Eames_Office_Chairs
I love going for thrift stores in search of new mid century treasures, really do!
To me, this is like a scavenger hunt… but it also has ‘dark sides’.
Today I was reading a post called Waste not, Want not. The author was complaining about her ‘addiction’ to the local thrift market and her being unable to say NO to cheap buys, totally useless for her.
In the article, The Vintage Cabin explains how the result of this ‘addiction’ of hers is a storage room chock full of useless (or unsuitable for her house) mid century furniture that she now wants to sell or get rid of in some way.
The post brings up a couple of interesting points about her ‘impulse’ thrift purchases:
1. All the money she spent over a year on not-so-essential items could have been invested on something much more useful or necessary.
2. All this buying forced The Vintage Cabin to redecorate her house all the time to find a place for all the things she bought ( really feel for her!)
Let’s talk for a moment about point No.1. After reading all the comments to her article, I realized other many people there are out there with this same ‘problem’.
Then I thought to myself:-”You love thrifting as much as they do. Why don’t you share your suggested solutions to this impulse-buying habit ?”
How did I stop wasting money and started saving for what I really need (a teak sideboard)? 
First of all, every time I visit a thrift store, I give myself a budget: 50 euro. Up to you how much you want to spend each time, I normally go for 50 euro and it works; I learnt that the more permissive you are with yourself, the more difficult it is to stick to the magical four rules below.
The magical four rules to save money while you are thrifting.
1. I go at the end.
This is especially true for flea markets. Going – say – one hour or so before the closing time, you will have more chances to buy what you want at the price you want it…I call it the ‘Desperate Seller Hour‘.
On the last hour, most sellers need to complete as many sales as possible and therefore they are much more open to negotiations and discounts than they are at the beginning of the day; it’s natural…otherwise they wouldn’t have a profitable day!
2. I avoid taking the car.
Yes, I know that this can come as a shock for many of you. If you go by public transport or on your bike, or even if you share the car with someone else that wants to thrift with you, you will not have enough space to carry useless stuff and you will be forced to make a selection !
Ok…you are probably wondering…and what if I find that perfect object I have been looking for a long time, then I couldn’t buy it! Of course you can, you can always leave a deposit and come back later with your car 
3. I have a ‘thinking walk’ before buying.
If I see something I like, I go for a walk before I ask for the price…Going around and having time to think about it is like counting until 10 before saying something
While I am having my ‘thinking walk’, I always ask myself:
- Do I really need it?
- Where would I put it in the house?
Having a walk around also helps to understand the average price for that kind of object and be sure that the one you saw is not over-priced; it happens very often!
4. I never say OK I BUY IT.
If you are absolutely sure that you really want that object, that you have the right corner for it and that it doesn’t cost too much compared to others in the market: go for it but don’t buy it.
What about you? Which is your ‘saving money’ technique while you are in a thrift store or flea market? I’m curious, let me know! 
Check also the Ultimate Guide to Thrift Store Shopping for more tips for an effective thrifting.
This post is the #1 of 2 posts, if you wanna also know the best way to achieve the price you want, keep reading Mid Century Home and do not risk to lose the next post: start to follow Mid Century Home for free trough the RSS by the Mail List or Twitter !
You will only receive inspiration for your home!!
Ciao!
I have a special saving bank, where I put all my ‘extra’ money. So when I get money for my birthday or when I sell some of my collection, I put that money away. I use it when I go to a fleamarket or a thriftstore and so I never use money from my bankaccount. It’s not saving money on thrifting, but I never use housekeeping money on items, that must count for something.
That’s a great way too…is not saving, correct, but is not even wasting!
What did you buy recently with the ‘thrifting money’ ?
Thanks for stopping by and the comment, I hope to see you soon again.
Ciao!
Great advice! I practiced the “thinking walk” today and put a few things back. I was very proud of myself!
I scored some other great things though, such as a yellow Dansk Kobenstyle pot for my Etsy shop.
I could also relate to The Vintage Cabin post. I enjoy her blog because she’s honest and hilarious with great style.
