3301 W. Lawrence

Hello again my few and faithful readers! I think it high time to write again, but also to say, I really, really need to start taking pictures of all of my finds. Who really cares much what the store looks like as long as it's full of the good stuff, am I right? Therefore......I will now be presenting the items that I have purchased from each thrift store on this blog, yes yes. However, because this thrift was not a favorite there was nothing to buy alas. It wasn't all bad, but ya know if I didn't buy anything that's saying something about the store (or is it me? I can't remember...)Even still, there are some pros of this particular store.

PROS:
This store had a fantastic basement area that had a TON of shoes! I can't even begin to make you understand. There were like 4-5 racks and rows of shoes. I think I almost blacked out once or twice, but I didn't find anything-only because they didn't have a pair I needed.
Also next to the shoes was the books section and I skimmed over this section only because I was running out of time which I regretted. I saw a great many books here and the books section is one of my favorites. I was happy to see text books in the mix too, which isn't all that often a find, but can be valuable :)

I wouldn't call the clothing section all that remarkable since it's just the normal stuff you would see at most any thrift and I didn't even seem to see that many items in really great condition or the greatest selection. I wasn't moved and I wouldn't turn here if I was looking for a great top or dress like I would normally do in my "fabulous finds" stores :) I was obliged to look at all of the clothes (never know where you'll score that one of a kind piece). Nothing stood out to me for this store in terms of the clothing available. Seemed to be very typical.

CONS:
I wouldn't call this store the worst ever, and most everything was ok, so it's difficult to really say there were many cons to this store. I give this store an overal rating of "meh"

Wish I had more good things to say, but that's all I got!

2514 W 47th St

Ok, so it's been a lil' while. I've been a bit of a slacker I'd say ;)
Well, I DID decide once a week is too much for me, but I can do one every 2 weeks or so. So, I figure it equaled out and there we have it.
Well, this current thrift store, it's a much traveled and well loved one by me. I've been here a few times, and every time I pull into the parking lot, it's like "Ah, time for some fun!!"

PROS:
This store is close by, it's just so convenient and familiar. I'm wondering if this post might be biased because of those 2 things, but I think if it was a bad store then I wouldn't be shopping there in the first place.
When you enter the store you go thru the gate and right away there are 2 rows back to back of the "nicer" clothes. This is a great intro to the store and you can spend some time here since the rows are so long. I often will find great brands here like you would expect for the higher end items to be. Some have tags on them and most are in great condition. What's great is that these rows are jam packed with clothing everytime I am there. Again, as with many of the thrift stores this one has name brand clothes that I am very happy to pick up :)
The clothes and shoes department for women is, of course, the largest section which makes me very happy :) Along the outside wall are tons of women's shirts and then for nearly 3-4 additional aisles on both sides. The shoes are displayed prominently in the aisles above the clothing and there's a wide variety of shoes to choose from.
The men's and children's department is also very well stocked. The children's clothing is cute and fashionable. The men's clothes are pretty comparable to any other thrift store in quantity and quality.
The display case is interesting in this store since there are the cheaper items, and a smaller glass case containing more pricey items with crystals and nicer pieces.
The knick knacks and appliance section runs the full length of the back wall and it's got all kinds of items to pick and browse thru. I've found a full set of plates taped together and the condition is decent for most items there.

CONS:
Well, for starters this one's not as big as some of the other thrift stores out there so there's not as much space to stuff items in and the aisles can be really, really crowded-boo. Adding to this the fact that most people will throw things on the ground strewn everywhere and this can look like a pretty dirty, mangy store (but of course I can see past that, haha). Also, the prices on the items in the display case or behind it can be pricey in part because it's some name brand items, (I found Cole Haan shoes just a tad too big, but at $18 I couldn't justify the purchase).
Also, the books section, meh. It's not the biggest. Not exactly a "bad" section, but I wouldn't go looking in this section for the variety it possesses.
Furniture is another thing that there's not alot of in this store. The section it is in is cluttered and I don't really care to go picking thru it because most of the time someone is sitting on the chairs and it's not big enough to really care much about.
Lastly, the parking lot, small and therefore you have to be there at the right time to get a spot!

3301 W Lawrence

North Side! What what, time for a thrift store review!!!!
I almost rode the train to this one, but I would have LITERALLY had to have been on the brown line to the bitter end which was so not happening!!!
So here goes nothing!

Pros:
Boom! This store had a good parking lot. It was enclosed with a fence and its a good size. Went inside to what I found was a decent sized location. They have the "new/good stuff" up front and first thing you see when you walk in. Sweet, that's where I started. Found like 3-4 items in this section, and resisted the urge to shop exclusively here, haha. I found a decent cutesy purse that had a nautical theme with blue and white stripes in the purse section. The store was a good size and had all of the sections you would find in a thrift store. The store had name brand items: Ann Taylor, Express, etc.

