Thrift stores... (San Antonio, Austin, Marshall: sales, apartment, mattress)

[LovingSAT]

From here to Austin,
Does anyone have any thrift stores they recommend or like to visit between here and Austin? What great purchases have you made?

[Backliteyes]

Originally Posted by LovingSAT

From here to Austin,
Does anyone have any thrift stores they recommend or like to visit between here and Austin? What great purchases have you made?

Are you looking for real niche places with interesting and uncommon things or just real general thrift stores?

You can find good deals at the common thrift stores (Big Lots, Ross, Marshalls, Tuesday Morning, etc.), but often it's a time investment in that you find the best stuff when you drop in semi-often, take a look around, realize that you're going to see a lot of junk and only occasionally find good stuff before everyone else snags it. I like to drop in and look around now and then just for fun. And if I impulse buy it's cheap enough that it doesn't really matter. Much less dangerous to my wallet than wandering the mall.

[LovingSAT]

No I want thrift stores like used stuff, bikes, toys, .... good stuff, good hunting! Garage Sales in AC.

[sapphire]

Since you mentioned Austin.....they have the City-Wide Garage Sale every once in a while.....the next one is in June.

City-Wide Garage Sale

It's a lot of fun to go through each booth. It's a lot like Wimberley Market Days but indoors and much smaller. Wimberley Market Days is also very cool! At both places, there are tons of one-of-a-kind things and just some really neat old things. Some craft-type items (more in Wimberley than in Austin) but you can spend 3 hours or so at the Austin one, and nearly all day in Wimberley--if you are a super shopper. We just get a room and make it a weekend. Fun stuff. Well, once in a while anyway. Wimberley has some great hotel rooms, though.

For true thrift stores, Salvation Army and Goodwill both have decent stores here. The Texas Thrift store near Ingram is just plain gross and scary, unless they've cleaned it up in the last 3 years or so. I went once and never again. I really have to be "in the mood" to go thrift store shopping, but they are fun when you're in the mood.

[elnina]

Goodwill has better prices than Thrift Stores, but both are not cheap anymore...
Many times, especially the "new" stuff from Walmart, Macy's or Target costs more than in the original store. I made a point to make pictures of those items, and then check on the computer and compare the prices. Some were ridiculous high at the Goodwill. I took the printouts there, but they said that the main office decide about the prices. I also wrote to goodwill.org without any results.
Shoes for $8.99 or books for $2.99 are not cheap either...
Most of the time is a hit or miss. Sometimes you can find decent stuff there for a decent price.

[Sweetie Pie]

The Goodwill @ Austin Hwy., I-10 De Zavala, & 281 Bitters are supported by the Junior League, SA and have some really cool stuff. I got a red, with flames, little boy kids bike with training wheels for my 2 y.o. Today we got a new pillow top Queen size mattress & frame for $300. for DD that is in the process of moving into her own place. It's a lot of hunt & peck, but I usually find what I want for an extremely good deal at these 2 places.

[follie]

I love the Goodwills here. I furnished my apartment with good finds from Goodwill. They get the things that didn't sell from Target, and those usually have higher prices, but I got an elliptical for $20 and a great chair and a half with ottoman for $35. I got a computer at the Goodwill on De Zavala.

I go to the one on Culebra and 1604, 281 at Bitters, and I10 and De Zavala for furniture. I go to the one on 1604 at Lookout for art and other trinkets. I got to the one on 410 at Evers just for the heck of it.

I love Goodwill. The Salvation Armys here have higher prices, but usually some nicer stuff. I haven't been impressed with the Texas Thrift Stores (410 and Ingram and 135 at Walzem (? I think)). They have a lot of stuff, but a lot of it is broken or in bad shape and they ask a pretty penny for it.

[elnina]

Went to Goodwill on Austin Hwy today to get few books to read. Their book section expanded lately.
I saw several boxes of 3 shelf bookcases $49.95 each. (40x24x12)
Identical bookcase Target sells for $19.95....

[xsa210tx]

I heard from somebody that the Goodwill on 281/Bitters (13311 Bitters at Highway 281) has the "best" stuff from all the Goodwill locations around the city and that they get a lot of good stuff (brand name, designer clothing) first and then whatever doesn't sell or is not that valuable is given to other locations.

A few years back, I had called about just about every Goodwill in San Antonio asking if any of them had a computer monitor and one of the employees told me to check at the one on Bitters/281 as that was the best one overall according to her.

[Sweetie Pie]

Originally Posted by xsa210tx

I heard from somebody that the Goodwill on 281/Bitters (13311 Bitters at Highway 281) has the "best" stuff from all the Goodwill locations around the city and that they get a lot of good stuff (brand name, designer clothing) first and then whatever doesn't sell or is not that valuable is given to other locations.

A few years back, I had called about just about every Goodwill in San Antonio asking if any of them had a computer monitor and one of the employees told me to check at the one on Bitters/281 as that was the best one overall according to her.

Should have checked here, on CD-SA!!! LoL!!!

I have a good friend that shops Goodwill on 281/Bitters and DeZavala/I-10, exclusively for designer brand baby/kids clothes and takes them to Kid's re-sale shops. She makes a nice little extra income for herself!