Thrifting in BC
September 22, 2014
It’s no secret that I love thrifting – I love the thrill of finding something amazing (or something ugly that could be amazing) in a pile of what can often sometimes be described as junk. I find however that in Toronto it’s hard to find that amazing score – I don’t know if it’s because there are just so many others in town that have the same affinity for the hunt that I do or, if it’s just a case of luck not being on my side whenever I head to the local stores (which aren’t that local when you don’t have a car).
In August I visited my parents in BC and on a couple of occasions my mom and I went out to explore the local second-hand stores. They live in a small-ish town that has what seems to be a larger number of thrift stores in comparison to Toronto. It may be the demographics are different – there is a large retiree population, but they also have a number of stores which are run in benefit of local charities like the Hospital Auxiliary and the Woman’s shelter which I haven’t seen here (I’m sure they exist – I just haven’t found them).
I don’t know what it was on this trip, but I found a number of great pieces. So many I had to get creative when packing to get them back to Toronto.
I finally found some milk bottles – these are originally from The Dutchmen Dairy in Sicamous, BC, which is, according to my mom, a mandatory stop when traveling on the Trans-Canada highway. I’m not entirely sure if these are ‘vintage’ as apparently this dairy still sells milk in bottles, but they were just $2 each.
Anyways, I was lucky enough to find two Kaiser vases in BC, so I've got the start of a little collection. The first round vase was $7 and the second, slightly larger vase, was an incredible $2.
Does anyone else find a difference when thrifting in small towns vs. big cities? Or was I perhaps just lucky enough to be visiting when there was many great things for sale?
3 comments
I think the west coast, in general, has better thrifting. it's unfair! Especially the mid century goodies, it's all over there!
ReplyDeleteAnd, oh! Those last two vases! Totally jealous. Good finds! I've got my own collection of white MCM vases brewing too: http://www.crabbyfox.com/2014_05_01_archive.html and http://www.crabbyfox.com/2012/02/digging-it.html
Oooh - I like yours too!
ReplyDeleteI have a Kaiser vase that I've stored away. I'll pull it out and give it to you. I come across them every now and again, so I'll grab them for you next time I spot one for dirt cheap. St. Jacobs antique malls have them, but I can't remember how much they're selling them for.
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