I <3 Thrifting Party

I have never been much of a thrifter.  I do love  visiting antique markets, especially the large outdoor ones in the warmer weather.  I have popped in to the odd Value Village or Goodwill over the years but it’s not something I do on a regular basis like some of my fellow thrifters on the weekend.  It’s mostly because when I do stop in, I never seem to find that unique item that I just have to have.  It can be overwhelming when faced with aisle after aisle of preloved items.

The I <3 Thrifting Party that took place on Saturday (in case you are wondering the <3 is a heart)  was tons of fun mostly due to spending it with like-minded design enthusiasts and expert thrifters. 

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Mr. Goodwill Hunting, Rashon Carroway had an idea to have a day when people across the land (and as faraway as Sweden), would gather together and visit thrift stores in the name of saving money and finding one of a kind pieces to decorate their homes.  They had almost 40 people show up in Charlotte, N.C. 

The Toronto area chapter consisted of  Amy,  Jen, Tim and myself – a small but fun and talented group. We ventured out to the thrift stores listed here to see if we could find any unique finds.

I finally had the opportunity to meet Jen’s daughter, little Miss Chloe.  Here she is trying to find that Dora video she was after:

  

Thrift stores are a great place to find unique pieces that can be inspiration for decorating a room.  Remember this sweet boy’s room that Shannon blogged about?  Well, there were plenty of old wood racquets just waiting to be hung on someone’s wall.

 

It was fun to read the #ilovethrifting Twitter stream with thrifters posting their finds and what they purchased.  Seems there are some amazing furniture pieces to be had in thrift stores across the US.  That wasn’t the case here – minimal furniture and what was available was, in a word, ugly.

So what did I purchase? I think you can never have enough containers/bowls/vases to house and organize “stuff.”  Thanks goes to Tim who found the pretty scalloped bowl and milk glass vase.  They will look great on shelves in my daughter’s room.  We are always in search of containers for hair accessories and her little trinkets.  I also picked up the tarnished brass bowl which had a lovely turquoise and pink patina. Each piece was $3-4.

 

I also purchased these English ironstone cups and bowls (there were no saucers) – the Manitou pattern by Grindley.  I love the stylized floral and fruit motif. They are available online at a number of sellers and one source suggested they were manufactured in the 1960’s.  The cups were $1.49 each and the bowls were $1.99 and the perfect size for serving ice cream.

All in all, it was a fun adventure and now I think I’m hooked!

Do you thrift? What has been your most unique find or what are you searching for?

If you require decorating advice, please contact me at vanessa@vanessafrancis.com.  I would love to help you out and maybe even take you thrifting!