Best time to thrift shop?

[tmha12]

I'm new to thrift shopping and I've always heard my friends got really good deals when it came to thrift shopping. I've never been and I don't really know how this works. I know it's summer time right now and I'm in the process of looking for summer dresses and shoes for the fall. I just wanted to know when the best time to go thrift shopping would be? Weekends? Weekdays. Any recommendation of places? I live right in Falls Church so any where in the surrounding areas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[mccoysnina]

I can't speak to your area in particular but I seem to find my best finds on Thursday or Friday.  The ts seem to have their stuff out for the week-end but it isn't so picked over.  Here by Sat afternoon the great stuff is usualy gone.  But having said that, I find great stuff all week long, but generally find the best buys at work week's end before the actualy weekend.
Jeannie

[Firekinghunt]

I have thrifted every day of the week and can say that the best days are either Tuesday or Thursday (for me at least.) I have had really good luck on Saturday and here is a tip - thrift on a bad weather day. Don't do it when it's dangerous to yourself or others to be out, but, I find the thrift's are dead on a stormy or snowy day. I have gotten the whole place to myself when it is snowing out because no one wants to deal with it. But yes by the weekend usually everything is picked over!!

[osip]

I thrift both week day evenings (after work) and the early morning weekend days.  I have such a ball that I will go any day.  I very rarely get to go during the week in the morning so I can't say. I do know that since I have started making the rounds and the staff is getting to know me I will get a call from some saying hey we got a dress in that we think you will like are you coming in today?  they don't hold anything for me but they do alert me to new stuff coming in.

I will say this, I found most of my fall/winger clothes in the early spring/summer - I think when people put their season clothes away that is when they donate...I got 2 wool brooks brother suits 3 Talbots suits and a bunch of really really nice high end sweaters in June.  my husband laughed at me because I was buying winter / fall clothing in the early summer, but I couldn't pass them up. 

[valleythriftshopper]

I was just looking at the sweatshirts today.  They have nice new looking hoodies that will be 1-2 dollars each tomorrow on 1/2 price Wednesday.  In the winter there are only old ratty ones and any new hoodies are usually 6 or 7 dollars, so it is definitely best to shop off season at thrifts!

[SplashsMom]

Unless your store has deep Monday discounts,  Monday is the worst day to thrift.  The volunteers have not put out the new stuff yet  and all the well priced items disappear over the weekend when many stores are their busiest.
Find out your stores discount policies.  Sal Army here has one color discount all week, so that would be a good Monday stop.  Goodwill has a certain color half price Sun and Mon,  so by Monday anything worth taking is gone.  And our Vinnies  ( we have 3 within half hour) all have individual policies.  One never marks down anything, one only marks down really boring stuff that has been around forever, but the best one has surprise mark down days and bag days.  Whatever the owner feels like that morning. I wish I could pop in at opening every day just to see if there is a sale going on.

And Thursdays seem to be the day all the seniors are out and about. Not that they are buying things I am interested in but they block isles and move slow and love to engage me in conversation and I don't like to be rude so I talk to them.  (Soon enough I will qualify.)

[Mongo Mama]

I find at the Goodwill between 2-4 in the afternoon. New stuff is being put out and picked over by 5. Never bother on the weekends ...

[liamaria]

i like to thrift on weekdays around 930am and 10am depending on when the store opens up. thats when they are usually putting everything out such as furniture. when im thrifting at good will i like to go later in the evening when it slows down and they  arent to busy. they are constantly  putting out knick knacks around that time. one time i found a 1950s hall china company yellow pitcher . i paid two dollars. i was so happy.  i dont thrift to much on the weekends, i usully hit up garage sales and estate auctions and the random flea market.  i guess it all depends on the area you live and by the store you are thrifting at.

[Mattie]

I'm a weekend thrifter by necessity.  The thrifts around here close at 6 or 7, and by the time I get home from work I'm too pooped to walk to the bus stop and go thrifting.  There's a St. Vin's a few blocks from my job but it's the opposite direction from my house so if I go there after work it adds a half-mile to my walk home. 

I've never had a problem finding things on the weekends.  My overloaded closets will attest to that.  I agree with what others have said, though - buy clothes out of season!  Better selection, better prices. 

[aGentlerTime]

I have always been an after work shopper but recently found that it seems Saturdays, all day, are constant running racks and putting out days at our local GW.   I rarely go on weekends but the past two Saturdays I have, and the amount coming out is breathtaking.

[Krisathome]

Lately most of our donations are coming on Mondays and some on Saturday.   I try to get some of it out as it comes in but usually I don't get to it until Tues. or Wednesday.  I and my employee work on opposite days(budget cuts) so it takes us alittle longer to get things on the shelves. 

Furniture though goes out right away since I have no where to store it in the building. 

[SplashsMom]

As garage sale season grinds to an end here I have been frustrated by not getting anywhere near a sale of any sort including thrifts on decent days. The last 2 weeks I "ran away from home" on Mondays to get my errands run, which included seeing what is on tag sale at 2 semi local thrifts. (30-45 mi away)  Mondays are indeed the worst day to thrift. Was not even fun!  In my opinion, a waste of gas.

[valleythriftshopper]

There are some nice thrift stores 30-40 minutes from where I live too, but I don't go out of my way to go to them on a regular basis because I would not want to do all that driving & find nothing.  You got to try once in a while though!