Local thrift shops offer interesting home furnishings, high-end
clothing and fascinating knick-knacks at a bargain price
The home makeover shows on television always claim you can turn your living room into a work of art for pennies on the dollar. The hosts always bring in some fabulous furniture or high-end bric-a-brac find they claim to have found at a scoffably low price. Are such shopping feats really possible? We took to the local thrift stores in search of the super cool stuff we’re always told lies hidden over their thresholds. Check out these diamonds in the rough:
Check out these diamonds in the rough:
1) M&M cookie jar, sure to be a hit with the kids. Under $4 at the Gilroy Salvation Army.
2-5) Vinyl lives at the Gilroy Salvation Army! For just $2 each, you can bring home some of the classics and hear them again how you heard them the first time: complete with soft pops and scratches in the background.
6) Have a little princess at home? This lavender side table could be the perfect final touch to her bedroom for $20. Find it at the Gilroy Salvation Army.
7) If this lamp isn’t the definition of flair, we don’t know what is. This unique lighting fixture is yours for $15 from the Gilroy Salvation Army.
8) Load this magazine rack up and get ready for the compliments. For $5, you can have the moon and stars in your living room.
9a-9d) Need fabulous fabrics to recover dining room chairs, make pillow covers or to add to patchwork quilts? Thrift stores are a gold mine. Here are lace and satin from an old wedding dress, burgundy velvet from a woman’s blazer, tan corduroy from a man’s blazer, a tweed pattern from men’s pants, rose-colored silky material from a nightgown and corduroy from an old sport coat.
11) Forget paying full price for the best-selling books. Books such as “The Nannie Diaries,” which is currently being made into a motion picture, are available for about 75 cents at St. Vincent DePaul thrift shop in Hollister.
12) Impress guests with this wine stopper and bucket – they’ll never know you got it at bargain basement prices from St. Vincent DePaul thrift shop in Hollister.
13) Magazine rack? Floral centerpiece? Handy place to toss keys and other odds and ends? The things you can do with a nice looking basket are endless, and you can get this one – and several others – for a couple bucks or less at St. Vincent DePaul thrift shop in Hollister.
14) Have a Victorian theme going on? This clayware water jug and basin can add some authenticity at home. It’s yours for about $4 at St. Vincent DePaul thrift shop in Hollister.
15) Dress yourself up, too! This glittery watch with beaded band is a smashing wardrobe addition for about $15 from St. Vincent DePaul thrift shop in Hollister.
16) Proof positive that you can find top-shelf items at thrift shops: this fur coat from Nordstrom that popped up at St. Vincent DePaul thrift shop in Hollister. It was clearly an older coat, and the price hadn’t been set yet, but this find is sure to make someone in the South Valley feel like a million bucks.
Note: Looking for the perfect thrift shop? Stick to Gilroy and Hollister. The Morgan Hill Goodwill – the only thrift shop in town – has been closed down while their building is undergoing work.
