Best Places To Go Thrift Store Shopping
Knowing where to go thrifting is the first step to becoming a thrifting guru and finding crazy good stuff for LARP. Eventually you’ll find the places you like to haunt frequently. I usually stop by my favorite three shops at least once a week. Each visit walking through these shops is another die roll to a good find.
Go to the “rich neighborhoods.”
I hate to say it, but it’s true. The upper class neighborhoods have the best thrift stores. I was spoiled when I lived down the street from three thrift stores near Brentwood, CA. For those who don’t know, that’s where most of the upper crust of Hollywood live if not Malibu or Beverly Hills. I would find designer jeans for $20, interesting jewelry, but also interesting nick-knacks all for a very affordable price. Once, in Carmichael, CA (an upper class area of Sacramento) I found a used black fox fur stole for $20. I don’t think they knew what they had.
Seek diversity.
The heart of a city where many cultures collide is a sure way to find things that will enhance your LARP kit. I’ve found Turkish coffee makers for as little as five dollars and portable tray tables for under $40. You will also find beautiful embroidered pillows, shirts, pants, scarves and curtains (yay cheap yardage) in places where cultures appreciate this sort of craftsmanship. Other things you will find are gorgeous hand carved wooden boxes.
More secrets to shopping at thrift stores:
- Go often. The more you go, the more chances you have to find treasure.
- Go right after holiday weekends, especially after New Years, Spring and Summer. People are always using long weekends to clean out the garage or do that estate sale. Whatever doesn’t get sold usually ends up at a thrift store.
- Shop on holiday weekends. A lot of thrift stores have sales as they try to make room for those large donations coming in after people clean out their garages on a holiday weekend.
- Try to find out when their donation delivery truck arrives and go that day or the day after.
- Shop the clearance date or color. Thrift stores usually have a color of the week or a date range that is 50% off.