Shopaholic and Sister
That
book title probably best sums up my two days of second hand shopping with my
sister (Karen), though neither of us strongly resemble either Becky or Jess,
the sisters of whom the title refers. Still, after you read my tale about being
initiated into the world of thrift shopping, you’ll probably agree that at
least one of us is a shopaholic.
Though
I had been to thrift stores/charity shops previously, the closest I ever came
to entering chaos was when I tried to browse on a Saturday afternoon during a
Goodwill auction (not easy to push a cart between the narrow aisles with all
the auction attendees standing around waiting for their lot to come up). Thrift
stores, at least the ones we visited, are run with military precision. There’s
no messing around on a sale day.
Until
Tuesday I was a sales day newbie, a “virgin” if you will. I had no idea that a
shopping cart was a hot commodity, or that you could only take a maximum of six
items into a fitting room at one time. Thanks to the periodic announcements I
learned all this and more as the store personnel are encouraged to repeatedly remind
customers of store policy. It was almost like being in an airport, “Travelers
are reminded to remain with their luggage at all times. Left luggage will be
destroyed…”
Since
the last Tuesday of every month is half-off day at Volunteers of America, we
visited both stores in the local vicinity. At the first store we lucked out and
didn’t have to wait too long for a cart, so once I spied an opportunity to snag
one, I jumped on it and eagerly strolled over to my sister like a cat who had
just caught a mouse.
After
browsing the selection of purses hanging off the end of each aisle, I started
down the jeans row where my sister was up to her neck in denim. My system for
selecting jeans, besides looking for Petite Short on the label (like trying to find
a needle in a haystack), was to only grab jeans with interesting looking
pockets with a preference for tab pockets (whereas my sister is a label
shopper). I soon had a pile of about a half a dozen, so I borrowed the cart to
stake out a place in line for the fitting rooms.
Unless
you have a devil-may-care attitude and aren’t bothered to try on anything, you
need to allocate at least a half an hour standing in line, though I’m not sure
I waited that long. I’m glad I did take the time since only half of the jeans
actually fit, so it would have been a waste of money to purchase the other
pairs.
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| Now I know how Sandy felt in "Grease" |
The
other two rules that are repeated loudly and often are “to remove all hangers”
and “please make your final selection before reaching the cashier.” There’s a
rack to place your hangers on near the check-out, so you don’t have to go out
of your way to comply with this rule.
Since
I was just learning, I ended up with one modest bag of items from each store.
My finds of the day include a pair of navy blue Mootsies Tootsies shoes, a
Coach crossbody bag and a little black Prada bag. Of course the purses might
not be authentic since I only paid a dollar or two for each, but both were in
pretty good condition, so I think I’ll get my money’s worth.
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| my little black Prada bag |
Wednesday – Salvation Army Family Day and Half-Off at Ohio
Thrift
Today
I got a lesson in math when I was in line and trying to figure out the price of
some books I had stacked in my cart. Salvation Army’s system is 90% off the
cover price (if one is listed), or $1.50 for hardbacks and $1 for paperbacks (I
think). My sister, a math teacher, reminded me (and the cashier) that the
easiest way to compute price is just to move the decimal point over to the
left. The store manager overheard my sister’s math lesson and complimented her.
Turns out he used to be a math teacher too, so they soon struck up a
conversation while the cashier rang up my pile of treasures. The manager
reminded us that 82 cents on every dollar goes straight back to the charity
helping all manner of people in need.
With
that in mind, this time I think I outspent my sister, but not by much (perhaps
$10 or $20?). My favorite purchase was an ivory colored vest jacket similar to
the one my sister was wearing that day. I know it’s silly for an older sister
to emulate the younger one, but I definitely do. That’s right Karen, I actually
look up to you! (and not just because you’re a little taller than me too : )
After
a couple pitas, some spicy fries and a little Baklava for dessert, we were ready
to hit the aisles again. Since this was the farewell stop on our little tour of
central Ohio thrift stores, we didn’t take any prisoners and decided to go to
the larger outlet of Ohio Thrift (which was probably a mistake as you’ll read
later). Got a cart fairly quickly, and like the previous day, my sister ran
into another sports mom, so we stopped to chat near the jewelry showcase. Hence,
the reason I ended up purchasing about half a dozen or so watches (two of which
I later elected to buy batteries for). I also found a nice blue vase, a shabby
chic mirror that looks like a window, and a Parisian picture similar to one
that’s been hanging in our kitchen for the last few years. Because these objects
were ‘Showcase’ items, there’s no discount, so you have to keep that in mind
when totaling your purchases.
