Valerie is a 42-year-old, single, Reformed Christian lady who lives in Baltimore. She doesn't remember a time
before she knew and loved Jesus, but she does remember accepting John Calvin into her heart in March of 2000.
Valerie is a member of Christ Reformed Evangelical Church in Annapolis.
Though her career aspiration is to be a housewife, Valerie has not yet found anyone suitable who wishes to hire
her for employment in that field (or, more properly, anyone suitable has not found her), so in the meantime she
earns her daily bread working in communications -- editing, writing, print design and website management.
Thrifting Success
I generally don't have much success with thrifting. I don't do it a lot because A) I'm not a big fan of shopping in general, 2) when I do shop, it's usually for something specific, and the likelihood of finding something specific at Goodwill is slim, and iii) I've never been in a Goodwill that doesn't smell dreadful. Blech.
But Friday evening I was going to the grocery store on the way home from work, and since there's a Goodwill in the same shopping center, I decided to pop in and see if I could find a largish round platter. (I actually own such a platter, but it's been in a box and my mom's house for three years now, and was not brought back last month as my brother promised. Grrr.)
The platter, of course, did not materialize. (See point 2 above.) What I did find, however, made up for it: I) a pink gooseberry Pyrex dish that matched my mixing bowls, which I more often use as serving dishes, B) a tupperware container that matches my other pieces, 3) a small wine rack that holds nine bottles, which is as many as I'm likely to have at one time, and four) an item I'll mention in another post. I've never had such a successful thrifting experience, and I am grateful for what the Lord has so graciously provided!
Posted by Valerie (Kyriosity) at 11:21 PM
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9 comments
9 Comments:
On August 19, 2007 8:59 AMKimberlywrote... My favorite thing about thrift shopping is the surprise of what you'll find and the way it feel like a gift because you weren't thinking of it at the time. I don't like that you can't go in looking for what you want and get it.
I'm looking forward to going to a thrift store in Boise, Idaho when I pick up a girlfriend from the airport. Several folks rave about this "Savers", so I'm willing to give it a try.
I enjoy shopping at Tuesday Morning which is not thrift but discount new. The inventory constantly changes and it is the closest thing to gambling that this timid heart does. Besides, for me, it's much more fun than the sporting good and hunting stores my husband likes to visit.
On August 20, 2007 10:38 PMJanewrote... Oh, so that's what Tuesday Morning is! There's one up here, and I almost stopped in recently, but didn't have the time to check out a place that might not have been at all what I was looking for. I'll check it out at my next opportunity.
On August 20, 2007 10:57 PMValerie (Kyriosity)wrote... I've been in Tuesday Morning a time or three, but it's not someplace I'd go unless, like the Goodwill, it were very convenient to someplace I was already going.
The other problem with such places is that it's more tempting to buy stuff I really don't need, and didn't even know I wanted 'til I saw it, and don't have a place to put it once I bought it. I've gotten more disciplined and wise about shopping over the years, though, so I'm safer in such places than I once was.
On August 21, 2007 1:33 PMpentamomwrote... Well, I visited Tuesday Morning this morning (how appropriate!) and discovered that it's another place to add to my list, for particular needs. It appears to be a sort of upscale Family Dollar -- off-price, leftovers, but by no means cheap. However, it does seem to be the place to go when you want something really good and don't want to either pay mall prices or settle for Walmart quality and variety.
Has Angel Bay made it to your neck of the woods? Angel Bay is Salvation Army's upscale thrift shop. The stuff is still really cheap -- designer shirts and pants for under $10 for most things, for example -- but they only sell the higher quality stuff. They have decorator items and housewares as well.
Our local CPC also has a place called My Sister's Closet. Just got a pair of pants, a skirt, and a sweater there for $16 this morning -- again, all really good condition, good quality stuff. Boo-yah!
Next time you guys make it down to Laurel you might want to hit a thrift shop near the intersection of 197 and 198. One of the biggest I've ever seen.
A few years ago I had been shopping for some black dress boots--high top, low heel, and having a hard time finding any. I was pretty much resigned to pay more than I wanted to for a pair I'd seen in a catalog when I visited the Laurel thrift shop. There, sitting on a rack, was a pair of ladies' black, high top, low-heel boots. I thought, "No way are they going to be my size." They were. Five bucks! That's definitely my best thrift shop find.
I never was into thrifting until very recently -- I always found the prospect of going through racks and racks of poorly arranged and labeled, usually poor quality stuff in a dismal environment rather unpleasant. (Our Salvation Army shops here are huge so you could spend a lot of time looking and still not come away with much satisfaction.) I've tried a couple of times, but never really got into it.
But now that the "upscale" thrifts have come into fashion, I'm getting into it. Also, there's a small Goodwill quite close to my house now, and that's less intimidating to me. (It smells okay, too.) ;-)
Angel Bay is associated with our local city mission, not the SA. I suspect, however, it's a name and a setup that someone dreamed up and is being used in other places, though I don't really know.
