Gone Thriftin'

Yesterday, two good friends and I drove to a city more than an hour away to do one thing: visit a really good thrift store.

Does this sound extreme? Even, perhaps, a little insane? The frugal shopper's version of Thelma and Louise?¹

Maybe. But we had a lot of fun together, and we picked up some real bargains.

I started shopping at secondhand stores more than 20 years ago. My husband was in school full-time, and I had been working only a few hours a week since we had our first child. Money was tight, and thrift store shopping seemed to be the only way for me to pick up a few necessary items.

Now, although I still have to stretch our income to provide for our large family, I have several reasons to keep thrifting that have nothing to do with money.

1. No super-store, big-box store or mall can match a good thrift shop for variety. I've never been to a retail store where you can walk in empty-handed and come out with a wedding gown, power tools, a spare tire, a backpack, a Halloween costume and some Christmas decorations – in June.
2. You are likely to find some surprises. Thrift stores offer some unique items you probably can't get anywhere else: Out-of-print books, 8-track tapes, binoculars used in World War II, and sometimes a really beautiful dress or quilt or table that was clearly handmade in a previous owner's house or garage.
3. Most thrift shops are run by charities and support worthy causes like feeding and educating people in need or providing a safe shelter for an abused spouse. Shopping at these stores gives us a great opportunity to help.
4. Buying and using secondhand products is good for the planet. Selling things that would otherwise end up sitting in landfills just makes ecological sense. For the environmentally minded shopper, thrift stores provide the quintessential opportunity to recycle, renew, and reuse.
5. Finally, thrift stores give people a chance to share with those less fortunate. There's no question that many middle-class Americans have too much stuff. Look at the cover of almost any magazine marketed to women and you will probably see a story headline reading “Ten Tips to Cut the Clutter” or something similar. If you look inside, you'll find that the magazine article does not suggest that you get rid of things. No, it will tell you how to store the things you have, so that you can get more stuff you probably don't need. Knowing that a college student or a recently relocated family can make good use of your excess and be grateful for it is a satisfying motivation to pare down.

Some people don't like thrift stores because they don't want to buy things that are “used.” I prefer to think of these items as “broken in.” Let's face it – everything you own is used. Does it really matter who used it first? I like having items in my home that have some history – and it doesn't have to be my history.

I have heard some people express doubts about the quality of secondhand items. How do you know that toaster will work? Maybe that backpack will just fall apart. Maybe. But isn't that true of things wherever you get them? Many thrift stores have a return policy, but I almost never take them up on it. In my experience, thrift store items tend to be higher quality than you might find at discount stores. When clothes have been worn and washed, you can more accurately judge their quality. When a seam rips open the third time the shirt is washed, or an appliance goes out-of-order, people don't give them to the thrift store. They throw them away. Yesterday I bought an old blender. (I don't know how old it is, but the color is Harvest Gold, to give you some idea of its age.) It works well, and I think it might keep working well longer than a new blender I would buy. I've learned to believe the old saying, “They just don't make things like they used to.”

I have occasionally been known to say, “I'm pretty sure that even if I had plenty of money, I would still live frugally. But I wouldn't mind having a chance to find out for sure.”

I may never get that chance. But the more I think about it, the more confident I am that thrift stores will always be on my shopping list.

¹I have not actually seen this movie, so it's possible that I am making an inappropriate comparison here.