Blissful Becky: September 2012

I never thought that sharing what I thrifted would have such a positive impact with others. I mean, thrifting has always been something I've been into, but lately I have been given some crazy cool kind words from friends & family about how they are beginning to thrift, how I am an inspiration, and how people can't wait to show me a project they did through thrifting. Totally awesome in my book! I don't know if I am an inspiration :), but if I can open the eyes of one person to buy something second hand for a cheaper price, then I am all for that!! To pinpoint one reason I thrift would be tough, but several reasons are the prices are stinkin' unbeatable, the things I find are less likely to be in everyone else's house (hello, hobby lobby!), and I just can't see myself spending loads of money on items that may not fit into my home decor style a year from now. If I can buy it cheap, and if I can make it go with my decor, I buy it. I don't have to feel guilty buying something expensive that I would want to hide away in a closet down the road. If it's cheap now, I can donate it later and let the cycle run it's course. Oh the joys of thrifting!

Here are some things I do when I thrift that may help you.

1. Be open minded- obviously, this isn't for everyone, and that's ok. But if you are open to the idea that you will be going into a store that doesn't always have "clean" as a top priority, then your set :)

2. Prepare to Dig- most of the stores I go into is packed with LOTS of donations. You will have to spend a little bit of time searching through the shelves to find what you are looking for. Trust me though, the more you thrift, the faster this process goes. Plus, if you thrift often enough, you will know which stores to go to/which ones to avoid/ and where in the store you will find the treasures.

3. What Do You Want? My eyes are always attracted to anything red or teal (as shown by my house decor, haha) so if I am in a thrift store, my eyes usually wander to those colored items first. I also am really into DIY, so if I find something that I can paint one of those two colors, I usually buy it. I also collect Fiesta ware thanks to my step mom, so my eyes are always searching for that!

4. Be Creative- I have bought several things that didn't look good at first glance, but with some paint or elbow grease, I can make it like new.

5. Know Your Budget- It would be silly for me to spend a hundred dollars on thrift finds if I don't have any food in the fridge or have a bill to pay. I usually try to see what I have, what still needs to be paid, and kind of go from there. If I know I have no money to spend, I don't torture myself by going shopping. And neither should you. If you DO go shopping, limit what you purchase. No need to feel up a cart just because. Select the things that you love and go from there. I often pick up things as I go, and before I check out I will put back what I can do without.

6. Thrifting is not a contest. Sure, I love to instagram what I find to be awesome purchases, but that doesn't happen everyday. And there are plenty of times that I will leave a store with nothing. I use to get frustrated with not finding anything, but I got over that. People will always have things to get rid of, and if you are looking in the right place, you will find some awesome things.

-Let me know if you go thrifting! I always enjoy a good thrift story!

Bought at Goodwill for $2.55, then found out they sell this candle at Anthropology for almost $30!

Found 5 of these Fiesta Mugs at Graceful Buys in Grapevine for $1.99 each!

Also from Graceful Buys in Grapevine, I bought this basket for $1 and painted over the wooden picture with white acrylic paint that I already had, painted a M (also already had) and hot glued it on.

Tyler Company Candle from for $2 (worth almost $20), Starbucks Waterbottle for $1, frame for $1 & mercury glass vase for $1, all from Goodwill.

This fall wreath was $1 at UGM Super Thrift in Irving, and I hot glued the M on it. Easy as Pumpkin Pie!

Thrifted outfit: New York & Company Sweater from Goodwill for $4, Blue Dress from Goodwill for $3, and Eddie Bauer brown purse for $7 (was $15 but purchased during Goodwill's 50% off day!)

Green J.Crew shirt for $3 from Goodwill.

-Becky

Hey there guys and gals. I can't believe September is wrapping up already. Seems like just yesterday we were closing on our home & heading to Home Depot for some paint. Man, that day was such a treasure. Here we are now, two months into our new place, and the makeovers begin. We were very fortunate to have found a place with a lot of features that we already loved, causing us not to have to do a ton of home improvements. However, thanks to the 15 minute nightmare (water pipe bursting in the downstairs bathroom several hours after we moved in) we are having to redo our downstairs flooring sooner than we had planned. It was a thick shag carpet that felt great on your toes, but because of water damage, we decided to remove all of the carpet & tile, and bought hardwood flooring from Home Depot. We are so blessed with great people in our lives to help us through this first time home owner renovations. Our friend Bill helped Jearen on Saturday with all of the dirty prep work. Several hours later, and a TON of dust later, they finished the first steps to getting our new flooring down. We are still waiting for the flooring that we ordered to come in, and then we will move forward with the next steps. I will be thrilled when this is all done, but in the mean time, I'm enjoying the process (especially seeing my hot husband working hard to make this the best place ever!) Oh, and I threw in a before & after pic of the old window & shutters above our bed. :)