Since it was a holiday weekend, my mom and I opted to do a little thrifting. You know you are frugal when you complain about how expensive the Goodwill prices are. These two little things that I know not what to call them were $3 each. 
This lamp base that I cannot get a decent photograph of was $2.99--now that's more like it. My first thought was that it looked like something some kid made in wood shop class but, it looks great on my white dresser. Everything looks great on the white dresser. I already had the lampshade.
Plantation Shutters: $5 per shut. Big, textural, take up space without annoying me. That's why I like shutters. And I can paint them.
More shutters behind the sofa. If they end up going there they'll be hung eventually. 
Metal cake stand like the ones that Maxi B's has. I have always wanted one. $5.
Our thrift stores are clean and new and inviting.
They don't smell funny and are organized well.
Want to see what other people found over the weekend you can see a whole slew of great finds at Southern Hospitality.
Have you shopped your local thrift stores lately? You never know what you might find!
Goodwill Hunting
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Oh goodness, I salivate at the very thought of thrift stores! The Handy Husband and I were in an area we rarely drive through and I saw a sign that informed me that my states largest Salvation Army thrift store was right here in my very own town! I can't wait to get there! I have a fantastic Goodwill 4 blocks from my house, another thrift store a mile or so away that is the most organized and clean one I've ever seen, and two more within two blocks of my house that I have somehow never managed to infiltrate.
I must not be trying hard enough.
We do not have a bevy of thrift stores. so I have to count on garage sales mostly. We have goodwill stores (otherwise known as the stop for the people who are to lazy to take their trash to the dump) but they are all pretty small and hugely unorganized. I'm also pretty sure that most of the people who work there were friends with Abraham Lincoln.
Yes, I laughed out loud with your first line -complaining about the high prices. Chad and I (that's the manager of the Battleground Good will - he and I are on a first name basis ever since I became the GW news spokesperson) had a little chit chat last week. I shared from my heart my concern that he was taking a little advantage of all these new thrift shoppers by hiking the prices up since last year. There needs to be some loyalty for us old timers. :) He chuckled, and told me he goes on Target.com to check his prices now and only marks them at 50%....UGH!!
But your guy hasn't gotten that savvy yet because look at your amazing finds. :)Fun, Fun...you scored!!
Those are some pretty great finds! I can't believe how nice your Goodwills are. Ours are definitely NoT that nice. I have been there but not found anything really worth much.
And I'm actually gonna say you got a good deal even on those great turquoise urn things at $3 each!
I actually said, "Get out!" really loud when I saw your cake stand. It's good to be you!
I have fallen in love with Goodwill lately all out of necessity for a dresser for my big boys.
AMAZING finds!!! And your thrift stores look incredible!!! Mine are very weak...would die to have even one of yours nearby!!
LOVE the turquoise and cake stand. You are quite the shopper.
I love the little pots! The lamp needs a tassel or something LOL.
We don't have very good thrift stores in my area (I'm outside of Knoxville, TN).
tina
tinam61@yahoo.com
Our Goodwill is not all that clean or organized. I think they price some things the same as Wal-Mart. The clothes ARE cheaper.
Blessings,
Lorilee
Fantastic finds! Esp love the 2 little aqua thingies and the cakestand!
So pretty. I might consider going there if I believed they would yield that find more than once in a lifetime!
Seriously jealous of your shutter find. I hope to get lucky and find some at such a great price one day soon. I'm with you on Goodwill prices being high but sometimes I'm a sucka anyway!
What great finds!!! Lucky you!
You found some great things. And must agree about the prices of Goodwill lately!! I did just visit the local thrift store in our area, and found 6 wood chargers for $9.99. I made them into signs for my living room. Come check it out, I'm excited about they turned out. I even made one into a gift for my BIL and his wife.
Have a lovely day.
Blessings,
http://simplyfinelinen.blogspot.com/2009/07/more-goodwill-finds.html
Excellent finds! Love the turquoise! I need to make the time to go thrifting, it's been too long.
