Saturday, June 21, 2014

Thrift Store Haul

Stuff I Got at the Thrift Store 

Striped wool scarf: 25 cents from the Reject Bin
Clothes that are deemed unsaleable get sent to recycling; 
some staff are extremely picky: I can't actually see anything wrong with this scarf.

Coffee beans: Free
People donate everything to thrift stores, from chipped champagne flutes to canned ravioli. We can't sell food, so the staff can take it. I figured these sealed coffee beans would be OK, even though they are 6 months past the expiration date.

2¼-inch square picture frame: 50 cents
Hooray! I've been wanting to frame this snapshot of my high school friend Chuck who died in 2011, but stores don't sell this size frame anymore. I figured one would show up at the thrift store eventually, and sure enough...

Tatted-flower stationery with lined envelopes: 75 cents
I've taken it upon myself to be the Cards and Stationery Sorter. 
 It's like archaeology: I open old boxes to find a mish-mash of papers, envelopes, return-address labels, decorative stickers, a stray postage stamp, even sometimes a note or letter. 
These tatted-flower sheets, tied in lace ribbon, hit a sensory nerve, something like the scent of my grandmother's Coty Airspun Loose Face Powder.

Greeting cards: 25 cents each
The other day I found some-dozen Christmas cards inside an old paper bag. No envelopes: the cards are used, but only signed lightly. And I know they're from the 1950s because someone had penciled dates on their backs. 
Look for one in your mailbox this December....

3 comments:

Zhoen said...

Treasures.

Krista said...

That's a fabulous scarf!

Fresca said...

ZHOEN: I especially like paper treasures because they don't take up much room---especially if I actually write letters on them and send them away!

KRISTA: When I saw it, I thought of that Dr Who scarf RR knitted for you!