Cons:
Well, this store really scored a low mark in my book. It smelled bad, the furniture area was a complete disaster and a staff member made me feel really awkward. The employee followed me and my friend around, and when I discovered that a tag for a cute blue top fell off in the cart, he came up to me and abruptly asked if I needed "help" with the item only to tell me that he couldn't sell the item to me. I was really bothered by this because the employee made me feel unwelcome, and did NOT help me, but rather snatch the item from me. At the very least when I asked if he could price it for me he could have politely denied my request. (By the way, the shirt was priced at $7 which I told him I was more than willing to pay, and if you know thrift stores you know that this is EXPENSIVE for a shirt!!!). After that interaction, I was definitely not in the mood to keep exploring, so it's a good thing I got a good look around prior to being dealt with like this :(
As I said, this store was DIR-TY! It smelled,there were clothes on the ground, and had I wanted to look in the furniture section, heh, well you really couldn't. Not only was so much of the furniture busted and just awful, but there wasn't a walking path to get thru and you had to step over pieces of things in order to manuvere. Not a pretty site.
The jewelry counter was laughable also. They had a nice looking couple of purses, but it was extremely barrren and not very many pieces to even pick over.

This store was a travel for me, it was nothing out of the ordinary and its staff left much to be desired. I won't be returning to this store, and I recommend the same for someone who wants to have a positive thrifting experience.

4027 N. Kedzie, 60618

Alright, I've reviewed a southside store.....and a further-southside store, Northside-it's your turn!
So, I set my GPS to Kedzie avenue and I happened upon Village Discount! Well, well this is was quite an experience. I don't know if I'm prepared to share this hot spot with the rest of the world!

Alright, here we go with the pros, drumroll please....
PROS:
As many people know, I am a shoe lover. Well, this store is for a shoe-aholic in us all. Once you walk in you are greeted with over THREE long aisles of shoes. There are also a few stray shelves of shoes in that vicinity that kinda just come at you, further overwhelming you with the bombardment of shoes. Here's a pick pic of one of the shoes aisle:

Then, once you find a pair of shoes, what girl doesn't need a purse? Well, guess what? There's a bunch of those as well! I picked up a cute Vera Wang gray shoulder purse (had to put it back bc I didn't have adequate money and it was the purse or the shoes...you can see the bind I was in, right??). The purse aisle is very long, and is covered front and back with purses.
Well, as if it's not enough to have an amazing purse/shoes section, it doesn't stop there. The Women's section has everything. I saw alot of Ann Taylor, Express, Apt 9, and New York & Company items. What's even better is that the clothing is sized for more than just size 2, in fact, many items I couldn't buy as they were too large on me, even up to 2X! (sure doesn't hurt to HAVE to pass on an item bc you're too small for it!Yay, my diet is working)The clothing is very modern, most is in great condition, and the arrangement and organization is all thanks to a staff that is diligent about keeping their store clean. In fact, the store as a whole is clean and well maintained.
This store, like all of the Village Discount stores, also has a "nicer clothes" section which definitely delivers.

Boys/Girls section, well didn't have too much of an opportunity to look there, very crowded with people, which I can only assume means that there were alot of parents there finding some nice clothes for their kids...I guess it doesn't help that I don't have any children of my own, but it looked great, just like the rest of the store.
Initially, I thought that men were out of luck in finding clothing here, as the whole store seemed to be nothing but shoes, purses, and women's clothing (actually that doesn't sound half bad, haha), but THEN I realized that the store is much larger than I thought it was. I think I actually shrieked in excitement when I saw this. This wasn't just the men's section, but the jewerly counter, glass/china, and trinkets area. LOVED IT!! Glasses and plates are nice and organized, and there's alot of really cute designs that I resisted the urge to buy (I have no room in my house! haha)
Annnd on to the Jewelry counter! It's HUGE!, several counters actually. The items behind the counter are highly visible and there's a great selection of items. Also, "Ghost Dad" was on sale, and who doesn't like that movie?
Should I go on? Yes, I think so! There's a section for sport jerseys in the men's area, which is something I have never seen in a thrift store, and I was highly impressed by this. The books are arranged nicely on a few bookshelves, decent amount to choose from, and I was able to pick up a nice hardcover book :D

Finally, I must mention the pricing/tags special. The prices were very reasonable at this thrift store, and I ended up spending $9.11 for the following: Lace Express shirt, New York & Co. Cami, Ann Taylor dress, Charlotte Russe shoes, and a hardcover book. This was thanks in part to the special today which was half off pink, orange, and yellow items. I commend this thrift store for not hiding all of the the sale colors, since I was able to take advantage of this sale on 2 of the items I got (dress & lace shirt). I felt like I got an excellent deal!