I wish our goodwill was clean like yours. Ours is just plain old NASTY! I opt to go to flea markets because there cleaner :)
I love your finds!!
The cake stand is to die for. I love shutters too. I used a larger one as a magazine rack (before the twins) by placing the book pages through the slots and showing off the covers. EVERYONE loved it.
.................................
I just picked up some treasures last night ON THE CURB. I didn't even have to go to Goodwill :) Its a Cass Toy Co baby doll highchair and an old baby doll crib. Come over and visit me and see my treasures. :)
-Shannon in Austin
I love my GW and they love me too! I just got the cutest bunny lawn ornaments in pastel colors. I am going to Dremel off the legs and hang them in my baby's room. I did balk at the price, but got them anyway.
I love my GW and they love me too! I just got the cutest bunny lawn ornaments in pastel colors. I am going to Dremel off the legs and hang them in my baby's room. I did balk at the price, but got them anyway.
Our Goodwill in downtown Prattville is a disgrace :/ I would love to have one such as what you have pictured!!
I've got to get better at thrifting. I never find neat things like this! I suppose going more regularly would be a good start.
Cute finds!! Our stores smell kinda funny!! Maybe the managers need to come and see yours!
OK, I have a HUGE question!! Would duck cloth (I think those are the right words--it's like heavy muslin!!) work as a slip cover or would it be too uncomfy? What do you think?
Hugs and thanks bunches!
Susan
I struggle because I am often not patient enough to thrift...of course if may have something to do with dragging a 2.5 year old & 5 month old along with me LOL great finds!
Awesome finds--especially those shutters. Love everything. Our consignment stores, however, are quite smelly. Whenever we're walking in, my kids say, "Awwww...we're not going into the smelly store again, are we?" It's the price we pay, I guess. :)
Your post title made me crack up! Love it! ("How you like them apples?") You have some NICE Goodwills. Ours are all ICKY, but I do like our Salvation Army, even though it's in a dingy old grocery store building. ;) Good finds!!!
Seriously? If my GW had those shutters, they would be $25/ea. The cake plate $12, easy. Lamps start at $6.99 and go up. You got a deal, girl! :)
I adore thrifting. I'm so jealous that you have so many options!
We have decent thrift stores. One large GW, and a small one the other end of town. They're not what I'd call nasty, but they're not all that clean and organized either. And I do NOT understand their pricing...they'll have one coffee table priced at $10 and another one priced at $40...and they are in about the same condition!!
We have a salvation army thrift store too, but they don't have much home decor, it's mostly clothes for some reason.
Great finds! I'm in awe of your thrift stores. There are only two in our little town and they both are the kind of store that leave you feeling desperate to wash your hands.
I think Goodwill is expensive for a thriftstore. I don't know where everyone finds this cute stuff, because I don't ever find anything I like.
Ooooh, ahhhh...great finds! I'm laughing with you about the thrifty thing though. I'm exactly the same way...it drives people CRAZY when they shop with me. I've been wanting some new outdoor cushions for my patio dining chairs and I stumbled onto some that were on clearance for $4.99 each (regularly like $500). I hesitated and walked away...SERIOUSLY!
"Goodwill Hunting" .... you slay me! =)
Our NY Goodwill seems more expensive then yours. I love that cake stand.
Fabulous finds!!! I keep getting a pit in my stomach thinking about the $3 brand new wood tray that I passed on at Goodwill a few weeks! Sob!!!!
What was I thinking? Your thrift/goodwill stores are gorgeous! Wow, so inviting!!! Ours are still a little older and you do a little digging, but I also think it makes it easier to grab things that are unique and special! I love your new cake stand!
I absolutely LOVE the metal cake stand! What a buy for that price. I'm amazed at what you've found at thrift stores. I'm new to this except selling some of my stuff on eBay. Resale doesn't bring in much but if you're out to buy, it's great.
It's true, thrift stores ARE getting pricey! At least ours are. Our Goodwill is really expensive. That lamp would have been $15 here at our GW.
