Thrifting: How to Thrift and What to Look For
Do you like to thrift? Do you know where to go to thrift? Have you ever thrifted? I’m thrilled today to share with you my love for thrifting and my thoughts on thrifting in this post Thrifting: How to thrift and what to look for.
I have absolutely fallen in love with thrifting as of late. To be honest, I have been thrifting for many, many years but in the past, I would say it was probably more out of necessity than fun.
Why I Learned Thrifting
For many years I was a stay-at-home mom of four kids. This meant our family was a one-income family. Thrifting allowed me to decorate our home on a very limited budget. And trust me when I say, I found some amazing treasures along the way!
I am very thankful for the humble beginnings of my childhood. You can read more about my story on my About Kim Page While my childhood was not an easy one, growing up with very little money was actually very good for me.
God used that time in my life to grow me and teach me many lessons. I became creative and frugal. I learned contentment even when it was hard at times. Not only did I thrift A LOT, but over the years I taught myself the skills I needed to repurpose, reuse and redo. These experiences have grown me in many ways and made me who I am today.
Define Thrifting
So what exactly is thrifting? Let’s look at some definitions.
“Thrifting refers to the act of shopping at a thrift store, flea market, garage sale, or the shop of a charitable organization such as Goodwill or the Salvation Army. It is typically done with the intent of finding items at a very low price.”
“A larger philosophy permeates the act of thrifting which celebrates the recycling of formerly-owned items, finding new use and a new love for vintage material goods which had been thrown out, and the thrill of imagining what the former life of the item was like.”
“When one visits several different thrift shops, second-hand shops, and vintage clothing stores in the hopes of buying several items of cheap and unusual clothing and other items. One usually does this with friends.” This is definitely more fun to do with friends!
“Thrifting also refers to the practice of restrained or disciplined spending habits, by means of purchasing goods at special very-cheap stores, purchasing pre-owned goods, love for vintage material goods, etc.”
My Thrifting Challenge to Myself
In 2022, I challenged myself to ONLY purchase home decor items for our home that I thrifted. In other words, anything I buy will be bought at Goodwill, Salvation Army, a resale store, a flea market, or at a vintage/antique store.
Antique stores can vary in pricing. While I like to peruse the pricier antique stores, I do not typically buy from them very often. I consider it a challenge to locate treasures on a strict budget in these types of stores. I also like the fact that buying from these places usually means the money is going to a worthy cause. So that even makes it better!
Hobby Lobby, Home Goods, and Target have been my favorite stores to shop for home decor over the years. The prices are reasonable and typically in my price range, especially at Hobby Lobby during their sales where they offer 40-50% off. I have found some lovely things for our home in all of these places.
My Why For Thrifting Now
That being said, I have become more passionate and excited about bringing more vintage pieces into our home. There are a few reasons for this.
It Adds Character and Soul to Our Home
I find enormous pleasure in the character and soul it adds to our home. Just as important is the warmth and history that it brings to our home.
Vintage Finds Have a History
Second, instead of tossing old things away more and more people are starting to find value in them. Honestly, I think the older I get the more I appreciate finding value in old things…lol…funny how that happens.
I love history and everything it teaches us. Vintage finds bring an added element of history into our homes. I love learning about the history of things and I love learning from the past. We have so much to learn from those who have gone before us. I love pieces that have meaning and memories attached to them.
Below you will find a list of vintage items I look for when thrifting. If you want to start thrifting it is a great list to familiarize yourself with so that you can start your own thrifting adventures.
My Favorite Thrifted Finds and Where I Found Them
We have a trunk in our home that was my husband’s grandparents. Our farmhouse dining table comes from my parent’s home where it lived for 30 years and now lives with us. I have a drop-leaf table in our dining room that was also in my husband’s family.
As I stated earlier, while I thrifted previously out of necessity, it has become a challenge to me now. I love the thrill of the hunt. It has become something I love to do any time of the week. And now that I am an empty nester I have a little more time on my hands. Not as much as I would like but still more than I’ve had before.
Some of my Favorites
Let me share with you a few of my favorites. I will try my best to recall the prices I paid but the memory certainly isn’t what it used to be 🤷🏼♀️ 😘…remember that getting old thing. You will also find out where to thrift and what to look for!
This basket below is a favorite of mine that I found a couple of months ago. It was at Goodwill for $2.99 😲. Yes, you read that correctly, two dollars and ninety-nine cents. I saw it and immediately grabbed it and was like 😲 why is this still here??? It is the most beautiful grapevine basket.
In fact, as I was walking around I had a couple of people comment on what a good find it was. Woohoo! Score! It has found a place on my kitchen island. This basket is a great place for faux pears and a place to house my paper napkins.
