Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Thrifting or Bust!

As promised, I went thrifting on Saturday with my mama and Turner.  The main goal was to get 9 month clothes for Tu, and maybe some other goodies for the house if I found any (we needed an outdoor rug desperately…if you can need an outdoor rug desperately).
We started out at a thrift shop in a small town.  We confused consignment shop with thrift shop.  This particular thrift shop would take ANYTHING.  I saw half empty bottles of shampoo for sale.  I did get a potato masher for $1, so I call it a win.  The place was more fun for the people-watching.  Zach and I have been watching Big Love (HBO show about polygamy), and I felt like I was in the show!  Potato masher and an experience?  I’ll take it.
Second stop was Castaways Consignment in Washington.  I was much underwhelmed.  I was half looking for a pair of jeans, but they didn’t have any long lengths in my size.  Also missing were any 9 month clothes for Tu.  I found exactly 2 items that were 6-12 months.  After I left, I realize I paid $7 for each item.  A little (A LOT!) ridiculous for second hand.  I am not proud of that.  I was just so excited to find something!
Third on the list was a new consignment shop in Washington, called New 4 You.  The store carries new accessories.  It’s smaller than Castaways, but I really liked the décor.  They only have women’s clothes and accessories, and this mama found a super cute scarf for $5 and it was new!   I tried on a pair of jeans, but tiny back pockets on a big butt look like regular sized pockets on a huge butt.  NO THANK YOU.
After New 4 You, we went to Peoria.  I’ve heard good things about Wee Wares from several people, and it was a success!  Tu got three pairs of shoes, a dress, and two pairs of shorts.  All this was only $27 including one pair of shoes were StrideRite, which are not cheap new.  Again, we had a lot of trouble finding 9 month clothes, but what we did find was good.
Even though Wee Wares was better than the other consignment/thrift shops, I still didn’t have enough to outfit Tu for the spring.  Target just so happens to be just down the road from Wee Wares.  Jackpot!  Well, “jackpot” might be a little overkill.  Does everyone have a baby in 9 month clothes right now, or do they just not stock as much?  Either way, I decided the way to go was comfy.  I got a bunch of onesies and cotton pants.  She even got a bicycle onesie for PawPaw Brian (he’s a big time bike rider)!  I also got an outdoor rug at the Target.  They had almost all of their Threshold outdoor rugs on “clearance”.  Sidebar;  .99 off $12.99 is not a clearance.  $6 off $12.99 is a clearance.  Naturally, I chose the only one not on clearance, but the extra .99 didn’t hurt too badly.  Last on the list was formula (we are so lucky that we had the most luck with the Up&Up brand of soy formula since it’s half the price!).  Out the door, I was $138 poorer.  
So, I failed at the second hand shopping game; bust.  Do you have any tips?  I’m excited for garage sale season.  .50 is more my style than $7 for second hand.   

3 comments:

  1. I got a lot of clothes from other moms looking to get rid of baby clothes. I got 3 over full shopping bags of clothes for $20. And even though Wyatt is 5mos. hes in 9-12mos clothes. I found some clothes at Goodwill also. Hope that helps!! Love your blog!!

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  2. I don't shop for growing babies, but Goodwill and Salvation Army (especially the one near Allen Road) always have good deals. I'm not sure if it would help, but maybe Craigslist. One of my friends joined some mom groups and she's always talking about clothing swaps with them. Even if they don't fit right now, buying something a little big won't hurt! She'll be that size soon enough! :) I agree that garage sales are great because you can negotiate. Good luck :)

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  3. Have you tried Et Cetera in Eureka? They have clothes for men, women, and kids/babies as well as all sorts of other odds and ends (a little jewelry, decor, crafting supplies, etc.). It's not always the most modern or trendy stuff, but you might be able to find some cute things with a little fishing! I got our Nativity set for our first Christmas there since I didn't love the prices of brand new ones. Call ahead if you use a credit card, though. I can't remember if you have to spend a certain amount in order to use a card or not.

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