of Oxfam) – toys, books and magazines, homeware, electronics, kids’ clothes – oh kid’s clothes-they grow so fast and mostly we give these gently worn clothes to our church. Well, as much as I donate good clean used clothes and houseware to Goodwill, I would assume that others donate the same caliber of good acceptable, clean, and sanitary (no mattresses or underwear/panties, please) items.
I love sculptures and ornaments in gardens, and bird baths (yes, birds still scare me) can be beautiful garden ornaments, a small reflecting pond or a sculpture/conversation piece, but they can be expensive. I’ve had an idea and started to browse thrift stores to make my own bird baths, ornaments and sculpture pieces in my garden. Recently, when I have the time, I have been making the rounds in our neighborhood thrift stores to find ‘treasures’ the kids and I can use for artwork, garden sculptures, etc. Spring break is coming up and it is more expensive for us (still paying for our trip to England this past summer hehe), and difficult for my hubby, to go on a trip so we will be ‘thrifting’ and making fun things. They will get rewards for finding tchotchkes, bowls, vases, candle holders, that are unique and literally thinking outside the box! They’ll do anything competitive for a reward.
Let the thrifting begin!
