Yesterday I left the house briefly to run errands. I drove to the South Scottsdale Goodwill (goodwill.org) to drop off a box that'd been in my trunk for a month (shame), and then wandered into the store to peruse the latest inventory of castaway belongings. You see, while everyone else was braving the mall, I could only muster the energy to look for thrifty treasures that might have second life as Christmas gifts. Normally, I wouldn't consider the Goodwill a go-to for holiday gifts (nor would I ever consider going to the mall the weekend after Thanksgiving). But in light of my office's "Secret Santa on-a-shoestring exchange" and my shallow pockets due to my Ecosaurus investment, I have been towing the creative line and trying to think outside of the mall and "big box" stores for gift ideas. But what's (sort of) funny about shopping at thrift stores or discount retailers is that I find myself becoming Captain Frugality as soon as I set foot in the shop. While I might pay $80 for a shirt at the mall, any shirt in excess of $20 (new at Target) or $10 (used at Goodwill) causes me to scoff and shove the item back into the rack. I do realize how ridiculous this is and yet cannot help myself.
That said, I generally steer away from clothes shopping regardless of the retailer. It's much easier to outfit my home than my person. To that end, I've had a handful of great successes in the Goodwill home department. Take, for example, the lamp I scored in December 2007 for my office. I'd long been seeking a mate for a tangerine-color shade from Anthropologie, and my trips to various other retailers had proved fruitless and frustrating. A last-hope trip to Goodwill gave way to lovely home-office illumination for $7.99. (For more adventures... thriftstoreadventures.blogspot.com)
So yesterday, true to form, I walked in, became a cheapskate, bypassed Goodwill's clothing area and headed straight for the housewares and artwork. My mission: finding picture frames I could repurpose for homemade/original artwork I will soon make. I found two lame (though not offensive) companion tulip paintings with decent square frames. Given that the pics were $5.99 apiece and the artwork was bound for the recycle bin, I felt I needed to keep looking.
Then a small roadrunner picture caught me by surprise. While I could see why someone would throw the thing out, I found myself charmed and began imagining what it would look like at home. It was $1.99. For a moment, I wondered if it was worth it? These are the times in which we live... Times when putting down $1.99 requires contemplation and mentally equated to 2.5 single-servings of boisenberry Yoplait. While some might say I'm silly, I decided such thoughtful purchasing is a good thing. Need and want are different, and if I am buying out of want, I want to make sure I will still want that item next week and won't be hauling it back to Goodwill -- even when we're talking about just $1.99.
Because the roadrunner picture made me smile, I decided it was worth the money. It now hangs in my hallway, and I'm just as happy with it as I am with my $7.99 lamp. I also found a few other really good items for gifts, and I'm inspired by the economic times and my relative lack of discretionary income as the holidays draw near. My lack of financial freedom and increasingly thoughtful spending have freed me up and heightened my awareness in the creative, emotional and spiritual categories. I can only imagine I'm not alone in this way. ~ AF
PS. Which of your thrift purchases yielded a bounty of satisfaction?
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