Now, the CONS:
The parking lot is tiny. I almost had to street park, but someone was coming out so I was able to claim a spot. Then I went inside looking for a cart and there weren't any. I asked one of the employees and he mumbled something, then pointed to a corner. I went to the corner, and saw-suprise-no carts. I then asked another employee for a cart, and she pointed to a shopping cart with items in it, which I told her had stuff in it. Then she reluctantly gave me her cart. Its never a good thing to feel like an inconvenience while going into a store. The entire staff seemed to have an attitude, almost like the store full of customers was bothering them. But, I will give them credit for a nice, clean, organized store.
Also, I would recommend that they put up more mirrors, as they only have a few near the purses and it's a tight squeeze if you have too many people congregating and trying things on at the same time.

With the cons being so minimal, you know this is a store I will be visiting again. It's a definite find and I want to go back :D
In fact, they're having a memorial day sale next monday, so take advantage and enjoy this fabulous, well organized, and memorable thrift store!

7443 S Racine, Chicago, 60636

Welcome to my second review! And continuing with the Village Discount, here we go :)
So, the first thing I noticed about this thrift store is the PARKING LOT, it's great! It's one of the bigger lots I've seen for a thrift store, it's great. So, I walked inside very optomistic with this place. I promptly walked around the store to get the "feel" of the store, snapped a few pictures, mumbled to myself, and dashed from aisle to aisle, and caused a few people to look at me in curiousity.

Pros:
Again, the parking lot-I can't say enough how nice it is to not worry about parking.
I loved the size of the women's section, it was definitely on par with what you would want to see in terms of selection, brands, colors, and arrangement. They really used the space in the women's department well. I saw Ann Taylor, Aeropostale, Forever 21, Merona, and a few other mentionable brands that would cause a fight if 2 ladies saw the same top at the same time, he he. The clothes for the Women's, Men's, and children's department were of good quality, and I happened to pick up an Ann Taylor Crisp, white button down summery shirt that I loved. (Stay tuned to see if I bought). Here's a pic of an aisle in the women's section, color coded!


Also, when I looked at the jewelry counter I was pleased with some of the movies and music that they had for sale. There wasn't alot of movies, but the ones they had were somewhat modern and in modern format(DVD's and Cd's). I was dissapointed that there weren't any "buns of steel" tapes, but you know, I survivied...and besides I could always go to another thrift store for that.
The formal dresses they had were also of good quality and I am sure that the right girl could find her prom dress here without a problem (sadly, I was too big for the sizes available :/ but they were in good shape).
The appliances/knick knacks were average, here's a pic of one of the shelves, which was very well stocked.


Cons
Well, I'm afraid the cons section is going to be larger for this store. First of all, the size of the store, eh. It was only a fair sized store, I felt that if the store was a little larger it would have alleviated many of my "cons", but alas it isn't. The arrangement of the store was only ok. The aisles and the departments meshed together. This isn't a make or break for me, but I feel cheated if I'm searching for something in the store and am about to leave only to discover I've missed an entire aisle. Not a good feeling! Also, speaking of clothing the men's and children's sections are smaller than other thrift stores. I wouldn't make this my destination store for strictly men's or children's clothing, but as I said the selection is a good quality.
Another plus for this store is that they accept Visa and Mastercard. I'm sure most of the thrift stores do at this point, but it's still helpful to know prior to loading up your cart :)
I was very dissappointed with the jewelry counter as a whole, as there was alot of open space. The selection was only ok to begin with, and the gaps didn't entice me to buy. They had alot of shoes and purses stacked behind the counter, but without a good display it wasn't easy to see what was available and I had some difficulty locating a clerk to even help me with these items. This is a pic of one of the counters

Although this counter is neatly arranged, but the gaps are what bothered me.
One glaring ommision that I was sad about, no furniture. Furniture can be such a treasure at the thrift store, and there wasn't even anything to browse over. Furniture is an important part of my thrifting experience and this definitely dissappointed.
When I went online to get the address and hours, the store is open til 9 Mon-Fri. However, at 7:55 it was announced that the store was closing in 5 minutes! When I approached the clerk he said that they are only open til 9 on fridays. Hmph! I didn't really have all the time I had wanted to browse the store and check out every department like I had planned. I felt totally betrayed by the website! Also, another problem was they had ALL of the carts in front of one of the walls which had women's skirts and clothing. Argh!

The average departments in my opinion were the linens, books, and shoes. They weren't terribly small, but they didn't overwhelm me either.
So, for that Ann Taylor blouse, I did not buy it sadly because I picked it up shortly before it was announced that the store was closing and I had more perusing to do. I feel I could have bought that shirt if it wasn't for the store closing :(
All in All, I don't think I would go to this store too frequently, since there are others that are alot closer and it wasn't anything out of the ordinary.

52 thrift stores in 52 weeks.