I love to give my thrifted finds a purpose and this was the perfect place to keep napkins.
The two pots below I found a few years ago. Both were very inexpensive. I have not yet polished them but I did buy the polish. Should I or shouldn’t I? I kind of love the patina on both of them.
However, I find myself curious about what they would look like shined up. These were found at a local antique mall.
The earthenware bowls I found at a local barn sale and a local antique/consignment mall. I love these bowls!
I am frugal (or cheap) when it comes to purchasing vintage finds so they have to be in the right price range but these were both very reasonable. These bowls can be very expensive…I’ve seen them for upwards of $80.
The big beautiful golden color bowl I use often for my sourdough bread. When I am making my bread it makes me feel I’ve gone back in time.
Making bread from four simple ingredients with my own hands in a bowl that looks like it has been used by others before me, gives me chills. It reminds me of the homesteaders of years past and the simpler life they lived.
This makes me feel good about bringing it to life again in our kitchen.
It also reminds me to be thankful for the modern conveniences of today!
The vintage scales above have also found a place in my heart and consequently in our kitchen. Honestly, I don’t use them often, although they both work. I love the character they bring to our modern kitchen. These were also found at a local barn sale.
I Love a European Kitchen
Have you seen the show, For The Love of Kitchens [Link Here] on the Magnolia Network? It is one of my absolute favorites right now.
I adore the look and feel of a European kitchen. The beauty of the old mixed with the new is magnificent. First of all, I am in love with the hosts and their British accents. They are absolutely lovely! (British word by the way 😘)
Europeans do kitchens differently. Their kitchens have all the modern conveniences but add homey touches like pictures and furniture.
In the pictures above and below, you can find many of my thrifted finds. One of my absolutely faves is this bench. It was found at a flea market called Rice’s near New Hope, PA.
It is the exact length of my dining room table at 96 inches. It was $25. There were two benches for sale but I was only able to fit one in the suburban we came in. Sometimes I regret not figuring out a way to get the other one home. But I’ve come to the conclusion that one is better than none! 😊
I had toyed with the idea of painting the bench but then a dear friend said I shouldn’t. I’m sooooo glad I listened to her. I can’t even imagine if I had painted it and covered up the beautiful warmed-toned wood.
It would have been sinful to hide the beautiful wear and tear from years of use. It is solid as a rock and we use it all the time. Rumor has it that it was in an old school house…at least that is what I was told 🤷🏼♀️.
This wrought iron garden plant hanger in the picture directly above was a fun find. It’s original intent I believe was for a garden but it works perfectly on this white wall in my office.
It is worn but solid with the perfect amount of patina. It was $15. We found this one at Jakes Flea Market near Allentown.
There is something about a used window pane that adds texture and history to any room. These two were $15 each. The texture it adds to this gallery wall is perfect. You can read more about it in my post How to Create A Gallery Wall of Love
The wire basket was also a Goodwill find. It was around a dollar if I remember correctly.
In the picture above, the little urn was a steal at Goodwill for $2.50. It immediately caught my eye. A fun thing to do is add vintage books to your decor.
I have found my books in multiple places. Some are from an old library that was giving books away and some I purchased at various locations. I try to keep my book purchases to under $5 a piece.
The thrifted vintage rolling pins rest inside a crock we received as a wedding gift in 1988. Rolling pins are relatively easy to find and usually inexpensive. I paid about $15 for each of these a few years ago. And yes I do use them!! I Found these at the Fleetwood Antique Mall.
The picture of what looks to be a European town is another one of my favorite thrifted items. The beautiful rich wooden frame and the picture caught my eye immediately. I snatched it up for $5 (Remember my love for European kitchens?) I found this at Cottage Antiques and Crafts in Allentown.
It couldn’t be more perfectly matched with the whites and wood tones we have throughout our home. It brings warmth to a simple white kitchen giving the open barn wood shelves just a tad bit of character and added height.
In my post, Modern Farmhouse Hutch Makeover you can read all about my $100 Facebook Marketplace hutch that now resides in our kitchen.
So there you have it! And lest you think that is all of the thrifted finds in our home, there are so many more.
Think Outside of the Box
Can I challenge you like I’ve challenged myself to invest some time into thrifting? Think outside of the box.
The European picture in my kitchen is something I would have 100% passed by a few years ago, but I’ve opened my mind up to thinking differently. Remember someone else’s trash can be your treasure.
If I had to pick my favorite thrifted find in my home right now it would have to be the yellow earthenware bowl.
My prayer is that this post helps you in your thrifting endeavors and gets you excited about bringing vintage into your home!
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Much love~Kim💗
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