Shopping Consignment Thrift Shop

Treasure hunting in thrift shops for unique value and priceless memories

EL PASO — I have found amazing valuables while thrift shopping that will probably remain with me forever. Some of those have been a vintage monogram Louis Vuitton tote from The Label Exchange, another time I found a classic empire waist dress from Vintage Mode, and I found an awesome flower print clutch when I stumbled into a garage sale in Tokyo once. These are the items I treasure the most. The ones I find while traveling because they also bring fun memories along.

I think I started thrift shopping when I was 12 or 13. At the time I don’t think it was the cool thing to do because during this age your peers begin to notice whether your shoes are really Adidas and not the knockoffs with two or four stripes, or whether you are wearing the designer jeans or t-shirts with the brands going across them that are what is “in” to wear, but I loved it because although what I found had been used once, to me it was new and not old-fashioned. It was stylish and unique, and it was vintage.

Of course I also bought new clothing, in fact most of my clothing was new or had been new, and I kept the whole thrift shopping somewhat secret, but there were a few special pieces I found at thrift stores that didn’t scream “thrifted” and I knew no one else would have.

I still continue to do my regular thrift shopping and now I am proud to say that I love to thrift shop. I freed myself from caring about what my peers thought and now it is one of the things I enjoy most. I see it as a way of recycling clothing and accessories that make somebody else’s trash another’s treasure. And not to mention the prices, which 98 % of the time are less than $20. Also, often times the clothing not sold over a period of time is donated. “What we don’t sell we donate to centers against family violence,” said Ragz to Riches owner, Zujeiy Chapel.

I love finding garments or accessories that actually are from a past life. That is the main reason for why I like to thrift shop. Maybe a 1920s embellished clutch or a 1940s Christian Dior “New Look” jacket. Items like these I can always incorporate into my wardrobe to make an outfit a bit more sophisticated or to make it more individual and unique.

There are times in which I don’t find exactly what I am looking for, but most likely I find something else that I love and that I know I will be using.  It’s safe to say that going vintage shopping always puts me in a good mood.

Thrift Stores: Do You Or Don't You? Our Top 11 Thrift Store ...

OK, if you are reading this post then it is pretty obvious you are clever about saving money and eager to find new deals and ways to protect your hard earned pennies.  We try really hard to present you with information like printable coupons , free sample offers and discounted shopping opportunities to help you do just that.

But couponing aside, we are curious to see what you think about going to thrift stores.  When is the last time you were in a thrift store and did you buy anything?

We’ll lay it on the line….up until we started becoming more money conscious and began selling items online for extra money (way, way back in 1999) we did not visit thrift stores.  Ever.  It wasn’t that we were opposed to them, but we just never ventured inside unless we needed something goofy for a Halloween costume (I think we’ve all done that … looking for the perfect retro piece to pull together the “look” for the Halloween party).

Once our eyes were opened to thrift stores we were really amazed at what you can find there, and the differences in the types of stores!  We’ve been in really nice thrift stores that are organized and clean;  they really feel somewhat like shopping in a department store.  We’ve also been to ones on the opposite end of that spectrum where they are grubby and things are not only in poor condition but the quality is bad and they are unorganized.  We definitely do not go back to those types of stores again!!  But the nicer ones are a real treat to shop at, and if you are not exploring the thrift stores around your area, you may be missing the boat on an excellent way to save money.

Just today I explored a new thrift store in detail, and you won’t believe the amazing haul of goodies I walked out of there with!  Just look at some of the items clothing (the jeans are already in the wash).   We scored jeans by Hollister (about 4 pairs), Abercrombie (5 pairs) , Lucky Brand, Jones New York and more.  Dresses by designers like Ann Taylor, Eileen Fisher, QVC brands, Hilo Hattie and shirts and jackets too!  Sweet sundresses for our 7 year old niece and more.  I am really, really picky about what I buy from a thrift store, but today we hit the mother load!  Granted, some of these items are for members of our family (it is so much fun shopping for our nieces and nephews) and some are to resell online for a profit, but quite a few are for ourselves.  50 items for just $53!!!

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