Gift Shopping At Thrift Stores

If you've found that your holiday spirit has taken a
nose dive like our economy, consider a thrift store for you holiday needs. Most likely your gift list is the size
of an oak tree while your bank account may be the size of an acorn. Shopping at a thrift store can help stretch
your dollars.

You can pretty much bet that your town has a thrift store of some sort. If there isn't a Goodwill or
Salvation Army store, there are probably at least some mom and pop thrift stores in the area. When you head out
for your shopping needs, don't overlook the thrift stores. The mall and retailers will still be there if you don't
find what you need.

You can often find many items reasonably priced to decorate your homes for the holidays. Each spring and fall, I
hold a garage sale at my home. As I recycle and decorate, I place the decorative items that I no longer use in my
garage sale. At the end of the day, we always take the unsold items to our local Goodwill store. These items are
generally still in great condition, and it pleases me to know they will often find a new home.

Forget the idea that
you can't find quality gift items at a thrift store. There are often picture frames that have never been used
priced from .99 cents up to just a couple of dollars. In a retail store, these frames will usually cost you around
$10.00. Sometimes you can find items that are still boxed and have never been opened. Most likely someone
received it as a duplicate and donated it because they didn't have a need for it.

If you have clothing items on your gift list, they might require a little more
searching but great bargains can be found in this area as well. Search between the racks of used clothing and you
might get lucky enough to find a never worn item with the tag still attached. These are some of the most exciting
finds when thrift store shopping.

What if you are looking for electronics? Most thrift stores carry electronic items also. Tech savvy
individuals often like to upgrade their models when the newest edition arrives on the market. A lot of times they
will update the previous version to a thrift store. For example, maybe they upgraded to a larger television your
set and donated just the size your teenager requested from Santa.

Wall hangings are another great cost saver at thrift stores. As people redecorate,
they donate their discarded items to a thrift store. My best find was a large wall hanging with the tag from JC
Penney Home Store still attached. It originally cost $300.00 and I only paid $60.00 for this bargain find. Search
for some seasonal art for gift-giving or to decorate your own home.

One can't deny that all across our country, people are feeling the pressure of the current economic times. This
holiday season doesn't have to break the bank, or make the credit card companies richer with racking up debt. Fill
your thermos with some hot chocolate and spend a Saturday scouring your local thrift store for special holiday
finds.