A few weeks ago, I went to our local Goodwill to look for some shorts and I was amazed at what I came home with!! I bought two pairs of shorts, two pairs of capris (one pair was from Anne Taylor), and a Banana Republic skirt....I payed less than $5 for each piece. I also left with 10 books for my kids....my grand total was $34....which I didn't think was too bad! :)
I also think that Goodwill prices things too high - isn't Goodwill supposed to be thrifty? I found an old coffee table the other day that wasn't in the best shape - kind of shabby chic that needs a little more chic. It was $25! No way! I am jealous of your finds.
Fabulous finds! I wish our thrift stores were that nice. That lamp is just screaming out to be covered with mirrors!
That's it, I'm flying to NC and going thrifting with you. Not only do your thrift stores look like Macy's, you find THE BEST stuff. I have a bunch of shutters {from a friend who was remodeling} around my house too... still figuring out where to use them but I know I LOVE them. Thanks for the inspiration!
p.s. I gave you a little shout out in my most recent post.
-Kari
I love your find, and love the lamp. I miss value village, we just moved to Ca from Wa. They always have the best deals there. Happy Hunting.
Paula
Wow, great finds! My favorite is the metal cake stand (anything that includes the word "cake" inspires me). I love how you bring beauty to your home and the lives of others in everyday ways!
I miss all the good thrift stores we had in California. Here in NoVA, there are a handful of hospital-related charities, but their items are SO overpriced (I could buy the same things new at Target for less). I imagine it's the overhead?
There are some Goodwills a good drive away, and they totally have that funny smell you mentioned. :)
i just got HUGE shutters at our thrift store on saturday. have you already posted somewhere about how you hang them? just really big nails in studs? that's my plan, but thought i'd ask...
Oh I like the shutters behind the sofa they fill that space so nicely .
Chris
I cannot believe that of all the thrifting posts I've read I have never seen this title (Goodwill Hunting) before! Very clever. I should have thought of it. :)
I LOVE shopping for treasures at the Goodwill!! Just went last week spent $40 came home with a TON of great stuff!! It was the mother load! ;) Although I'm really bummed about the appearance of "my" Goodwill after seeing the photos of yours!
I really like the top two blue things. I agree with you about the prices sometimes. :) hee hee. I can't believe Jen's GW guy actually looks at Target prices! Goodness!! I also love the cake stand. That is a GREAT price for that.
Anyway, I wanted to come say hi today because I needed to tell someone who I knew would understand . . . Remember when your great, gorgeous garland fell down? My white painted scallopy wood framed chalkboard that holds my menu for our girls' night tonight that did happen to have hot glue on it and um . . . packing tape . . . um . . . just fell off the wall :( :( :( with a resounding crash :( and the frame broke a little :( It is still lying on the floor right where it fell because I'm not sure of my next move. :( BUT . . . my mantle looks GREAT. :) Kelly
soooooo jealous of how organized and big and clean your thrift stores are. ours are more like junk city!
Love the cakestand!!
I think Goodwill is crazy. Mine gets unsold stuff from Target. And because Target is my Mecca, I know prices. Goodwill charges more for the unsold and usually dented or scratched Target item. Oh and on many occassions Goodwill will charge you more for an item if you go to pay and they think you should pay more. That happened to me more than 3 times before I finally refused to go there again. I do sometime shop and always donate to thrift stores but not Goodwill. I actually refer to them as Badwill bc of the whole raise the price when you got to pay the ticket price issue.
I want to go shopping with you! :) I went to Goodwill yesterday for the first time in years. I actually found a mirror that probably used to go over a dresser. I'm planning on making the mirror into a chalkboard for our kitchen. $5.99...gotta love it!
Does that happen to be the Huntersville GW store?? It looks so much like it! I live in NC, too, and I have loved looking at your neat posts... I am soon (hopefully!) going to be opening a new blog - mostly about decorating! =) Our GW is sometimes high but you can find some neat stuff for a good price if you go often and dig.
