How to Prepare for a Day of Thrifting

When Dave travels for business he has work prep that he must do. He irons his shirts (I don't do ironing unless I'm crafting), packs his bag, stows his laptop in his computer bag and makes sure all his documents to travel are in order. Every Thursday evening I prepare for Thrifting. It's my job and I want to be ready.

Here are things that I need to do on Thursday evening:

• Make sure my wallet has between $100-$200 in cash. Small bills are preferable especially for negotiating.
• Charge my iphone
• Download my the latest version of my bookseller's tool to be able to get up-to-date info on books.
• Charge my PDA book scanner
• Plan my route which includes using the newspaper & Craigslist to find all the sales for the weekend.
• Clean van and make sure the below items are ready:

Rolling cart to use at Flea Markets, Rummage Sales and Neighborhood Sales.

Three empty boxes to store purchased items in so that they don't roll around an possibly break.

 

Tissue paper & bubble wrap so that I can protect breakables.

 

A bag of bags. These were purchased for groceries but I use them for thrifting most of the time. They are especially useful at Estate Sales.

 

The most important thing for me to remember to bring is food.  It doesn't take long for me to get very hungry. I rarely want to take the time to stop and eat so I bring food and drinks with me. Here is my basket of healthy-ish junk food. It keeps me going. I usually include fruit but our fruit bowl was bare last night.

I have three days of thrifting in front of me. Friday - estate sales, Saturday - garage sales, rummage sales & estate sales and Sunday - the Sebastopol Flea Market and any Sunday only garage sales.

How do you prepare for Thrifting?

Comments

[Van]

Good ideas~ I shall compose a list and perhaps chart the course for the thrift adventure me and four friends have planned. Having ample snacks is a great idea!

[Heather - Dollar Store Crafts]

I wish I was that organized!! :) The book scanner & book selling stuff is great! I used to sell used books on Amazon, and it was always just a gut instinct thing to find the right books to sell!

[Laura]

I am impressed! I don't go to yard sales or estate sales when I thrift, but if/when I do, I'm going to print out your list.

I guess the closest I've come to that depth of preparation is library book sales and sheep and wool festivals. And then the only thing I take that's not on your list is runners - human beings younger and stronger than myself who will carry bags and boxes back to the van so that I can continue to hunt for the bargains.

At book sales the runners were my older children, and at the sheep and wool festivals I took my older teens. One year I hired 3 teenage girls to run for a group of myself and 5 other knitters/spinners. They stood in line to get food and drinks for us, took armloads of purchases back to the 15-passenger van for us throughout the day, and generally made it so we could shop "hands-free." It was great.

[Grunge Queen]

Whoa, you're hardcore! I'm not that organized but I guess if I did it professionally I'd have to be. I'm lucky if I can remember my water bottle, a few granola bars and my cell/camera! If I'm really grooving I'll remember to bring some disposable bags ....

[Monica]

I've got a rolling bag on wheels I use for neighborhood sales. Thrifting on foot has been so much easier since you recommended one.

I keep extra reusable grocery bags in my trunk to sort personal items and resale items. I like your idea of boxes. I need to clean my trunk out. LOL!

I need to do a better job of bringing snacks along. I tend to stop at a grocery store along the way or if I'm making a day out of it with one of the kids, we have lunch out. I make sure we eat a good-sized breakfast before we leave.

I try to get cash the night before so I'm not scrambling at the last minute if I accidentally sleep in. I also plan my sales route the night before on Google Maps and then check early in the morning to catch any sales that were posted during the night.

I also keep a list of my kids' measurements in my purse and bring a tape measure with me to measure clothing if I'm unsure if something will fit.

[iMadeItSo]

wow, you're a total pro! :-)

[Giovanna]

I love this post!! I'll share it on my twitter :)
Thanks for sharing darling!
xoxo
Giovanna
http://bohomarket.blogspot.com

[JULIE]

damn!

[Tracy (The Wardrobe Wanderer)]

You are the most organized thrifter in the world I think! You have it down to a science...no wonder it's such a successful venture for you!

[Apryl]

I miss the flea market. So many fond memories of wandering around there with my Dad.

[Grace]

Wow, you're hardcore. I am in awe.

It's pretty clear to me at this point that, much as I love thrifting, I'm a hobby thrifter, not a pro. I don't do much of anything to prepare.

[Laura Lowe]

Yep, I was out doing yard sales today and wished I'd had those boxes to keep things from rolling around in the back of my SUV. Good ideas!

[Nikki]

You are crazy organized! I hop in the car last minute, hope I've got a few bucks cash in my wallet, and toss whatever I find in the trunk and hope it doesn't break. If I get hungry there's always some kid selling cookies or lemonade!

[tess]

I bring my backpack with a couple of shoulder bags, can carry more if some of it is on my back, not pulling my arms off

[Sandy]

Love the food idea. I only go out for an hour at the most, so maybe a protein bar.

Can't wait to see what your finds are!

[Suzy]

This just makes me realize what an amateur I am! :) I usually just have my list of sales and my GPS.

[Selena Cate]

Well I should add that a GPS is the best thing ever for a thrifter. I may write a post just on that subject. I dont know what I would do without it. Great point Suzy.
xoxo Selena

[Heidi]

Your funny , you mean business!!!