Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Thrift shopping and frugal finds.

The current economic crisis is making people nervous and the stock market is experiencing a major dip with many investors selling in a panicked frenzy.
The uncertainty has people running scared.

While I do not spend willy nilly, I do balance big ticket purchases with frugal ones.

I am more than happy that we have thrift shops in our town. I patronize them on a regular basis and have fun looking at the wares. You might be familiar with that saying "one man's junk is another man's treasure".



Shopping in thrift shops offers opportunities to acquire things at reasonable prices. It is an adventure and one must shop with an open mind, keeping your eyes open. Go slowly and peruse carefully, move things around, and you might be surprised what you'll find. Thrift shops are not just for the needy and impoverished. Well shod, bejeweled, ladies - who - lunch have been spied gathering goods and conversations are shared in the aisles over themed table settings for their upcoming dinner parties!

I have seen more Mercedes parked outside and think that thrifting has been elevated to include the upper middle classes.

I would encourage you to venture forth and seek out your local charity shops...

Here are my latest finds...



Leather wallet


Very similar to the Hobo wallet
I paid $100 for the Hobo
and $10 for this one... 


the lining is bright and cheery
in perfect condition.


A book for Grammy's Home Library
$2.00
Isla loves books!


A new release which I nearly bought at the book shop for $30.00
I found this mint one for $4.00

He who does not economize will have to agonize.  ~Confucius

Has the current economic news changed the way that you think about money 
or have you decided to stop shopping for anything that is a non essential?


14 comments:

Sue/the view from great island said...

I'm a thrift shop junkie, and I actually enjoy the thrill of the hunt, so I would be visiting thrift stores in good times or bad. But the economic news of the past couple weeks is pretty scary...it's dampened my spirits and my spending.

LPC said...

I have my head so far into the sand my collarbones itch.

La Vie Quotidienne said...

Yes! It is all terribly distressing and rather scary. I am definately thinking twice about unnecessary purchases.

Anonymous said...

We live very frugally anyway aside from our two holidays a year, I don't think there's much more we could pare back on. Uhm yes I do drink champagne when we are out but we don't go to movies, very rarely go out to dinner so that's my once a month treat.

Judith said...

Same as B&P living out in the sticks not much in the way of items to tempt one...we do eat out frequently...I am good with budgets as a way of life due to my inheritance & business.

Wow great items in your thrift stores..nice leather bags. Ida

Paula said...

Buying diamonds and gold never felt better! Inflation in Austria is quite bad, has been bad for the last 1, 2 years. In case one does not want to get crazy, one spends the money right away. At least the diamonds and gold provide me happiness!

fashion and frank said...

I think we are all thinking more carefully than before - i am extravagant with my clothes but surprisingly not with anything else - my beauty budget is non existent - i keep telling myself that! and i think vintage is a great way to go. Thanks so much for your comment i dont have a pic of the back but it is dead easy to do - just take the front section up, backcomb, pin slightly quiffed, then take the back twist and catch in a big clip, the left over hair will fall back and cover it - hope that helps xx

http://fashionandfrank.blogspot.com/

mette said...

You chose a subject, which touches all of us. Nobody knows what´s going to happen in the economy. We talk about the situation, but so far, I have not seen signs of people spending less. The stores are full of new stuff.
I have noticed though, that every time I take my stuff to the secondhand store for sale, the small shop is crowded.
I really had my shares of " doing finds " in the past years, so today, I rather not buy anything, if I can´t afford what I want.
I´m trying to understand thrift store shopping as an addiction, an addiction amongst so many others. One explanation could be , that it has become trendy :).

Anonymous said...

I consider my purchases carefully, whether they be from Nordstrom or thrift shops, because I don't want to be a bad steward of the resources I have. I only want to bring items into my home that I will use and love, so that philosophy drives my purchasing more than anything else.

I am one of those Mercedes parked in the thrift store parking lot. I love the thrill of a good hunt, and I am a fan of garage sales, too.

Susan B said...

Your wallet is so nice! I tend to avoid thrift stores, as I always see things at great prices that I have no use for, but can't pass up at those prices, then have to re-donate them a few months later! If I were as discriminating as you, it would be a different story.

Linda Back in Canberra said...

Dear Leslie, I like pottering in thrift shops too. They are a great place to buy books and the ladies and gentlemen (in Australia they are mostly staffed by volunteers) who work there are generally lovely and quite chatty. These days I only buy things for me that make me want to do a little dance (I read this somewhere and it is good advice). As a result, I have a small but very happy wardrobe. love Lindaxxx

Adrienne Shubin said...

I don't go to thrift stores - it's a childhood thing. My mother dragged me to them on a regular basis and I just developed a weird "thing" about them. But I really should give them another shot. A lot has changed since I was a child - thrift stores included.

I am on a spending freeze mostly because I found myself wasting time online shopping for things I don't need. A bad habit that my husband detested. I am nearing the end - in about 3 weeks - and I don't really want to lift it. I have grown accustomed to not spending on clothes, makeup and accessories.

Good finds you brought home by the way. Maybe I should give myself a challenge and only shop at thrift stores after my shopping freeze is lifted. Yikes! That's quite a challenge for me!
xo, A

Susan Tiner said...

I envy your ability to find excellent selections at thrift stores. Like Pseu, I tend to buy things for the price then end up not liking them as much as I thought I would.

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

Fashion and Frank- I am playing around with my thick hair and am getting a wee bit better, I love the flop over bit and the rather casual elegance of an updo...you might consider a tutorial on your blog!