trash picker + thrift store addict

books!

2008-03-06T13:15:00.000-08:00

Wondering if that book is going to be a good read? Are you willing to pay $16 to find out? Don't worry - you're at Goodwill and it's only $.99!

Similar to digging through the artwork you have to have patience and a willingness to paw through lots of crap in order to find your treasures.

I love to read. I read all genres of books. You would be surprised at the selection of titles and categories that will be found in the back corner of Goodwill. When you shop for bargain books you can buy them simply based on artwork or title. It doesn't matter if it turns out to be lousy. Just donate them back. If however, the book turns out to be fantastic pass it on to someone else. A thoughtful and inexpensive gift. Who doesn't like those?

Most recently I found a book called The Wild Flavor: Delictable wild foods to be found in the field & forest & cooked in country kitchens, By Marilyn Kluger. This is one of my all-time favorite topics; wild edible foods. Books on this subject are hard to find and are usually from the 70's and currently out of print. What a shame. Perhaps with the increasingly popular "eco-friendly, organic, and green" phase that the US is going through some of these books might see a comeback. I've read it cover to cover and thoroughly enjoyed her personal tales about hunting for edibles. I want to go on a morel mushroom hunt this spring.
Would I have paid full price? YES

Other recent titles:

Out of Africa - Isak Dinesen
A friend asked me to read this for a mini book club. I only spent one day and one goodwill before I found the title; luck was on my side. I'm about half way through and have just started to enjoy the style of writing.
Would I have paid full price? NO

America's Boy A Memoir- Wade Rouse
I didn't personally buy this book, but I know it came from Goodwill. I would have bought it purely for the cover. He's funny but not as funny as Augusten Burroughs. A super quick read; very enjoyable.
Would I have paid full price? NO

Children of Dune - Frank Herbert
3nd book in the original series. 'Effin Awesome! The original series was by far the best; I've read all 14. Love the old school cover on this one.
Would I have paid full price? YES

Sputnik Sweetheart - Haruki Murakami
I haven't started this yet. I'm certainly a fan of his writing; the cover is nice too.
Would I have paid full price? at a 50% off sale

Go get yourself a book

eight more weeks

2008-03-06T06:40:00.000-08:00

My excitement is building - bulky item pickup is just a few months away! Are you ready? Do you have your plan of attack? I do.

Even though I don't really need any more stuff I can't help but get excited over the prospect of finding treasures in the trash. This year I'm going to keep my eyes open for requests by my friends. You would be surprised at how good I am at finding these.

Last year my sister-in-law-to-be asked me to keep my eyes open for a mid-century modern dresser. Preferably one that is low and long with simple lines. That very same day as I was driving around the Rosemont neighborhood I spied with my little eye the very thing she was looking for. At times like that I wish I owned a truck and not a 4-door sedan. I had to remove the legs and drawers from the dresser, stash them in the trunk and front seat, and then gently force the dresser body into the back seat. It just barely fit. I would have tied the doors shut if I had to. I drove straight over to my brother's house to deliver my treasure. It was exactly what they wanted; you'd never know it came out of the trash.

What are you going to be searching for?

art on the cheap

2007-10-25T09:35:00.000-07:00

Generally when I go to goodwill I'm never looking for anything in particular; just anything unusual, or a great deal or the perfect gift. Most of the goods are arranged neatly on shelves, which makes shopping easy. When it comes to the art, you have to be willing to dig through a pile of stacked frames, or a bin in the corner.

I always put in the effort to poke through the pile. Don't forget to use both hands, you may end up reorganizing the entire section by the time you're done. I've found some really great, and really really cheap pieces of art at goodwill. Don't forget those frames either - you can get a large decorative frame that you can replace the artwork in for very little money. My favorite piece is a small painting on a wood panel, it's of a harbor in Greece. It cost me $.99!

At the very least, you'll come across some truly terrible motel style watercolors and artist "originals" that will leave you laughing.

I've also found a lot of really awesome artwork at yard sales. I try to go yard sailing in the fancier neighborhoods (Falmouth Foreside, Yarmouth, Cumberland, Cape Elizabeth) because you'll find the best stuff. A friend of mine found a huge mirror in a heavy carved dark wood frame for $5 at a sale a few years back.

who loves to pick trash? I DO

2007-10-23T09:03:00.000-07:00

The best time of year for trash picking in Portland is May. This is when we have a month of Bulky Item Pickup. I LOVE May. I got really dorky this year and printed out large maps of the 5 districts. You can get them from the Portland city website.

Starting with Districts 1+2 (West End / East End / Downtown) which happen the same week the adventure begins. Personally, I don't like Districts 1+2 very much. There's too much competition for the good stuff. It is possible to find some really excellent things - you just have to have luck and good timing. I live in District 2 and this year I got lucky. Walking home late one night I found three mid-century diner chairs. One thing I won't do is leave any of my trash finds on the street. If I want it I have to figure out a way to take ALL of it. I didn't go very fast but I got all three of them home. A small victory. I also found a three tiered metal shelf that same night.

I also came across some people moving out of their house. I scored a bike and a yellow formica mid-century diner table. Unfortunately some lazy brute tried to rip the legs off instead of using a tool to do it. I straightened the legs using my kryptonite bike lock buy putting the straight end into the leg, closest to the bend, and slowly pulled the bend out as best I could without breaking them. I fixed them all and after a thorough scrub it's looking pretty good.

I'm realizing now that this could go on forever. So maybe I'll save the other districts for later.

did I mention I love the 50's?

2007-10-22T15:08:00.000-07:00

This weekend I went with another dedicated bargain hunter to a few church rummage sales. If you didn't already know church sales are the best for cheap mid century treasures.

This is the first time I've been to this sale: White Elephant & Rummage Sale, St. Patrick's Church Hall, 1342 Congress Street, and apparently it was excellent last year. This year wasn't so hot. On Friday morning at 8:15 waited on the basement stairs for 45 minutes so we would be the first ones in. We weren't, the dealers got there first.

I did find a huge white chenille bed spread $2.50 (I collect them) to make into part of my winter duvet. And a selection of cute vintage aprons $.50 each, complete with rick-rack and pompom fringe. I also got a green glass bowl for $.75.

Saturday morning, we went to another sale in Falmouth. Which turned out to be really hard to find we got a little lost, but it was early. This was more seedy and fun. I got a metal organizer thing for the kitchen $.25. It has multiple doors which hold wax paper and such, the doors have serrated edges. It needed a really good cleaning. I also got a nice 60's era blue fan for $2.00 which could definitely cut a finger off.

After, we made our way over to the Salvation Army on Warren Ave. I think it's hard to find anything there that I would consider a "deal." Their pricing has gone crazy over the past couple of years. You can get a really dirty, ugly 70's print sofa for $175 - what a deal!

I did manage to find another huge chenille bed spread for $2.00 in a nice rosy pink. It made the perfect second side to my duvet. And after a thorough washing in hot water and some crafty sewing on my part I have my lovely new duvet. King cat Mufasa loves it too.

I did find earlier in the week a tweet paint by numbers of a blue jay - $1.99.