WOW...I have never seen such a fancy thrift store in all my life. JEALOUS! I would live in those stores if we had ones like that. For now, I'll have to make do with my yard sales. Boo-hoo.
~Amanda
Your thrift stores kick my puny thrift stores behinds. Seriously.
Hello there Nester - love your finds! Those white shutters are fabulous. Oh and the turquoise planter thingies are smokin'. And what a unique metal cake stand - haven't seen one like that before! I'm a little jealous that you have a nice GW. My GW is stinky, cramped and not organized at all. You really have to sift through things to find that diamond in the rough. If I owned it, it would smell like roses, I'd have a coffee/doughnut stand, and my products would be organized by type and color coded.
I so so love shopping ar goodwill- yuo certainly scored- cool...
Wow! What wonderful finds! My thrifty little heart is pitter pattering!
I too am so "thrify" that I think some Goodwills are expensive. ;) I do have to say though that in my experience I have found that the old, smelly thrift stores usually have better deals, and who cares since you take the stuff home and clean it up anyway. Plus, a lot of the ritzy women feel sorry for those places and donate to them instead of the newer ones so you can get VERY expensive stuff there for literally nothing. We have both the "new" and "ugly" thrift stores in my city, and I prefer the latter. I guess it is because the overhead isn't as high with the older stores. Just a suggestion. =) Happy Thrifting!
~Jen
Oh yeah, forgot to add... did you know that there are frequent shopper cards at Goodwill? Just ask for one. (should I hold my head in shame? ;) They will punch it for every $10 you spend and after 10 punches you get $10 off. I am pretty sure it is at EVERY Goodwill as I know friends in other cities do this as well.
~Jen
I started hitting thrift stores 14 years ago when I was reacting to chemicals and could not go to a mall ever again. I found lovely things and furnished my house. Have been going ever since but lately things have just about disappeared from our thrift stores, and one just closed. Isn't that interesting.
Kristen, yes I hang the shutters on really big nails and let the slats hold it up. Studs? Who needs em?
E Bayou!!! Mirrors on the lamp?! That is a genius idea! Too bad I'm too lazy--want to come do it for me? I"ll fix you an iced coffee.
Runner mom, I think Duck would work fine, I'd have to see it first but it sounds like a great choice, just be sure to wash it first to shrink it down!
"You know you are frugal when you complain about how expensive the Goodwill prices are."
haha :-) I can relate!
I love hitting the thrift shop - especially with my mom... who gets the 40% off senior discount ;-)
I have an entire article that was written about finding amazing deals at thrift shops and the GoodWill... I'd have to dig it up - but, if you are interested in it, let me know...
Love your lovely finds...
Jenni
Girl, I'm just not going to the right thrift stores! Or else I need you to tag along. What great deals!
That's it. I'm packing up and moving to Charlotte next week. My thrift stores are stinky and not so organized and certainly not brick. But, they're all I have and I still manage to find treasures here and there. As for Goodwill, what's up with them jacking up their prices the last couple of years?
As for what I'd like to see more of on Nesting Place, I am all about more mistreatment inspiration. Generally, I'd just love to see more of the same. How to have a pretty and uncluttered home with minimal time and expense and decorating expertise. And written in your hilarious and unpretentious style of course!
Oh! I would have bought those 2 aqua planters too! You found some really good stuff. I just don't have that much luck at our thriftstores, they are not that great.
Goodwill Hunting, I love that term and will steal it! :)
I'm an addict. There I said it. I don't want or need an intervention...although my family begs to differ!
Ha! I was just shopping in those very stores last week (gotta love Lake Norman-area thrift stores!), and thinking to myself, "Who is (over) pricing these things???" And now I know who's buying all of the good stuff before I get there. How about leaving some treasures for the rest of us!
OK--I have long suspected that there were better thrift stores than my area has and this proves it! I have NEVER seen a thrift store like that! Can I come visit?