I’m very happy you found my advices useful! That was the goal
It always work for me and I saved a lot of money
Don’t miss the second part next week!
Do you have any nice thirft shop you wanna share? I’m always looking around for new ones.
See you soon around here.
Ciao!
Oh, I’ll definitely check back; I like your posts.
Whenever we go thrifting or to flea markets, I like to share the photos on my blog. Most of the shops around here are junky, but that makes it more challenging to find the great stuff, and that’s part of the fun for me. We’re also always trying to find new ones, and we’ll go a few hours away from home just to find new places. Every town is different and there’s a surprise around every corner. That’s the great thing!
exactly! Is like a scavenger hunt!
That’s why is fun 
I can’t wait to see your new findings…
Ciao!
Thanks for sharing your tips! I could really use them, I’m the type of person that has driven 2 hours out of town just to buy a piece of furniture I wanted and didn’t specifically need!
Hi Josie, you’re welcome.
I’m happy if I can be helpful.
There’s still the crisis outside…time to spend money properly
See you soon around here
Ciao!
I have to say, I don’t totally agree with you. I have a hard time holding on to money, so if it’s not design I’m buying, it might be clothes or booze or dinners. These don’t have nearly as good second-hand value as design (especially not the dinners), and when I get bored with some furniture piece I bought – I just sell it, often for a profit. Good design is not seldomly also a good investment.
Well, of course, my ‘rules’ are not for all the ‘kind’ of thrifters
If you can manage easily your savings, and your buys are not bulky than is ok! To re-sell is good way to get rid of undesired objects and earn some money…many people do it.
My case, like others, is the one of someone that get attach to his buys and then ends in the messy situation… that my ‘rules’ try to prevent
Thanks for sharing your experience!
I hope to see your comments soon again
Ciao!
@GoVintage Most recently I bought an Agfa-camera from the seventies, for 5 euros. But when I think of it, almost everything I own comes from fleamarkets or thriftstores and practically all my furniture comes from marktplaats.nl. Can’t wait for the fleamarket-season to start again!
Cool! Does it work?
It would be nice to see how the pics are.
Marktplaats is a nice source but I prefer to thrift in ‘real’shops
Where do you thrift? Any advice?
Ciao!
It works for sure! I have some photo’s displayed on my blog, if you’re curious. I live in the south of Holland and just googled to see thriftstores in my surroundings, I found quite a few. I really like ‘verkoopwinkels’: stores where they sell other people’s stuff for a part of the profit. Objects that don’t sell have to be removed in half a year, quite a good concept. And I search for fleamarkets for a good cause. Because on those markets people don’t sell their own stuff and they want to sell it on that day: that combination gives great bargains. To find them I read local free newspapers, especially look at the advertisements in the back. Good luck and please show the things you find!
I’ll check for sure! I’m very curious!!
There are the some shops in Amsterdam !
Check what I wrote about them so far in my “The Best Places for Thrifting in Amsterdam Part 1 & 2″ series, if you’re interested! (links: http://bit.ly/fxeLwA and http://bit.ly/h52obv).
Tomorrow the Part #3 ;o)
Ciao!
To make it easy, look here: http://enigheid.blogspot.com/2011/01/enig.html, here: http://enigheid.blogspot.com/2011/01/lomo-saturday_22.html and these are my favourites until now: http://enigheid.blogspot.com/2011/01/lomo-saturday_15.html
how nice!!
I thought you used a digital camera to shoot those pics, amazing quality…
ciao!
Hi Marco,
I really enjoy reading your blog — your enthusiasm for mid-century modern and its design icons shines through.
I really like your advice for thrifting wisely… but I am confused about #4: “go for it but don’t buy it.” How can you ‘go for it’ but not buy it? I am just not sure what you mean.
Hey, thanks for your nice words…It’s a pleasure and a lot of fun to write about mid-century
You will understand the #4 in the Part 2:
http://www.mid-century-home.com/thrifting/the-magical-4-rules-%E2%80%93-part-2-how-to-pay-the-price-you-want/
Go and check it
Thanks for reading.
Ciao,
Marco.