Gone thriftin'

This past month, I've done a whole lotta thrift shopping. Craigstlist, Kijiji, Salvation Army, Renaissance, Value Village...if they've got second hand goods, chances are I've been there. Twice. On days where Theo and I have no plans, we get in the car and drive to remote thrift stores, sometimes off of the island, in search of treasure. I'm making it sound like we're pirates....Anyways, I usually look for stuff for our home and not clothing (I do like vintage clothes but I'm not very skilled at vintage clothes shopping). In my opinion, the best thrift stores are in the depths of the suburbs so you have to drive far but I find it's usually worth it. Since Theo is growing up so quickly, we often have clothes and toys to donate so we kill two birds with one stone by donating our old goods and purchasing new ones! Thrifting is not for everyone. It takes patience, trunk space and some imagination. Patience is not one of my virtues but I make up for it in determination. I wanted to share with you some of my latest finds in hopes that it might inspire you to get thrifty.

People who come to our home are often surprised to discover that so much of our furniture is second hand and ask me how come I get so lucky when I shop in thrift stores. The truth is that these lucky breaks are definitely few and far between and items that look good in our house did not necessarily look good when we first spotted them. You have to train your eye to see potential in everything. It's amazing what a coat of paint or some varnish can do to an old piece of furniture or accessory. A good example of this is our new kitchen light, which I found at Restore (the Habitat For Humanity renovation surplus store - amazing place btw). I loved the delicate glass globe and the $5 price tag but hated the faux gold fixture. I bought it in hopes that I could hack it a little bit to make it more industrial-looking. Thanks to a coat of black paint and a $15 lightbulb (from Lambert & Fils), the light fixture is now updated and hanging pretty in our kitchen.

The first section I check out in any thrift store is what I affectionately call the "knick knacks section". It's where they pile up kitchen accessories and other decorative goods. I always look for brass, wood and pottery. Sometimes I come across pieces that are signed on the bottom and look them up on my phone. I've learned a lot about Japanese and English pottery just by doing quick google searches in the aisles of Value Village. One recent find was this small copper pan I found for $4. It's the perfect size for sauces and for toasting nuts. I am actively looking for more copper pans now because they're amazing to cook with.

If Theo is in a good mood, I like to go through every rack of a thrift store, one at a time. I will also go back and double check certain sections before leaving to make sure that my eyes didn't miss something. This paid off a few weeks ago when Mike and I drove to Laval to a Renaissance Friperie. We had gone through every aisle without any luck and I decided to go and take one last look at the fabrics and old blankets. I had just about given up when I came across a thick green wool blanket. Sure enough, it was an old 4 Point Hudson's Bay Company blanket. I checked the tags to make sure it was authentic and it was! It was discoloured by the sun but had no holes or weird smells and at $7, it was to good to pass up.

I've always been an avid Craisglister and Kijiji poster. I love the idea of re-using and upcycling used goods that are in perfectly good condition. I would estimate that approximately 75% of our furniture was found on either of these websites. Sure, it's great to save some cash but I mostly do this because I love the thrill of the hunt. It's so exciting to spot a great find and to bring it home for pennies. My most recent Kijiji find was a set of 4 dining room chairs for $80. I bought them because we needed a different profile of chair to match the custom dining table we had made (more on that later this week!). I spotted them in the morning and by the afternoon, they were in our house. The following week, I sold our old table (pictured below) and hutch on Kijiji so technically, the chairs were free!

It takes a lot of patience to shop this way. You have to check for updates frequently and be prepared to drive to far off locations to pick up your items but it's so worth it! Mike has many hilarious stories from times where I've sent him to random addresses to pick up a chair or a table. Once he was basically kidnapped by an elderly woman who talked his ears off for 45 minutes. Another time he had to carry a giant armchair onto the subway. He sat in the armchair in the actual subway and tourists were photographing him. Obviously, I don't drive to pick up furniture on my own or with the baby. Safety first people. I always make sure to speak on the phone with the person beforehand and try to get Mike to go for me or with me when it's time to pick up. Same rules apply whenever we sell something. I make sure that I'm not home alone because you never know who's coming over. I've never had any issues though. I'm always so happy to see someone purchase one of our old pieces and be excited to make it their own. It makes me feel good to know that our old pieces will have a new lease on life instead of ending up in the dump somewhere. Plus, it makes room for more stuff in our place. Win-Win.

// Do you have any tips for thrift shopping? What's your favorite place to buy used goods?