Top Ten Favorite Thrift/Consignment Store finds of 2011

Last year was chuck full of great thrift store adventures for me. I traveled all around the country and found some of the most unique items. There is not enough space on this blog for me to showcase them all. All I can say is that shopping thrift has been financially beneficial and personally rewarding. Granted shopping thrift stores can be hit or miss at times and sometimes coming away empty-handed is the outcome. However remaining positive will yield you better results. that combined with a little patience can reveal many treasures.

Silver Spring Sewing Society took several field trips last year to many of our local thrift stores and when I tell you the women walked away with some fantastic finds I really mean it. We are getting together next week and I hope to take some photos of the great items they have picked up. I’ll be writing a post soon about living the life of a thrift store shopaholic. In the meantime enjoy some of Fav Thrift Finds of 2011

Stay tuned for my top ten Estate Sale finds of 2011. Coming soon.

no you are not seeing double. This dress was also featured under my Fav Vintage Finds of 2011. I found it at Out of The Closet Thrift in Los Angeles, CA

This Tahari Viscose coat gets compliments every time it hits the street. I just love love love it.

I picked up this J. Crew Silk dress at the Goodwill Truck show last year. It is currently being refashioned

Black leather pointy toe shoes made in spain. I googled them to find the retail price. WOW! Goodwill in Rockville $12

Whenever I find BCBG I almost always pick it up even if its not my size or my style. I can surely find a friend who can benefit. This blouse I picked up at the Goodwill Trunk Sale last year.

What's better than finding a fabulous find for a friend. This is my friend Lily wearing a mustard yellow Arden B leather coat with a fox fur collar.

In order to fully appreciate these Dollhouse silver pumps you must see my inspiration below.

I attended an event with FLOTUS and saw her wearing these silver pumps. I thought these would look great with my peach suit. And they did. Don't have a photo with them on but I will this spring

BeBe orange leather crop jacket. Found at a thrift store in Venice Beach

This blouse I picked up at Current Boutique on 14th in DC. I've been search for a blouse like this for over a year. Was so excited to find it in my size

This top/dress I picked up from Buffalo Exchange in San Diego California. I hear they are coming to DC. How exciting!

A fabulous find

Readers, I just had to share this with you. Last week I wrote about the ultimate bliss I experienced while on vacation visiting a popular LA thrift store, “Out of the Closet”.  While visiting one of their locations in Fairfax I ran across this beautiful find. This is a floor length dress by Alfred Shaheen, the master printer.  Alfred Shaheen was a Hawaiian manufacturer who got moving in his career just after WW2. Shaheen built a textile printing, garment manufacturing and retail company in Hawaii during pre statehood. Quite an achievement considering all that was going on during that time. Mr. Shaheen has created some amazing Hawaiian sundresses, sarongs and shirts. Shaheen was the only Hawaiian manufacture to print his own fabrics.  If you google him you will find more of his background and beautiful designs.

What amazed me about this dress is that it looks exactly like one of my own designs. The solid cummerbund, extended angular sleeves and longer length is so me. Even the print of the fabric is just what I would have picked out in the store. I wanted to share this because the dress only ended up costing me a whopping $8. What a fabulous find! I can’t wait to wear it to a swanky event.