*This series is sponsored by CommunityAmerica Credit Union. CommunityAmerica believes a big aspect of financial security is living within your means to fund your dreams, and I was thrilled when they wanted to partner up to share my love of thrifting. All thoughts and opinions in this series are my own.
Just seeing the series? Start here.
Thank you for all of the kind words about the series! You all agreed I’ve been very thorough I’m a long storyteller, just ask my husband! and this is one area that it works in my favor, ha. But here are the questions you asked along the way that I didn’t hit in the other 4 weeks.
Any tips on thrifting on a road trip? Use the Google Maps tip I talked about in this post. Aside from my normal thrifting tips, I say shop in town, away from the interstate. On the highways they expect tourists and travelers, and the prices will reflect that. Don’t forget to check Craigslist and FB Marketplace too, it’s always fun to look at them in other cities!
How do you know if something is vintage/antique or a reproduction? I think this goes back to knowing what to look for and searching out quality and things that are old. For instance, I can usually tell an antique vs. a mid-century neo-classical piece mainly by the aging and quality of materials. But I’m also not in the business of resale, so it really doesn’t matter to me. I just buy what I love, really old or not as old.
How do you decide which textiles are ok to take home? I’m thinking pillows, curtains, bedding, etc. I honestly don’t look through this stuff much, as I’ve never had amazing luck at thrift stores with it. It’s something you usually have to dig through, and I’m in a season with very little alone time. Antique malls can sometimes have good things that are not a hassle to look through. I feel comfortable buying it from vendors because they have usually washed it and are only selling things that are in good condition. When I do find something I like secondhand I usually wash it right away in warm or hot water. Someone said this once about buying linens secondhand, and it made total sense to me: you use linens at restaurants and hotels without thinking twice, don’t you? When you’re cleaning it yourself, you know it’s clean. I’ve never bought a pillow at a thrift store I’ve never seen one I had to have, but I’m also not that into pillows at the moment but I know some people just put them in the dryer on high heat for a while to kill anything.
Can you talk about what to consider when thrifting for pieces that need reupholstered and what that process looks like? When you’re thrifting pieces for reupholstery, it’s good to have some prior knowledge about the process. Reupholstery is not cheap, but can often be the same as buying something new that’s of lower quality. Plus, this way you’re getting a unique piece. If you’re just starting out, I wouldn’t recommend splurging on a piece. Focus on finding a chair that you can snag for under $50, or an upholstered bench someone has on Craigslist for $15. You don’t want to invest $100 in a chair to find out afterwards it will take $400 in fabric good fabric is more expensive than the average person would guess and $300 in labor without having budget for that. This really needs to be a whole other post, but I recommend starting small, looking for pieces with good lines, and making friends with a local upholsterer you can sometimes get to a point where you can text your upholsterer a picture of a piece of furniture, and they will text you back how many yards and what the labor will cost pretty promptly. It takes the guess work out of the buy.
How do you clean upholstered furniture? I worry about bed bugs, etc. Good things to be concerned with! When I purchase an upholstered piece from a thrift store I usually let it sit in the garage for a few days. I definitely inspect every nook and cranny for anything questionable. If it’s winter I’ll let the piece sit outside overnight. That will kill anything that could have been in it. If I got it from a nice antique mall/consignment shop/someone’s home, I’m less thorough and more trustworthy. As far as cleaning the piece, I love this product for getting little stains out. If the piece has any sort of smell I’ll put baking soda all over it, let it sit in the sun, and then vacuum it off. Same for rugs.
I love all of your thrifted rugs, but don’t have any luck in my area. Can you recommend some online places to search? I haven’t had good luck thrifting rugs in the last few years either. Everyone is wanting the same thing right now mainly orientals so it’s really hard to get them at good deals. You will have to pay a bit more online, but the gas money/time can be worth it! I recommend setting alerts on eBay like I talked about here and there are some good things on Etsy. I’ve heard great things about eSaleRugs. I just ordered a rug from Unique Rug Store online. They have a beautiful and as stated unique selection, but it’s not overwhelming, and the curation is really wonderful. I’ll be sure to share when it arrives!