The
strangest object I came across there was a brunette wig in a blue hat case. I slowly
undid the two latches and hesitantly opened the box and almost slammed it shut
when I saw all the hair. It was a little off-putting, but if it hadn’t been for
the $15 price tag, I might have purchased it just for the vintage box.
As
per usual, Karen and I split up for part of the time, but then ended up meeting
in the purse/handbag/tote department where we spent perhaps an hour or so
debating the merits of several dozen bags. Suffice it to say that I soon filled
the cart only saying no to a select one or two. In the matter of an hour I soon
regained most of the inventory I worked so hard to get rid of last autumn when
I had my annual clear-out. Deep sigh.
I
also have to confess to purchasing a rather sexy chic looking fanny pack (though
I’m not sure fanny packs are either sexy or chic, but old leather certainly is).
Though I swore you would have to kill me first if I ever purchased one, I
somewhat fell in love with this one, but am unsure whether I will actually use
it. I will DEFINITELY NOT WEAR IT AROUND MY WAIST.
My
other weakness, and this is purely Karen’s fault, is my love for scarves. At
one time in my life I only used to buy them to use as a decoration to cover a
dresser or a table, and I still use some of them for that. However, when Karen
gave me a makeover last year, scarves were something she encouraged me to
embrace (as did my mother-in-law who has given me at least a couple over the
years).
My
finds of the day, at least at that store were a pair of navy blue Clarks mules
with a chunky heel, and two point ‘n shoot film cameras with film still in them
(and one with a brand new battery – worth way more than the price of the
camera).
I’m
sure you have guessed that it was me who, once again, outspent my sister. It
was more than a little embarrassing that she had to help me lug my six bags of miscellaneous
crap to her overstuffed minivan. “Just make sure you tell Andy that this isn’t
all my fault,” she begged. Don’t worry Karen. Andy knows I’m weak and have no willpower,
but those tight, skinny jeans and Ralph Lauren tote are all down to you! : )
A
sales day newbie/virgin no more! Did you know the Ohio Thrift store even has a
rewards program for its frequent customers. Must look into that….
The Queen Bee at Wholly Craft
Tuesday
night I had enrolled in this class:
Crafty
Woman’s History Month Textile Collage:
“In
this special workshop with Dre of Too Legit To Quilt, you will learn the basic
principles of textile collage and complete a women’:s history month themed
collage using recycled textiles from The Supply Closet! No experience or sewing
skills necessary. Collage topics discussed in this workshop include fabric
selection, color, contrast, texture, adherence, and tools. You will cover each
step of the collage process from idea to execution in this hands-on workshop
and you will leave with a masterpiece of your own!”
Though
I originally wanted to make a likeness of one of my female role models, Annie
Leibovitz, perhaps that was a bit too ambitious. Moot point anyway since we
were all assigned a more basic beginner’s project – a Queen Bee, because a bee
is a symbol of femininity or something.
Dre
(short for Andrea), created this awesome looking tapestry:
She
told us she also created one of each member of the Dr. Teeth and the Electric
Mayhem Muppet band and a gallery owner in New York state bought up the entire
collection. Way to go Dre! Would love to see photos of them sometime (but as I’m
not on Facebook, am unlikely to be able to view them).
Dre
was an excellent teacher who emphasized ‘There are no rules.’ Glad she said
that since I inadvertently glued my bee’s wings to its abdomen instead of
thorax. We’ll call it a hybrid bee or one with a birth defect. No matter, still
a cool looking insect anyway.
I
only wish she had had some of that handy iron-on paper to adhere to the back of
our material scraps, and an iron since using a hot glue gun was a bit fiddly
(and I ended up spilling a few drops on my material, but left it since I didn’t
want to burn my fingers trying to remove it). Plus, we ended up running out of
glue. No matter, I know artists are on a budget, so I understand. I definitely
wouldn’t hesitate to take a class with her again.
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| Marcia, Dre and Cindy with our bees |
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