Thrifting for Home Decor (5 Tips for Finding Cool + Unique Decor)
Thrift stores are my number one place to find unique, good quality home decor- BUT it can also be a little frustrating. Which is why I wanted to share some tips I’ve learned over the last few years- hopefully they help make your thrifting trips more enjoyable!
An older photo of my living room shelves - only 5 pieces of decor aren’t from a thrift store!!
TIP ONE: Google thrift stores within 20 miles (or however far you’re comfortable going) and look for stores with good reviews. When you find one you think you’d like, search on google to see if there are any other thrift stores within a mile or two of that one. I like to do this so that if I end up not finding anything, I have a backup thrift store to check out! Nothing worse than driving far and coming home empty handed.
TIP TWO: Always get a cart, and put anything that catches your eye in the cart. When you’re finished browsing, go through your cart and put back anything you decide you don’t want.
TIP THREE: Keep a running list on your phone of what décor you want. It’s easy to completely blank out when you’re browsing the aisles- the amount of stuff can be overwhelming!
(I’m always on the lookout for things like vases, planters, mirrors, art, & random decorative objects!)
TIP FOUR: Save a few shelf styling photos to your phone that you like (from Pinterest, Arch Digest, blogs, etc.). When you’re thrifting, try to find items similar to the décor in the photos. This will also help you get better at quickly scanning the shelves. It’s easy to miss something cute when it’s surrounded by a lot of not-so-cute things.
For example: if you wanted to style your home with a similar vibe as the shelf styling below (design by amber lewis/ amber interiors), being able to reference the photo will help you know what to zero in on.
TIP FIVE: Keep a list of measurements in your phone of different areas in your home. For example: if you’re looking for a mirror to hang above your console, keep a note with how big it needs to be. That way, you know for sure whether or not any mirror you find will work.
The two pictures below are of shelves I used to have in our bedroom. I was originally going to point out all of the décor that was from a thrift store, but it ended up being easier to point out what isn’t thrifted!
The last thing I want to mention is that even if thrifting isn’t for you, you can still find beautiful vintage décor online. A ton of people have beautifully curated Etsy shops where they resell thrifted décor!
I actually did this for a year or so, but all of the extra work became too much (finding the items, cleaning, measuring, photographing, editing photos, creating listings + descriptions, PLUS everything you need to do for shipping)!!
SO if you prefer to browse through an already curated selection of vintage decor, I’m linking a few different shops below that I’ve recently come across—
And to help motivate you, I’ll leave you with some photos of things I found and sold back when I had my Etsy shop- this is just a TINY portion of the amazing things I’ve found over the years!
