Advanced Thrifting: Grazing the Aisles

Maybe you've already read the Thrifting 101 Article where I  share my 2+ decades of thrift shopping expertise. If not, you can read it now. The thrust of that article is to keep you from getting overwhelmed, overspending, or getting frustrated with the experience of  shopping at these giant thrift shops that exist.

There is another approach to thrift shopping, however. I call it the Grazing the Aisles method. This is basically when you enter a thrift store with no idea of what you want, what you need, or how you even ended up in a thrift store in the first place. This ends up being closer to my reality from time-to-time.

Grazing the Aisles can yield some AWESOME finds. Shortly after the honeymoon, I took a trip to the Good Will to drop off a couple bags. I wandered all of the aisles with a vague idea of what I might want:

• Silk tops, sleeveless or cap sleeved
• Professional pencil skirt, preferably wool
• A cute dress
• Animal skin (faux) clutch 
• T-strap or open-toed sandals

I spent an hour and a half in our small community store and only $53.

I walked out with my grey pencil skirt with a slight flare at the bottom, 2 silk blouses, 2 cotton sleeveless button down tops, a v-neck graphic tee, a sleeveless fit and flare rayon dress, 2 jersey knit tanks, 2 brand new belts, a vintage-look snakeskin purse, a ceramic candle holder, and an antique (25-30 years old-ish, according to eBay) plate made by Wood & Sons of England.

If you have the time and money to spend, go for it and graze the aisles.

Important: if you plan to make shopping for clothes and household goods a routine, be sure that you are able to use all that you bring home. Otherwise you may become  a hoarder.