I thought I was the only one appalled at the high prices at Goodwill. I bought an amazing white duck cotton love seat five years ago for $20!! Now the cheapest couch is $80 - with straight out of the 70s scratchy plaid, wood trim, hole in the cushion, and missing a leg?!?! I've only been able to find good deals on lamps and a rare Gymboree shirt or two for my two year old. And as for the Target left overs - you can get them cheaper at Target during their final mark downs than you do at Goodwill! The worst part is we only have two big thrift stores! So, I have to do the 7am yard sale hunt every Saturday that I get.
Love, love those two "things" at the top. And I have to say, your Goodwills look swank. Ours are old & dingy & usually in the building of another store that had shut down. And to think, yours are BRICK!
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Great finds. I love them all. I love to shop at the GW. Some of them are really well merchandised and clean, and then some are a real disaster. Yours looks great. Hugs, Marty
We've found some pretty good thrift stores around here, too. Goodwill is always, always priced higher - unless they don't know what they have. I've gotten a few great deals on things because they had no idea what it was worth. Otherwise, I don't find much there.
The "mom and pop" smaller ones are the places where I get my best bargains, and I enjoy shopping at them the most because I know exactly how they're using the money they get - to help needy families get groceries.
How refreshing to see that you "thrift", too! :)
Laughing out loud about complaining about thrift store prices. That is hilarious! You are so funny. Yea for the good finds!
I would call them planters and they are gorgeous!! Very lovely.
Love the cakestand too.
Yeah, the prices... $4 here and there can add up fast!! - then suddenly you're not so frugal anymore.
I'll have to check out the Goodwill near our house. It is fairly new, so I'm sure it would be pretty clean. Thanx for the post to remind me. :)
okay why is it that the trift stores by me cost nearly as much as walmart and target? Ughh...I need to move! I did however go into ikea and find cabinet fronts for .99 so I bought a few of those :)
thanks for making me think of Matt Damon...as if watching Bourne Identity tonight was not enough of a distraction :)
yeah for goodwill stores that do not smell funny!
WOW, I want to come visit YOUR goodwill. Awesome finds, and I love how you used the shutters in unconventional, decorative ways.
Jealous of the cake stand. =)
W-O-W!!
Oh, you would be so proud! I just bought SIX pairs of shutters for no more than $2 each!!! Plus four old-fashioned wooden kids' desks for $3 each. Really, I'm in decorating heaven right now!!
By the way, the goodwill store in larger cities seem to be the most organized... if you live in a small town, it might be worth an hour drive to get to a better store!
within 5 minutes of my house I have 3 ...yes 3 thrift stores..and then within 20-1/2 hour about 15...so what's a girl to do..
thrift shop of course..but could never do them all on one day...
Value Village is a favorite of mine
What great stuff! The Goodwill nearest me has mainly clothes, which does come in handy, but not when I want stuff for the house.
I understand the value in looking for a bargain, and I love goodwill just as much as the other guy, but i question how much true design and decor' is involved with placing shutters around your house... It's a bit of a stretch. It's almost implying that there's a window, which gives a perception of there being less wall space, and therefore a closed in feeling. True design elements, pictures, sconces, etc don't suffer from this side effect.
I love those glass turquoise vases, glass jars. My husband and I have been talking about shopping at Goodwill...we just don't do it.
I think next month I'll swing by the one in my neighborhood and see what they have.
wow!!! i need to stop into my nearest goodwill! great finds girl!
how exciting! good deals are the best.
I've been studying those pictures again and the bottom two stores have got to be the ones in Mooresville... Tell me I'm right!?! (We live a half hour above MV!) It's my birthday today and those are the exact places I picked to go!! Thrift shopping with my hubby, who's a good sport about it. =)
Those are great finds! I need to find ME some shutters! And I totally agree about being frugal and complaining of Goodwill's prices. I have SO done that before! ;-)
love the blue vases?! and the metal cake stand too! great finds:)
I am crazy about those turquoise pots...love em!
Last Monday i took a morning jaunt to three Goodwills...was on a hunt for a canvas for one 4.5 year old granddaughter to paint. To my delight, I found some copper pans, a piece of Fiesta ware and a sweet silver dinner bell.
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