This is my new project, and I am really looking forward to it! I am a woman on a mission to find out the best and worst thrift stores out there in Chicagoland.
My plan is simple: Visit one thrift store every week and review it. I'm beginning with Village Discount Outlet chain. Every week I'll post a new location, so any suggestions on where to review are welcome!


So....my first stop, Village Discount Outlet located at 6419 S.Kedzie.
This thrift store is one of my favorites. Really there's so much to love about it where do I begin? First of all they have a website, yay for that! Here's the website:
http://www.vdoil.com

Pros:
First off, it's got a great selection of clothing, especially Women's clothing, and has many name-brand labels including Ann Taylor, New York and Company, INC, (you know the ones that make you do a double take). I'll admit, this is where I spend most of my time, haha. I also love that there are sizes that fit a wide range of shapes, since I usually wear a large/size 12 and I frequently walk out of this store with nice fitting shirts and pants that often times will look brand new or close to it.
But the men's and children's clothing are definitely nice for a thrift store, and there is even a separate area for toddler clothing, although I am not a fan of the back of the store, it seems a bit creepy back there. This back area also has several shelves of trickets, glasses, kitchen stuff, and some decorating items. Here's a pic of one of the extremely full shelves of trinkets. (These are taken from my phone, so they aren't the clearest, but you get the idea).

The linens are back here in this section also and although there's alot of sleeping bags and well worn bedding, they do have some blankets worth digging for. The store is well organized and ususally has pretty clean aisles. Plus, you've got a good chance at finding a big piece of furniture like an entertainment center or a desk, as a bonus, when you get tired there's usually couches you can pass out on, yes! I also love the amount of shoes, there's a ton of them. I could just go shoe shopping here! There's frequent holiday sales :D For instance, this weekend is a Mother's Day sale on Saturday and Sunday.
The jewelry counter is an interesting stop. The selection of jewelry is bigger than some of the other stores I've been to, and they also have those little "extras" behind the counter, such as knick knacks, purses, shoes that are of a better quality than what's available on the sales floor. And here, one more picture of the long aisle
(See that red dot I circled? That's the other end of the store!)


Cons:
The parking lot is pretty small, so there's a chance you will have to street park (ugh). Plus, the nicer clothes are priced higher with white tags and grouped together in their newer section, so be prepared to pay more (and sometimes ALOT more) for that top from Banana Republic. You could expect to pay anywhere from $7 to $12 for an average piece of clothing in this section with the white tags, whereas the other items might average $3-$5 per piece.
Also, I feel that the store should probably get rid of a good portion of their inventory, since some of it is very old and I've seen on repeat visits, prompting me to hold up many of these shirts just to bask in the ambiance of sequence and chiffon. This seems to be most true for the Women's tops and the purses they have on display.

This is a great store, and I will continue to shop here. Definitely glad I found this one!

Tips 'n tricks for a successful visit!

Ok, so maybe you've never visited a thrift store. (I've been a time or 2 in my day, hee hee). There's some things to keep in mind when you are going. What might seem like a simple trip can quickly turn into a huge addiction.

1. Make sure you bring cash. There's nothing worse then setting foot into one of these stores and you realize that you have nothing but a Credit card to pay with. There are alot of thrift stores that now accept credit cards but this isn't the case for all of them. *Plus if you only have a certain amount of cash you'll limit the actual amount you are allowing yourself to spend.

2. Try a small, over the shoulders purse when shopping. Not only does this free up your hands to browse thru the aisles, but you won't have to worry about where your purse is at or if you've lost it. I'm very guilty of carrying all of my worldly possessions in my purses, so this will also alleviate back pains and make you a happier shopper :)

3. If it's worn, it's not worth it! Meaning, if you pick up a shirt and you love the color, etc but it's pilled, and looks really old, move on. Thrift stores have (usually) a huge selection of clothing, it's likely that they'll have other items you like even more and look a whole lot better than something that looks like you pulled it out of the garbage.

4. Most thrift stores don't have fitting rooms so: Wear a tank top. Sure it might be 20 degrees outside, especially if you live in Chicago, but put one on under your other shirts. You're going to want to try your findings on and it's totally not ok to give everyone a free show trying on that shirt you found. No fitting rooms is definitely an unappealing concept to alot of people, but there's always a way around that, hence the tank top. The tank top is great because they won't add alot of bulk to you so you'll get a realistic idea of how something will fit you.

5. If you find something that you're on the fence about, put it in your cart and keep moving. This will give you time to decide if you have to have it. Some of the best things I've bought have been items I thought "eh, it's ok" until I tried it on....and then tried it on again, as well as some of the things I haven't bought. If it's on sale, this makes it even harder. You feel like you're getting a deal so you have to have it, but that trip in the cart may clear your head and help you realize that puke green isn't a good look on you....or anyone.