Neely-Dorsey: A Must Have Mindset For Thrift Shopping

To really get the most out of thrift store and yard sale shopping, you must have a certain mindset going into it.

You must become used to practicing “Possibility Thinking.” You must learn to see the present and future possibilities of almost anything. Once you get into the habit of it, your brain will automatically start processing things in that manner. By the way, the mindset of possibility thinking is not only great for shopping, it is a wonderful habit for almost every area of life.

In the shopping realm, possibility thinking means evaluating what can be done to make any item exactly what you want or need it to be. Of course, everything won’t ultimately fit into that category but the challenge is to mentally give everything a fighting chance and not dismiss it too quickly especially if the price is right. Sometimes just a few small adjustments can be made to make it absolutely perfect for you.

But, you must have the ability to look beyond what is to what could be. If you don’t, you could miss out BIG TIME!

Sometimes a person will disregard something and miss an absolutely fabulous find simply because it is not exactly the right fit or has a few minor flaws at that time. There might be a button or two missing, a slight tear or other small flaw . Not only can these things usually can be easily and inexpensively fixed when they are pointed out, you can also often get an added discount on an already unbelievable deal. If you came across a wonderful suit that you know normally retails in the $100 to $200 range and is offered for one to five dollars but has a button or two missing or a small tear under the arm, why in the world would you NOT buy it? The tear can easily be sewn and buttons can very inexpensively be replaced. The worse thing that could happen is that it doesn’t work out exactly as you had hoped, you’re only out of $5! Plus, you can always re-donate the item or pass it on to someone who will be more than happy to make the small adjustments or repairs.

Once, I took a friend thrift shopping because she wanted to see how I do my Diva on a Dime shopping. We went to Thrift City on West Main Street in Tupelo on its 99 cent day, which is every Monday. I was, of course, like a kid in a candy shop grabbing all kinds of things that I thought that she would like. She did like the style of almost everything that I pulled off the racks, but for so many of them she had some reason that they were not QUITE right.

Most of the time the reason that she gave for not getting an item was that it was too long because she is petite. An item being too short might sometimes be a problem, but too long should NEVER be a problem! I cannot even fathom turning down a new, very expensive designer dress with tags on it at a price of 99 cents because it is TOO LONG! Wow! It is one of the mysteries of the universe. Any item can be hemmed by yourself, a friend, or very inexpensively by a seamstress.

All I can say about that is, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him (or her ) drink!”

I am still shaking my head over that. I came out of the store with several very large bags as usual, and she came out with four or five items. She was absolutely thrilled with all of her finds…but oh, THE (MISSED) POSSIBILITIES! She told me so later. She got so many compliments on the things that she had purchased, She said that she wished that she had gotten all of the others.

I have a wonderful example of working with the possibilities. Dear Hubby found a beautiful ankle length evening dress with a lace overlay for me at the thrift shop on the 99 cent day. I absolutely loved it! It is one that I would have picked if I had seen it. But after trying it on a few times, I kept thinking that something wasn’t quite right. I felt that it could be more fabulous and more ME with a few adjustments! I decided to have the dress shortened to knee length while having the lace overlay remain long. It cost $10 to have it altered but it looked like a million bucks on me after the changes! The dress was perfect and I rocked it! I wore it to a black-tie affair and got tons of compliments. The Diva was in full effect…on a Dime!

You can be, too! Until next time, Go Forth and Be Fabulous! Be You! Do You! SHINE!

Patricia Neely-Dorsey is the author of two books of poetry, Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia-A Life In Poems and My Magnolia Memories and Musings-In Poems. Through her poems, the author hopes to protect, preserve and promote the rich cultural history and heritage of her state and region along with providing more positive images than all of the negative images usually portrayed. Patricia lives in Tupelo with her husband James, son Henry and Miniature Schnauzer, Happy. The author has been named a Goodwill Ambassador for the state by Governor Phil Bryant. Her slogan is “Always, Always Celebrating the South and Promoting a Positive Mississippi ” Her website is www.patricianeelydorsey.com and her email is magnoliagirl21@yahoo.com.