Thrifting

Excuse the fact that this is going to be a complete drive by post. The weather up here is completely unbelievable, now as a native Chicagoan I expect fairly decent weather in early April in Chicago. However I no longer live in Chicago I live in Maine and generally speaking early April feels more like late winter than early spring but we are on the receiving end of some unseasonably warm weather. Yesterday was 76! 76 is something you see in August in Maine not April.

So with such weather, you just have to kick back, play a little hooky from work and go on an adventure…so today’s adventure was a trip to the new Goodwill that opened up a few towns over from me. This Goodwill is what I have taken to calling the Goodwill Emporium, it’s housed in a building that used to be home to Circuit City so as you can imagine it is fucking huge as far as thrift stores go.

I will be honest I wasn’t too impressed since such a huge thrift store brings out real die-hard thrifters and the casual folks.In other words it was packed and there is nothing worse than a packed thrift store. I spent a bit of time getting bummed that I could not find what I was in search for, some blouses and dresses from the 1960’s and early 1970’s…yes I do have a unique sense of style going on.

Anyway I was getting ready to call it a day when I decided to circle back over to the handbags, did I tell you I love purses? Seriously back when the Spousal Unit and I were living the good life in Chicago I was known to spend ridiculous sums on purses. Sadly, almost all the good bags all got sold on E-bay when we went broke save three bags  that I just could not part with due to sentimental reasons.

So I look around at the handbags several times examining them trying to see if anything looked good or if they were all junk, when I spot a unique little bag that someone has stashed away far on the back of the rack. I take it off and lo and behold its a Prada bag. I look it over quickly and as best as I can determine it’s the real deal and by the way it has no price on it…my heart was beating loudly since I had no idea if the workers would even sell me the bag since it had no tag on it or if they would recognize the label. Long story short, the clerk looked at the bag after determining there was no tag and asks “How about $4.99″…um, hell to the motherfucking yeah. Considering I have seen fricking Fossil bags at Goodwill priced for $14.99 getting a real Prada bag for $4.99 is a thrifting coup.

So dear reader as a dedicated thrifter I just had to share that bit of goodness with you…what deals have you recently scored?

4 thoughts on “Thrifting”

  1. Wow, that IS an impressive deal!

    I haven’t been to a thrift store since high school. Back then I would hook myself up with the coolest vintage stuff.

    I would love a Chanel purse. Maybe another Coach purse, too. My mother presented me with the cutest little Coach purse AND matching wallet out of the blue at Christmas a few years back.

    I have fond memories of shopping with my mom, too.

    I’ve only been to Maine once…my mother is from Dexter, which is about 30 minutes away from Bangor.

    Do you ever check out any vintage stores where you live?

  2. Unique? I used to love that place..my Mom and I used to go to the one in Uptown. One of the things I miss about my old stomping grounds in Chicago is the abundance of great thrift stores ranging from Unique and Village to places like the Brown Elephant.

  3. A five dollar Prada?! Word? Oh my, I’m almost speechless. That’s akin to someone who doesn’t play the lottery buying an instant ticket for laughs, only to win five or ten grand off said ticket! Just wow.

    Can’t think of much else that was an *absolute* steal just now, but I scored a decent bag last week @ Unique–man, I shudder to imagine the ensuing chaos if they opened a new store in an abandoned Circuit City: black, just the right size, plenty of room, was out all of $3.50 (half-price day; given the great condition it’s in, I would’ve paid the full price). It was only when I got on the bus going home that I realized this purse was actually a camera bag: **insert thought bubble here** “ah, that explains the lack of inside pockets and that old laminated business card attached to the strap…*snort*…oh crap, ‘minolta’ is embossed on the front pocket…that’s okay, it has character and serves its [new] purpose…hm, I almost want to attach rivets, Ramones buttons or some such nonsense, but I think the bag is great as-is.”

    ^I’ve always enjoyed thrift store finds that have some hint of history. 😀

  4. Also a bag. Italian leather and craftmanship, made in Italy by a small exclusive company, brand new, 20$. I googled it and it was 380$. That’s my biggest coup, the smaller stuff is too much to list. Wow, 5$ for a real Prada bag is impressive! I paid 15$ for one at a thrift store, I got overexcited, and at home I realized it was fake. I had to throw it away, they didn’t accept returns.

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