How do you decide whether to paint a piece of furniture or not? I think the last five years or so have left a bad taste in my mouth for painted furniture. I would say if the wood isn’t in good condition or the tone isn’t nice, paint it. I’m more glam, so if I do have a piece painted, I prefer a high-gloss/lacquer look, but more matte/chalky pieces have their space too. I think the key is to not go crazy. If your room has a lot of wood, a painted piece would be nice. If you already have a painted piece in your space, think about bringing in some stained wood, metal, upholstery, stone…the mix is what makes a room feel comfortable: neither stuffy nor trendy.
What criteria do you use in selecting your books? Is it ok to buy when it’s not a whole collection? I personally look for spines that are pretty and titles that are of interest. The ideal book has both. A whole collection of books is great, but I never pass up pretty and topical books just because a few of the editions are missing. Plus, you never know when you might come across more.
What makes something worth a little more than others? What should average pricing be? How do you know what to pay for an item? This is a question I received a few times, and to be honest, I don’t really know. I know what I think is fair around here, but I think it’s all relative and personal when it comes to thrifting I’m a total cheapskate. You can use Google to look up similar items that are for sale online to get an idea of pricing, but I think the best way to familiarize yourself with average pricing is to just shop a lot. The more stickers you see, the more you’ll know what seems fair for your area and what doesn’t. I live in the middle of the country. My prices are going to look different then somebody’s who lives in L.A. or New York. At the end of the day, if you’re buying for yourself, you just have to decide if the price is worth it to you. I’ve spent more on things I thought were unique enough or just “had to have” pieces. Sometimes it helps to see what you would pay for something similar in a retail store. That console table might seem kind of pricey at $100, but could you go buy something new you liked as much for that price? The answer is usually no.
Starting a collection, what to collect and how to display it? What you collect should be a pretty personal decision. I think probably the most organic way to do this is to start thrifting, and when you realize you’ve bought more than one of something, claim it. For me that’s busts. I can’t stop buying them. For you that might be a certain kind of pottery, or color of glass, but it could be as obscure as butter knives you like. And how to display? I like collections in groups. Whether you have them on a tabletop, on shelves, or hanging on a wall in shadow boxes, wouldn’t a bunch of pretty butter knives look great in a hallway off of a kitchen? keeping collections together gives them one loud voice and keeps them from looking like clutter.
Speaking of collections, I see blue and white everywhere and thought I’d grab some for those of you who collect it but don’t come across it often. Or if you’re looking for something to collect, here’s a start! Just comment below with your favorite tip from the series for your chance to be entered. Must be 18-years-old and a U.S. or Canadian resident to enter. Contest ends Wednesday September 19 at noon CST. Good luck!
A big thanks, again, to CommunityAmerica Credit Union for sponsoring the Thrift Like The Makerista series…I’ve had so much fun writing this! I hope we can do a second installment down the road with even more information as you all start to really hone your thrifting skills. Thank you for following along and in case you missed the other parts you can catch up here, here, here, and here.
For more thrifting tips and tricks, join The Makerista’s Thrift Club here.
LET’S CONNECT! FIND ME ON…
I like & agree with your point on painted furniture. Great point & will definitely remember that when moving forward with decorating/ thrifting.
“If the piece has any sort of smell I’ll put baking soda all over it, let it sit in the sun, and then vacuum it off. Same for rugs.” I LOVE THIS tip! I never thought of doing this! Ha! Love it❤ thank u
I love your advice about collections. I used to have my ginger jars spread all over the place but they look much nicer when all together!
I loved the tip about baking soda/sunlight/vaccum for any smells!
I totally agree about considering the retail price of an item, against its’ thrifted alternative’s price! I used to replace or resell a lot of my own thrifting finds. I figured if I bought something cheap, and sold it for a profit, that was good right?? But it’s sooo hard to find something super specific again thrifting!
I think my favorite tip has been to ask vendors if they can do any better on the price – having a “script” in mind makes it so much easier!
Loved the tips about reupholstered furniture when thriting. What to buy and know how it will cost to get new fabric, and know when not to get something.
I love everything blue and white! Its so true when you do not want it you find it and when you want it you can not find it!
I have started using Facebook Market place as a way to find pieces!
I am always on the hunt for an oriental rug/runner. The websites you suggested are going to be my new go to!
