The beginning

Hello Tag Poppers!

I have been hooked on thrift store shopping for a number of years.  I believe it began when I drove past a garage sale and a cool lamp caught my eye.  I stopped, which is something I had never done before, and bought the lamp - frazzled cord and all!  I took the lamp to a small appliance repair shop where it was rewired and ready for my personal use.  I love the lamp. Years later, I see it and still enjoy the aesthetics of it.  It is truly a one-of-a-kind.

As the years passed and my pay increased incrementally,  the frequency of my yard sale, thrift store shopping slowed.   It was nothing personal.  I was spending my  'down time' differently.   But then, the economy turned. I had a child to raise and the need to protect my income, grew.  I wanted to save some money and since I am interested in recycling and helping save the earth, thrift shopping was an easy way to keep to my belief systems.  There are many items, however, that I would never buy second-hand.  Mattresses come to mind. Furniture that is stained in ways that whisper ... mold, as well as undergarments and dishes.

But the reality of thrift shopping, or popping tags, is that people in America over-buy.  They buy stuff they can't afford and/or will never use.  I can not tell you how many estate sales and thrift stores I have been to, where there were many items with the price tags still on, in bags and apparently, never used.  Such a waste. That is where we, the tag poppers, benefit!  Their wasted purchases become our frugal finds.

A word of warning, regarding the potential for savings, however.  You really need to know the prices for items bought new.  I have been out popping tags and found items that could be bought brand new for cheaper than what the price was at the resale shop.  The upside to buying new is that you can return or exchange a faulty item.  Estate sale purchases, on the other hand, as well as most thrift shop purchases, can not be returned or exchanged.  Keep this in mind.

It's Saturday morning. . . Let's go pop some tags!

Happy thrifting.