New gal from Philadelphia

[FleaQueen]

WOW, I am just so thrilled that there's a website for us thrifters!

I started going to thrift shops when I became interested in vintage clothing (I'm an antiques/untiques dealer).  At the beginning, I turned my nose up at actually buying secondhand clothing for myself.  Now it's about 15 years later and almost everything I wear is secondhand.  I draw the line at underwear, though 

The Philadelphia area has the most amazing thrift stores and flea markets, and I could go on and on about the amazing things I've found: a 1950's Nat King Cole sweater (he once had a clothing line), Claire McCardell dress, Pucci everything -- last summer found FIVE Pucci neckties at Goodwill, vintage shoes to die for, including a pair of Chinese "lily foot" shoes I got for $3, and sold for $375. 

If you ever visit Philly, let's go on a thrift run together!

[valleythriftshopper]

Welcome to the site, I look forward to hearing about your past/present finds!  I bet Philly has alot to offer thriftwise-great city!  I went to a Hospice thrift store the other day I never knew existed (thanks Thriftshopper directory).  It is more of an upscale shop that carries high end designer stuff.  The only problem is that the prices were more like consignment prices, not under 5 bucks as I am accustomed to.  It is also a half hour drive away so I will probably only pop in there once in a while. 

I never found any high end vintage designer clothes, but once did get a whole box of Vogue Couture patterns from many of the big designers of the 60's. 

[Good Buddy]

As a fellow Philadelphian welcome! We will go thrifting as my entire family lives in Eastern PA. Willow Grove, Hamburg, Lancaster, Germantown, Reading and the list goes on..
I used to live to go to Martin's Aquarium!
And just because I ask all Phillies....Pat's or Geno's? I know you know of better local places, but between those two....which do you like better?

[FleaQueen]

Pats vs Genos - neither.  I have never failed to get indigestion from Pat's, and I've never had Geno's. 

Jim's on 4th and South (or maybe it's 5th and South) is the place to go.  Also, if you make it to Northeast Philly, where I live, try Steve's Prince of Steaks.  Steve really is a prince of steaks!

And to the lucky girl who found those Vogue patterns - WOW.

So far in 2009, I haven't had any majorly fantastic finds.  Do any of you ever attend auctions?

[valleythriftshopper]

I really should try auctions, especially this time of year when the thrifts are dead.  There are a number of auction houses around here.  A friend of mine has gone to some, I told her if she sees a good one to call me, but I really should check their websites to see the previews & just go to look.  I hear you can get good box lots sometimes.  Do you go?

[FleaQueen]

YES!  I LOVE auctions.  Even if I don't buy anything, they're a great form of free entertainment, plus you can learn a lot.

I have gotten wonderful things in box lots.  My last great box lot, about six months ago, I paid about $48 for what ended up being close to $400 in vintage sewing patterns, and Madeira napkins.   Another lot I got a year or so ago -- there were more than 20 items in the box -- old jewelry, thimbles, eyeglasses, etc. -- I paid $50, and just one item from the lot went for $175. 

The thing about auctions, though, is that they tend to be very emotional.  It's important to know how high you're willing to go and to STAY THERE.  Plus, make sure that whatever you plan to bid on, you've looked  it over very thoroughly.    More than once, I've bid on something I didn't look closely at, and ended up with something that was badly damaged or that I just bid too high for. 

[Good Buddy]

Do you know where Mayfair is? Or Lincoln High School? My mom grew up in Mayfair. My dad grew up all over the city..

I've been to an auction with my parents in Atlanta once, but Cookie and I have not attended any auctions..

Pat's is nasty! Geno's is better. I knew you'd know of a local favorite..

[genuineimitation]

welcome flea. i've got a friend from philly - she still misses the ice cream from the public market, after 25 years away from home!

we'd love for you to post photos of some of your clothing purchases!!!

[anastasiabeaverhausen]

hello from north carolina....I love auctions, I usually hit two a week.lil country auctions, I usually find some good stuff, last week I found some blue BALL jars for my son the budding chef < and I also found out they make an amber BALL jar, but they are WAY high dollar> 5 bucks and I went to a great estate sale got a brand new in the box fire king covered casserole on a plug in warming plate for 7 bucks, then sunday found an enamel handled pot <white with red rim> at a small flea market for .50  I love the thrift stores, yard sales, auctions, estate sales  I want to start my 2009 thrift thread, just wondering though, should I only include thrift store items....or everything that is bought "second hand"
anyways you will love it here! cant wait to hear about all your great finds! welcome welcome!!

[oceangurl]

Greetings Fleaqueen, glad you found this site! You will enjoy it here as I have...you mentioned you found Pucci! I love Pucci and would give my eye teeth for some...I found (like 15 yrs ago) in our Catholic Thrift (when thrifting wasnt as popular as it is now) 2 Pucci nightgowns and robes in beautiful Lilac and white. I got them both for 50 cents each. Since then the Catholic Thrift moved into a bigger building over the yrs and everything is way overpriced, they would sell those same sets for big bucks because they are "designer" back then nobody knew...Now this same Catholic Thrift googles everything on Ebay and puts a printout next to "designer" items so gone are the big bargains, I still have those sets and they are in great condition. I also have found Gucci, Chanel etc. back in the day before anybody knew what to look for...I miss those days...

