I am adding a new feature to The Non-Consumer Advocate where you, the reader sends me a photo of yourself with your favorite fabulous frugal find. I also want to hear the story behind the find and what makes it your favorite.
Your find can new or used, big or small, fabulous or funky. It just has to be frugal.
I will then post these photos and stories on the blog so we can all share in one another’s successes.
Let the games begin!
Please send your photos and stories to:
nonconsumer@comcast.net
I look forward to receiving your e-mails!
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
P.S. Thank you to Angela over at myyearwithoutspending for letting me steal and then tweak her thrifty threads idea.
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
The one thing I’ve bought and loved from a thrift store: a food dehydrator for $4. It needed a little cleaning, but since then I’ve been able to stash 13 quarts of prunes, and plenty of dried apples, peaches, berries, etc.
No photos but three awesome (to me) finds.
One, a complete, lightly annotated Shakespeare’s Plays for $10.
Two, the two volume, illustrated Complete Sherlock Holmes, for $20.
Three, and best of all, both volumes of the Compact OED for about $100. Current retail $400 but back then retail was $800. This is my favorite find. I’d had one, borrowed from a family member who eventually wanted it back – the fink. The Shorter OED is a good dictionary but they leave out the histories, which is where all the fun is. So I’d been lookin for the COED for several years and in many cities. Finding it was a big deal for me.
Does getting a gift of a hand-me-down deadtree Encyclopedia Britannica count?
Hopefully I’ll have a frugal find to report soon. There is a baby blue leather couch at the local goodwill that I want. But I have to do some measuring (and praying that no one buys it) before I post it as my success.
But mainly, I go to the thrift store when I need something (ice cube treys, hand towels, wine glasses, etc).
So far my greatest success is a corkboard for $0.65. I used fabric from a dress that I loved (but was too big for me after I had lost weight) to cover it.
My mom is the Queen of garage sales. I would love to go with her, but rarely have the time. So, whenever there is something we’d like we put it on the list and she will inevitably appear with it. The latest thing on the list was a bread machine. Sure enough, she found one. It was practically brand new and she managed to get it for $6! Hubby and I have been enjoying fresh made, organic bread ever since! Hubby asked her for a hand cart for golfing. Two days later she showed up with one (again, almost new) that she paid $2 for! YAY MOM!
We got a $5 brand new rice maker at a garage sale that has lasted 8 years and two moves. We use it a few times a week. What’s funny is when I first purchased it – I wondered if $5 was too much!!
Hmm…I’m sure I can find something! lol My house is populated with frugal finds.
* littermaid self cleaning cat box-free (someone didnt want to clean it), litter tubs for it-free from freecyclers
* bread machine-free (yard sale leftover)
* 2 beautiful 5 foot topiaries-free (trash day)
* 20 cut sunflowers-free (drove by a nursery who was throwing them out???)
* end table with marble top-free (yard sale leftover)
* light up santa sleigh, 2 reindeer, 1 penguin-free (a fuse needed to be replaced)
*rain barrel-free (trash day, why would you send this to trash??)
* uncarved pumpkins after halloween for making pumpkin pies-free from freecyclers (oh and seeds for next years garden)
but my favorite was a gift basket i created for a babyshower
*new in box lenox coin bank-free from a freecycler
*new baby shoes-$2
*baby overalls that i sewed a red sox patch on the front-$1 (thank you katy wolk stanley!)
*new baby picture frame-$2
*baby spoon tied to it
an $80 gift for $5, and most of it was new.
What a fun idea! I love Angela’s Thrifty Threads feature and have been meaning to photo myself in my Nicole Miller dress I bought for a BUCK FIFTY.
Rememeber the Seinfield Nicole Miller episode?
Love this feature Katy
I found a brand new serving tray by Rae Dunn at a thrift store for $10. Her trays usually sell in the $100 range. Score!!
What a great idea for a column, Katy! My fav thrift finds so far are 3 pairs of brand new jeans for 2 bucks apiece, a side table for 3.50 that I painted a yummy green and now sits on our porch with a vase of dried flowers, a new rattan Pottery Barn chair for 75 bucks (a floor sample which PB declared was flawed: a one inch scrape on the back that you can’t even see–you gotta love wasteful consumerism), new old stock Jerry Garcia ties for my husband, 2 bucks apiece, and Asimov’s guide to Shakespeare for a buck. This is not as exciting as the earlier Shakespeare deals WilliamB got (fabulous!), however I had had my eye on this huge book for a couple years and was so happy to find it at that price.
My neighbor used to collect pennies. He constructed sturdy wood footlocker chests to store them. After he cashed in his 7 chests of pennies he had them lying around. He told me that I would be doing him a favor by taking them off of his hands. It was a great find and great storage.
Love your blog!
Garage saleing last week I came home with a dozen hard cover children’s books from the $0.25 box, AND 1/2 dozen OLD hard cover children’s books from the $0.10 box! I guess the OLD books weren’t thought to be worth as much as the newer ones :-). My granddaughter and I will enjoy them! She also scored a very large just dug onion from the Gardening Grandpa of the folks holding the sale – for free ’cause she was so cute. (at 19 months I have to agree)