A Thrifting We Will Go

Hi my name is Laura and I LOVE to thrift.  Seriously, ever since I realized what gems can be found at thrift stores I have been hooked.  With a little love and elbow grease you can turn something from drab to fab.  (Cliche I know, but true!) 

Tyler, Everett, and I headed out this morning to check out a few of the outlets here in Rehoboth Beach (we're still at Grandma's house) and to grab some lunch.  While we were at lunch, I noticed a thrift store across the parking lot! Jack pot! We didn't do so well at the outlets today so I hoped that a good thrifting trip might liven up the day! 

As soon as we walked in, I knew it was going to be a great trip! There was a huge selection of large and small items of all shapes and sorts.  Furniture galore! 

In need of a piano? You could pick up this beauty for $100! It did have a note that said it needed to be tuned and you of course would probably want to refinish it but what a great deal!

Tyler and I both LOVED this trunk but wished it was a different color. This little guy was $45 and in great shape. It would have been worth it to buy it and spray paint it but we weren't really sure where we would want to put it. I would love to have made this out of it though!

Fixing up your house? Check out this almost brand new light fixture for $50! You could easily recreate this Pottery Barn chandelier for a thrift store price! The key to thrifting is to see what these items can be! 

Tyler wanted to buy this putting green (for $8) for his office! Can you see the thrill in his eyes! 

These 45's were just sitting in a box in the corner.. I bet there were at least a few good ones in there! 

This cute little hutch ($125) could be left as is or could be easily updated and used in almost any room in the house. This would be great in a kitchen for extra storage or to display china or vases. 

When I saw this umbrella holder ($15) it was love at first sight! Imagine how stinking cute this would be right inside the front door or in the mud room.  I did pick this little baby up.  I have some plans that may or may not include some brightly colored spray paint! 

I don't know how someone could let grandma's crocheted blanket ($5) go to the thrift store! If it matched our decor I would have totally picked it up!  

This large chest was a whopping $300! That's a bit pricey for a thrift store find but it was solid wood and pretty big. It would be great to store things in as well as to use as a coffee table. 

Check out this glass lamp I picked up for $5!  As soon as I saw this I knew what I was going to do with it.. check out this lamp that I saw at the Sea Shell Shop for $169!  I am going to be able to duplicate this almost EXACTLY for a $5 thrift store lamp, a lamp shade that I will pick up from Target (my favorite place), and sea shells from Grandma's house (for free!)  This is what I am talking about! I will do a Nap Time Craft Time post on this soon! 

Another cute set I saw were these Norman Rockwell plates.  They looked like they might be worth something- not really sure.  They were priced at $3 each and were pretty cute.  They would be nice as a set to display- maybe in that hutch up above?

Needless to say I was very happy from our thrift shop experience and have two new projects that I will be working on in the upcoming weeks.  The photo below shows what we brought home with us from the thrift shop. Tyler found a book by William Gibson called Count Zero which is the second book in the Sprawl Trilogy.  He was excited to find this book since he read the first book in the series last year.  He took a "Cyber Punk" class in college which is spurred his interest in this genre. 

The umbrella holder ($15), glass lamp base ($5), mini lamp shade ($0.25), Count Zero book ($0.25).  Our total came to $20.50 (no sales tax in Delaware!)  

I hope that this thrift store preview has inspired you to check out your local thrift shops and see what you can find! Don't be afraid to get your hands dirty and make some magic!  Check out one of Tyler and I's FAVORITE blogs, Young House Love and all their thrifty posts here!