[Firekinghunt]

I have gone to TONS of auctions, estate sales, did the longest yard sale, flea markets, you name it! I have found that, well at least in my area, the thrift stores and flea markets are the best place to find a deal. The garage sales are always WAY OVER-CROWDED. Do you all have "subdivision sales" and "block sales" too? It is a great way to hit like 50+ homes, buuuuuut draws every dealer/treasure hunter from near and far. On the longest yard sale I made back my money with my first find on the first morning...a set of Florence Ceramics Rhett and Scarlett O'Hara Figurines. They were gorgeous and sold for over $100. I paid...$5 for both. I had an amazing trip and wish my car was bigger!

[valleythriftshopper]

It seems like auctions can be a little trickier as you have to invest a little more than with yard sales, so you have to know what you are buying.  Over the summer I was at a yard sale & saw a Lladro figurine & the woman told me it was 50 cents.  Didn't know anything about it, but knew that Lladro is collectible so it was a no brainer.  That figurine sold for 100 bucks too.  If I was at an auction & it was going for 20 bucks I would have been less sure.

The neighboring town of Deerfield had a big town wide tag sale event this summer.  That town is known for antiques and is home to Historic Deerfield (where both Keno brothers of Antiques Roadshow fame did their internships).  I did not make the best of that one starting too late & runiing out of steam early, but I did get a big box of vintage playmobil sets for 5 bucks.  I hope they have another one this summer, I will be more prepared!

[valleythriftshopper]

YES!  I LOVE auctions.  Even if I don't buy anything, they're a great form of free entertainment, plus you can learn a lot.

I have gotten wonderful things in box lots.  My last great box lot, about six months ago, I paid about $48 for what ended up being close to $400 in vintage sewing patterns, and Madeira napkins.   Another lot I got a year or so ago -- there were more than 20 items in the box -- old jewelry, thimbles, eyeglasses, etc. -- I paid $50, and just one item from the lot went for $175. 

The thing about auctions, though, is that they tend to be very emotional.  It's important to know how high you're willing to go and to STAY THERE.  Plus, make sure that whatever you plan to bid on, you've looked  it over very thoroughly.    More than once, I've bid on something I didn't look closely at, and ended up with something that was badly damaged or that I just bid too high for. 

Your story about the patterns is funny to me because my great find at the yard sales this summer was the very same thing.  My last stop that day was to a house sale of a 90+ year old woman who had been a professional dressmaker.  I didn't even know about this sale until I bumped into a neighbor on the way home from the other yard sales & he said I should go over- so lucky I bumped into him!  It was fairly picked over as it was almost 11:00 but I found three pattern storage boxes with many vintage patterns.  I had sold some patterns before but was not really sure which ones were the best.  I took all the oldest patterns & put them into one box.  The daughter of the woman told me the boxes were 2 dollars each, so I took the box of the patterns I had picked out.

I got home & looked them up to see that these patterns, mostly Vogue Paris Originals & Couture patterns from the 60's, were quite valuable!  I had a single pattern that sold for $200 & the rest of the box went for at least $400.  I went back the next day to see if the sale was still going on, but it wasn't- I wanted those other two boxes, can't believe I left them behind.  There were more Vogue patterns form the 80's not as valuable but still probably a couple of hundred dollars worth. 

My other best box lot was a box of old willowware that was quite nice, but also had a rare piece of Royal Delft, the whole box was 5 bucks from a chruch sale. 

My favorite thing at one of my local thrifts is when they put out baskets of sunglasses.  I think they save them in them in back until they have a whole basket full & then put them out.  They are 50 cents each & the basket always contains cool vintage glasses that generally fetch 30-50 dollars on Ebay.  There hasn't been a basket for a while so I am keeping my fingers crossed!

[FleaQueen]

A $200 pattern!! 

And all these years, I've been bragging about the $120 pattern I sold from about 200 patterns I got at an estate sale five or so years ago.

The good thing about patterns is that, for the most part, nobody at auctions or house sales seems to want them.  At least in the Philadelphia area, most dealers are men, and they haven't a clue about this stuff. 

[valleythriftshopper]

At that particular house sale I heard some of the people who were running the sale talking about how dealers had come the night before to get first pick on the stuff.  Apparently they ignored was probably about a $1000 worth of patterns (like I said I left two boxes behind  ). 

I was surprised by the selling price of some of them.  200 dollars was about the top price those patterns were going for on Ebay at the time, some a little over $200.  The buyer of my $200 pattern & some of the others was a design house in S. Korea.  They were probably knocking off the designs & making a killing!