Thrifting Denver

I spotted these loafers at Goodwill.  I thought to myself, hmmmmm those are from about 1987-ish.  I know that because I think I had a pair just like them.  Then browsing around the internet I noticed that the 1980′s Colorblock Rage is happening all over again.  Wouldn’t it be fun to wear vintage 80′s at a Totally Awesome price?

Since “they” say if you wore it once in time it is best not to repeat it, I left them there for you!

Meet Jennette, she truly exemplifies The Power of Work. She has worked her way up starting out working for Goodwill in a mandatory work release capacity to an Assistant Manager. I know her just from shopping at all of the Goodwill stores, but I had no idea how much work she put in getting clean and sober for herself, but most importantly for her family. It is amazing how everyone has a story and most are fighting a hard fight. She is a fighter. I am proud to know her, and now her story. Take a look.

I have to tell you that I have a major fashion crush on Blair Eadie from the Atlantic-Pacific blog.  I’m not sure if it is our shared San Francisco history, or the fact that shear wears sky high pumps on the hills of the city.  I put together this inspiration board of one of her pastel outfits.  Go check out her blog and then run over to Goodwill and save yourself a TON of money while looking fashionably affordable!

*I really need someone to follow me around and take my picture.  It should be an easy job, I only go to the gym, Goodwill, and Starbucks.   Applications coming soon.

Have you noticed that when you shop at Goodwill you come across just the thing you were looking for?  Oprah calls it the law of attraction, I call it Goodwill Gravity.  Like attracts Like.  (Feel free to take notes, this is deep)  This happens to me over and over.  Let me tell you a little story about my husband getting a job in Denver.  I thought Denver was in the mountains and full of cowboys.  And for some reason I thought Mork and Mindy lived here as well.  It turns out Mork and Mindy lived  in Boulder.  (So sad if you don’t get this reference)  On our house hunting trip we flew to DIA and when I looked out the window in the middle of the winter I was perplexed.  Where were the mountains?  Why was everything brown?  I had just left blooming roses in San Francisco.  I thought seeing a  cowboy could cheer me up.  No Cowboys either.  Dang it.

We buy a home in the ‘burbs thinking we would just be here a few years and then move along, but we have been here for almost 13 years.

Why didn’t someone tell me that the wind in Denver puts Chicago to shame.  I think my neighborhood channels the wind like a funnel.  It howls at night, flies garden furniture down the street and can lift a 500 pound barbecue off the deck.  I once was at a kids party and it took a bounce house full of children 20 feet. No joke.

So I shouldn’t have been surprised that this wind would wreak havoc on my outdoor light fixtures.

See that broken glass?  Good luck find the exact replacement.

Fast forward a week or so and I am shopping at the Leetsdale Goodwill with my friend Ashley.  Guess what I found there?  My EXACT light fixture.  Ok that is weird.

Old bleached out light fixture next to the shiny brand new Goodwill one. Being a mile high tends to bleach out everything outside.

Ahh much better!  Can you believe I found it at Goodwill?

Goodwill puts all of your donations to work. Shopping is fun, and finding treasures can be thrilling but at then end of the day what matters most is the people that Goodwill employs. Not only is Goodwill involved in education and job training, but they also employ those with barriers to traditional employment.

Reggie stole my heart completely, I am sure you will feel the same.

Goodwill is right on trend with colorful fashions this season.  I have been on a color binge lately.  Look at all of the Goodwill pants I found in bright Pantone colors.    Come in and see what you can find!

You just never know where you are going to find a Goodwill treasure.  I was waiting in line at King Soopers and saw these adorable pink shoes.  They looked a little 80′s vintage so I asked the cute girl about them.  She said, “Oh I got them at a thrift store!”  So of course I asked if they happened to come from Goodwill.  “She said Yes! The one on Parker Road.”

You know you are obsessed with Goodwill when you can spot a treasure in line at the grocery store.

Soooo cute!  Thanks for supporting Goodwill with your pink shoe purchases!

Did you know that Goodwill sells books on Amazon.com?  We have a warehouse with 50,000 titles to choose from.  I toured the facility the other day, and it was quite impressive.  It was very quiet with all of the books housed on the shelves like a giant library.  There were workers gathering books from the shelves and packaging up books to send out.  It really is a great service to the community, we are employing workers and keeping literally tons of books out of landfills.

My little friend Brooks is collecting new and used Wiggles DVDs for the Shriner’s Networks of Hospitals.  He is 13 and loooves the Wiggles, and they have encouraged him through some very difficult stays in the hospital.   I found a Wiggles DVD in my local Goodwill store and thought that I would look on-line for a few more to send to him.

You can find the Denver Goodwill/Amazon books at this link.  Goodwill Denver .   My Wiggles DVDs are in the mail as we speak.  If you have any extra Wiggles DVDs that you would like to donate to the Shriner’s Network of Hospitals, just leave a comment and I will get in touch with you!  Thanks!