My fav tip was just simply google map searching a new area you’re traveling to/through for antique/thrift shops! Why have I not thought of this?! I am so excited to try it when I visit New York later this month (I’m from MS)! I have been getting a little bleh with the shops I frequent so when you said that it was 🙌🏻
I’ve enjoyed your series. I didn’t really think about staying off interstates. I live in a large city, and I’ve been finding that many big “city” antique malls and thrift stores are either way over priced or quickly picked over (we also have a huge interior decorator scene too). I’ve found going out to smaller, more remote towns often leads to a less picked over selection with more reasonably priced items (I don’t resell for profit).
Since I live in Kansas City, I love your local thrift recommendations!
You have had so many tips! I love the idea of using google maps for consignment stores!
I love the tips about traveling and thrifting!! I’m definitely using those in the future. Thanks!
I have loved this series! Thanks for giving us so many wonderful tips. I really enjoyed your segment on how to haggle, *tastefully*. I think that’s a tricky skill to learn and do well. From this post, I lovedddd your recs on how to display collections. I’m on a big seascape kick right now which has been so fun to collect over time!!
I love old books and I loved your ideas for finding good ones!
My favorite tip: never go thrifting with a toddler! (Signed, mother of a two-year-old)
I totally agree about looking out for pretty book spines! That’s how I choose my books (& my wine).
Sunlight to get rid of odors!
I loved your tip about reupholstering pieces. I’ve always been interested in having something unique but worry about biting off more than I anticipated!
“keeping collections together gives them one loud voice and keeps them from looking like clutter”
I like to collect/hoard dishware. I usually mix them up but they are starting to look cluttered so this gives me a smarter new vision for some of my collections. I need some blue dishes tho ;).
Fun! I just started collecting blue and white.
I loved the tip to check things out to make sure they are actually old before buying.
I love your tip on books! I’m always drawn to them in thrift stores, but wasn’t sure how to start a collection! I’m currently on the hunt for anything leather bound or of similar binding and anything with gold spine lettering! Great tips!
Really appreciated the tips on looking to reupholster thrifted pieces. I wish that was a skill I had, and I really hope I win all those blue and white pottery pieces because I DO collect them! Thanks for the series and this giveaway!
I appreciate the tip about how to clean upholstery and the product you use.
My favorite tip is to make your collections personal! Chart what you’ve purchased and identify some favorite categories.
I like the tip on befriending a local upholster shop and connecting with them about pricing before purchasing a project piece. It’s also a nice reminder that quality fabric is pricey. Thank you for the cleaning /disinfecting tips!
I never thought about leaving furniture outside in the winter, but that is a great idea!
Looking for pretty spines when looking at books was a great one! Loving the blog and IG stories! 😘
I resonated with your tip on buying what you love vs. what something is worth. I love your style, and it was an encouragement to me to keep on buying what I love in order to create a home that reflects my own style not necessarily what’s trendy. Plus, I do collect blue and white and these would be a lovely edition to my collection.
I LOVE google maps tip! I don’t on know why i never thought of that 😀
Love those blue and white. Two of those patterns are my every day dishes that were thrifted by my grandma
Even though FB marketplace seems to be taking over, I think the Craigslist alert is a great tip! Thanks Gwen!
Loving this series so much and loving that blue and white.
My favorite tip is to look at the titles of books! I looo at the spines, but I don’t really think about the title!
Brilliant!
Happy day friend!
The part about estate sales. I go to them every once in a blue moon and always come out feeling overwhelmed
Big thrifter here and fellow KC girl!! 🙋🏼♀️ I truly love watching your thrifting adventures and especially love discovering new places that I didn’t know about thru you. It’s fun trying to see if I can recognize what town and store you’re visiting.
Fave thrifting tip: steering away from locations near the highway…. I seriously had no idea about the higher prices associated with location, but that makes total sense.
Great Blue and white haul, btw… especially love the ginger jar vase, just stunning!!
Keep the tips and shopping trips coming. I’m totally obsessed with your stories because of them. 😉
The baking soda/sun/vacuum tip was new for me. That’s a great one. Love the blue and white Danish style pieces this has been a great series! Thank you
Keep shopping is the tip I like—to become more familiar with pricing.
