Thrifting Denver

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!

Goodwill is a one stop shop for the orange loving consumer.  Get your Vitamin C, and look cute doing it.    Sweeten up your decor and your closet with the “it”  color of the season!  Starting from the top left:

Orange Brooch

Orange Leather Sequins Blouse

Orla Keily Mug

Orange 579 Jeans

ALL from Goodwill, of course.    Makes you want a creamsicle doesn’t it?

Did you know that Goodwill is involved with the AgrAbility program in Colorado?  I had no idea either.  There are close to 30,000 farms in Colorado. It is an industry that supports our families with food and livestock, I can’t think of a better collaboration. Since I come from a farming family myself I know how important it is to support the agricultural professionals in our community.  The Colorado AgrAbility Project promotes success in agriculture for people with disabilities or other physical challenges and their families.  I am really proud to know that Goodwill is a partner in this life changing organization.  Farming is incredibly hard work and can be a very dangerous profession.  Take a look at one of the lives that has been improved with the help of your donations and purchases at our Goodwill stores. Here is Jackie’s story.

Goodwill continues to work hard for our community. By donating your gently used items and shopping in our retail locations your are helping to sustain our farming families in Colorado. Thank you so much for your generosity!

I hope you had a great time thrifting this weekend! Did you find anything spectacular for 50% off?  Thank you to my friend Catrina for doing the shopping for me!
Goodwill is full of amazing treasures, and it is your job is to find them.  The good news is that you can take your treasures home,  love them and when you are tired of them just re-donate them back to Goodwill.  It is a full-circle-treasure!  Take a look at these Tikis I found in the housewares section.

Tikis are back in style due to our nostalgia for all things mid century and the cocktail culture of that time. (Think Mad Men) The tiki motif was very popular in the 1950′s and 1960′s.  The artist Shag brought them back into fashion in the 2005 with his 60′s throwback art installations.

For anyone who was alive in the 1970′s or watches TV Land re-runs of the Brady Bunch knows that the TIKI can only bring bad luck!  Greg is reeling from his surfing crash, a wall hanging almost hits Bobby, and a tarantula nearly bites Peter. Bobby tries to get rid of the tiki, but it is returned to him by an unknowing Jan. The boys learn that the idol must be discarded at an ancient burial ground for the curse to be removed.  (Wikipedia because I couldn’t remember the list of curses)  Oh Man.  Buy the tiki only if you dare!!

Listen HERE for a little more NPR Tiki Talk!  Oh Goodwill…..you are soooo fun!

It’s time for another big Goodwill sale!  Join us tomorrow for 50% off of everything (excluding blue and orange tags) and 99 cent jeans.  The last 99 cent jeans I found were Paige, 7 for all Mankind, and some great vintage Levis.  I can’t guarantee you will find the perfect pair, but you will never know if you don’t give it a try.  I will see you there!

Mark your calendars for July 7, 2012!   We will be touring Goodwill stores and meeting other thrifters in the Denver area.   Rashon Carraway or Mr. Goodwill Hunting as you may know him started this national thrifting day last year.  Our special guest this year will be The Goodwill Gal who is the Goodwill blogger in Arizona.  I can’t wait to meet new thrifters and do some serious shopping!  I will let you know more details as we get closer.  If you would like to join us please leave your email address in the comments section and I will add you to the list.  I would love for you to join us!

This is my Goodwill outfit that is my ode to Mr. Goodwill Hunting!  Do you love my belt made from a necktie?!  I do.

Have you visited Deja Blue yet?  It is at 303 University in Cherry Creek.  I have visited it A LOT.  Yes, I am leaving some good stuff for you.  There is plenty to go around.  Please go look for yourself!  You may have to visit often because the beautiful mens and womens clothing is flying out the door.  One of the things I like about Deja Blue is the ReCycled decor.  They have tables made from reclaimed wood spools used in construction, some of the original flooring, and repurposed wood pallets on the walls.  Deja Blue makes socially responsible shopping a beautiful experience.  Do keep in mind that all of the clothing sold at Deja Blue is selected by our employees from stand alone donation centers, and not taken from your favorite local stores.

Take a look at some other wood pallet ReDesigns.

Find the DIY HERE.

What a great idea!

Goodwill is full of stories just waiting to be told.  Here is a story that just happens to have a happy ending.  Don’t you love a good mystery?   Here is a Goodwill story with war, love letters, long lasting love, what could be sweeter?

It seems as though these love letters ended up at a Goodwill Outlet in Santa Rosa, California.  LaVonne Hitchcock. a seasoned thrift store shopper discovered them and tracked down the names of the couple who wrote them during World War II.

Marx Weil and Joyce “Joy” Taff corresponded all through the war and then……….

Find out what happened here.

I would have been very tempted to turn this into a novel!

Original story here.