My favorite article from this week's update is "A Great Budget Wardrobe."  I enjoy shopping at thrift stores... maybe it's the thrill of the hunt, but I love to find something unexpected that I really like for a low price. I'm nearly always disappointed when I go to a retail store and see styles and colors so limited. 

Anyway, this is a great article about getting the best from thrift store shopping!  

love thrift stores!    in the last few months for my office wardrobe, I have got (new or washed once)  a beige talbot long, skirt, long denim skirt, khaki dress pants, brown cordaroy pants.

My favorite thrift store beats retail stores for variety for myself and my daughter. My son is at an age where I am having trouble finding clothes. I think boys tend to wear their things out.

 Although she starts out trying to convince us (!) that it's OK to buy second hand clothes, she does have some good points deeper into the article. Some that I confess, I've ignored in the past and it has cost me. 

 Unfortunately, we don't have much to choose from at the local thrift store.  We live in an area that is predominately LDS, and with that comes large families.   I think most things get passed down with the families before they make into the thrift store (DI) and by the time they make it there, they are usually not worth purchasing.   I like to keep my eye out for furniture there when I know that I am going to need something, but that is about it.   I also try to go to the one several cities north of us because we have two Universities, and three small colleges in our city and our nieghboring city so the students tend to pick things over fairly well.

We don't buy clothes at thrift stores but have found some great items otherwise. We have a few that we frequent that we've become familiar with their pricing. We seldom go to Salvation Army or Goodwill, we just don't like their pricing. Edey

If I need books or kids shoes, the Goodwill near my house is great.  If I needed furniture, I would go to the local children's hospital thrift store.  However, that said, I actually don't like the way most thrift stores are run in my area (VA).  See, with Goodwill, you're buying stuff that supports them training people so those individuals can get through the program.  But their families pay money for it, too.  The families pay around $200/class, which is just shy of the local community college rate.  The children's hospital thrift stores (and many, many others around) actually only give a portion of the proceeds to the charity -- specifically 24.9% (why, I don't know).  I think thrift stores should be run by the charity with all proceeds going back to the charity, not a portion.  We do have one that I know of that is run by the charity for the charity, but it's all stuff for your home and since I'm an apartment dweller it's rarely a place I check out.

went to value village today to return pants that I had bought dd but turns out that they have a new policy. They don't refund your money on a gift card like the past, you have to exchange it for more goods.   so ended up getting a bunch of kids books and a beetle beany baby and spent  $6.03 more then what the pants were worth.

I don't do much thrift store shopping, mostly because finding the browsing time is a challenge!  The kids are very distracting to shop with so I don't tend to shop anywhere that requires me to focus!

I do volunteer with an organization that has a thrift store.  I work the thrift store periodically.  Our organization provdes clothing for children in need and some other children's services as well.  It is meant to provide new school clothes, toiletries and shoes to those that don't have enough to get to school daily.  The sales of the thrift shop, 100% after operating costs (mostly just rent for the shop and utilities), goes to fund the clothing program.  The staff is 100% volunteer based.

Of course, whenever I do a work shift, I find something to bring home!

I have a really good thirft store reasonable prices and I know the people who ran it .. they let me know about sales or if something comes in she called the other a woman wanted to sell her deceased husband boat i called the woman and got my DH birth present for a good price ..