My favorite tip is about painting furniture..there’s a place for it, but if the wood has a beauty about it, it can add so much richness to your room! Love all these tips!
Honestly, I love every post, every tip. That said, I’ve never bought upholstered furniture or rugs–worried about bugs, dirt, etc. But your tips for cleaning/keeping outside are really helpful and persuasive. But, your best tip always will be to buy what you love. It’s guided me through lots of estate sales and stores. I love looking at something on a shelf or the table that caught my eye somewhere and still does because it fits my taste. Thanks for writing about thrifting–so fun to read!
I’m like you in that I collect books with beautiful spines! I only need a beautiful bookshelf room like yours to display my books.
I loved your tip about goinbrg somewhere in town vs on the interstate so. Time are I just get so excited to venture out and find some goodies and it seems so simple, but I go to what is convenient at the time and sometimes it’s a total miss.
Love this series! My favorite tip is to check Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace when traveling. Your home is beautiful and I love following you on Instagram. Keep up the great work! xoxo
Tip about the painted furniture…great.
I love the tip about thrifting while traveling. I’ve never looked at Facebook marketplace when I’m out of town but I will now!
Thanks for your advice. It’s hard to find deals where I live but I did recently go to an estate sale and had fun looking.
I’d have to go back through the series to pinpoint the best tip. I had asked about bringing in upholstered pieces so the tip of leaving out in the cold was the best piece of information for me.
I also wanted to let your readers know that if old books smell and they usually do, put them in a bag with baking sofa sprinkled on the pages and the smell will be gone. And, I put Zest soap in old bureaus to rid that closed smell. An antique dealer put onto that tip.
Oh, I love the pitcher shown above.
Oh, and I’ve also used Bounce sheets to freshen up old things. They tend to absorb smells. I even put them between pages of books.
Nod to the baking soda for textile smells now if only it worked as well on musty wood odors. Any ideas on for that one?
Love your blue and white collection. we just moved and the new(old) is crying for blue and white that I never had in the old house — that house, craved, needed and wanted all shades of green, red and yellow. So I’m off on the fun adventure of thrifting all new goodies to appease the new house.
Cut up a bar of Zest soap and put in drawers. It’s a deodorizing soap. It worked for me on an old bureau.
Your tips have been great. I think the Craig’s List alert tip was a really good reminder. You told us about those another time and then I didn’t set any up! Very silly, I realize. I adore thrifting and have done a bunch of things you recommended which makes me relieved! I love your style and love your sharing. So great!
My favorite tip has been to look for quality. Sometimes I get so excited about the look or shape, I have forgotten to pay attention to quality. It really does matter and carry a stronger energy and presence when it’s an authentic high quality piece. I’ve donated a few items back to the thrift store because I didn’t follow this rule. I also appreciate you pointing out that there are certain seasons that allow for less DIY. Right now I really do prefer to just find a great piece that I can use as is, instead of putting much work into making it what I need. LOve the blue and white collection!!!
Thank you for these tips 🙂
The entire series on thrifting has been great. I found your tips about setting up alerts on Craig’s List and your technique for haggling very helpful and practical. The advice you gave that rang most true to me was that if you love a piece, knowing it is unique and personal should be your standard for how much you should be willing to pay. Thanks for doing the series and sharing all of your experience.
You can never go wrong with buying what you love. Blue and white for the win!!
Yes, the cost of labor for reupholstering can be prohibitive. I love your tip about getting an estimate before purchasing.
Loved the comment on collecting vs clutter. It’s all how you display and incorporate your goodies into your home! The butter knife thing cracked me up because I actually have a tiny antique spoon collection going on, as i determined this was not only the smallest thing I could usually leave the store with, but also something I could get regular use out of, when serving dips and apps. Great series!
My favorite tip is only purchasing good, quality pieces. If you flip it over and the back is plastic, skip it and move on to something else.
I have to add a second, which is to make use of Facebook garage sales. We have a local page, and if you are really patient, the right piece will come along.
Hands down, no pun intended, the best tip was to bring hand sanitizer and gloves… The whole series was fantastic and inspirational. Off to Costco for economy sized box of gloves to begin thrifting…