Thrifty Thrifting . . .

After hearing my design guru, Nate Berkus, harp on the great finds to be found at thrift stores, I figured that it was time I check one out.  There is a large one a few miles from me here in Northern Virginia - called "Unique Thrift".  The name cracks me up, but I must admit, I was more than a bit intrigued, so I decided to check it out today while Heidi was napping and Robb was watching the Ravens game. 

I was a little overwhelmed upon first entering the place - before you even get to the actual thrift store, there's all of these "booths" specializing in everything from cheap furniture to jewelery (a lot of it looked kind of junky to me).  But, once you proceed past that area, the actual thrift store stretches out in front of you like an ocean (I exaggerate, of course).  The first 10 aisles or so were made up of household items like glassware, vases, pictures, clocks, etc.  The next 2 aisles were children's books and toys.  After that there was one aisle dedicated to both hardcover and paperback books.  Surrounding this section were lots of racks of clothes, organized by gender and age.  Towards the back were furniture pieces and light fixtures. 

I chose to focus my search on small housewares and light fixtures.  I proceeded up and down each relevant aisle slowly, looking the items over and keeping my eyes peeled for anything that seemed to "jump out" at me, for one reason or another.  At the end of my shopping experience, here's what I ended up with:

Here's a run down of the items, counterclockwise from the bottom left:

1) Par of Washington Redskins juice glasses - 69 cents each - $1.38 total - I had Robb in mind when I snagged these, and he was pretty psyched about them when I got home and showed him. 

2) Small galvanized metal cachepot/planter - 69 cents - I have 2 large galvanized metal pots/planters that I scored for $1 each at a yard sale awhile back, so I think the three together will make a nice vignette once I figure out what to plant/display - meanwhile, I'm loving this image from Pottery Barn:

3) Set of 3 small bottom weighted glasses (or candle holders?)  - $2.07 for the set - not sure what I'm going to use these for - at the moment I think I'm going to probably put tea lights in them, but we shall see -

4) 2 small glass bottles- one with attached cork/plug -$1.91 each - $3.82 total - would be a much prettier way to store hand soap I'm thinking (although not as convenient as the plastic pump dispensers we're currently using...)

5) Small glass canister with matching lid - $2.92 - I'm picturing some sort of bathroom storage, like cotton balls or something, much like the image here (the canister I purchased looks most like the small one in this pic):

Thanks again Pottery Barn for filling my mind with all of these ideas!

6) Glass decanter - $5.95 - looks similar to this Nola decanter from Crate and Barrel:

7) Basket with handles and hook closure - $2.49 - love the rustic look, and the ample storage is a bonus too!  I'm picturing this on a bookcase somewhere in the house

8) Desk lamp - was marked $6.99, but was apparently on sale for $3.49 - whoo hoo!  Reminds me of this lamp with its adjustable height and dome (although the one I purchase is more of a brushed nickel finish):

9) 3 books - 2 for Heidi (and one aptly named "Heidi" - the other one was Robinson Crusoe - these are for her in several years, obviously - but I HAD to get the Heidi one!) and one for me - chick lit. $2.97 total

10) This one is totally random.  I THINK it once was a spice rack, but the spices are long gone.  I think I was channelling this image when I decided to add it to my cart (can you tell I flipped through the most recent PB catalog right before heading out to shop??):

I figured that for $1.91, I could have a go at repurposing it into something special.

11) This vintage suitcase, at $3.99, was one of my more expensive finds, but I think it's one of my favorites.  The front of it is stenciled with "ADVANCED BEAUTY COLLEGES - TUCSON".  Love it for the unique factor.  I think I'd like to stack it with a couple other salvaged suitcases under a table for unique storage and display.

Grand Total - $33.25 (after tax).  I love that kind of shopping spree!!  As I was leaving, I learned that on Mondays, everything in the store is 25% off, so from now on, I will plan my visits for Mondays!