10 favorite thrift finds.
Treasure hunting tales.
If there is one hobby I would like to convince everyone to take up, it is thrifting. I don’t need to list all the upsides of shopping secondhand. I’m sure you’ve heard most of them. You’re probably already picturing that giant, floating mass of discarded fast fashion that exists in the Pacific Ocean. I would guess there is a similar black hole of cheap, disposable furniture that exists somewhere else. It’s all pretty horrifying. But I’m not here to explain the moral or environmental upside of thrifting, though those are valid and important. I am here to talk about how happy it makes me.
Browsing Facebook Marketplace or going to stores like ReStore and Goodwill feels, to me, like treasure hunting. Same for estate and yard sales. I can name few greater feelings that driving home from a thrift store with some weird, beautiful item stuffed into the trunk of my car. It brings me pure, unadulterated delight. And yes, I still buy things I do not need. I still sometimes buy too much. I have phases where I need to cool it. But it is a version of shopping that feels like it adds something to my life that goes beyond the surface-level dopamine rush of acquiring another item.
To me, secondhand shopping feels creative, expansive — romantic, even. Here is this weird item that existed in someone else’s very specific life and for whatever reason, you found it. It found you. You bring it home and then it exists in your world. You are tied to some stranger, or a lot of strangers, without even realizing it. It’s lovely.
Every day, I am surrounded by secondhand finds that feel like they add something to my life. Sometimes, it is as simple as beauty and other times it is function at an affordable price. Often, it’s both! Always, I am reminded of the journey that led me to that item. I think of the exact store or yard sale. I remember how excited I was when I found it. I wonder all the lives its lived before. I love it all.
So today, for a fun bonus post, I thought I’d walk through the stories and details behind 10 of my very favorite thrift finds (in no particular order). Naturally, my favorites list goes far beyond just 10 items, so maybe this is the first post of a few…
Weaving
