My home is an eclectic mix of valuable antiques and collectibles representing periods from late Victorian to Craftsman and even a little Pop Atomic. While a few of these treasures were inherited, most of this funky and wonderful stuff came from thrift stores. Thrift stores are the place to go when searching for undervalued antiques. Most of these items are things that were leftover from yard sales, or junk that an adult child cleared out of Mom or Dad’s place. In many cases, the donors didn’t realize or didn’t care what they were giving away. A well informed collector can score some valuable antiques and collectibles if he knows what he is looking for.
How to start
The first time I set foot inside a thrift store was about 10 years ago, when I was looking for a replacement for a milk glass spice jar. While the thrifts didn’t have my spice jar, what I did find at one store was an 85 piece set of vintage Franciscan stoneware, priced at $40 and valued at nearly $3000. While luck was certainly with me that day, I also happened to own a set of Franciscan myself and knew that the older pieces were highly desirable and quite valuable. It was the combination of both luck and knowledge that tossed that set of dishes into my lap.
For newbie collectors searching for treasures in a thrift store, it’s always best to start by buying only what you know. If you collect vintage kitchen bakeware and Forest Green Anchor Hocking, your search should be limited to kitchen bakeware and Anchor Hocking green glassware. Far too many people make the mistake of buying something they “think” is valuable, only to discover later that it was nothing more than a cheap imitation. Staying with what you know prevents this from happening.
Expanding your knowledge
Naturally, thrifts are filled with far more items than just old kitchen bakeware and green glass. Over time, you will notice things like really old toasters, old dishes, lots of glassware, old pieces of furniture, and old textiles. While some of these older things are junk, some of these may be valuable antiques.
How you begin to learn the difference between junk and valuables is by expanding your knowledge, one item at a time. For example, once you feel comfortable identifying kitchen bakeware and Anchor Hocking, you may choose to add Western Americana dishes to the list of antiques to search for. Familiarizing yourself with Western Americana is done the following way:
1. Visiting local museums and acquainting yourself with the Western Americana household goods on display.
2. Cruising antique and collectible stores for Western Americana currently for sale. Most antique stores will allow you to pick up merchandise and examine the markings on the back. There is no substitute for holding an actual antique in your hand, and familiarizing yourself with the weight, the feel, the texture, and the quality of the work. Once you’ve seen and held Western Americana dishes, finding the good stuff in a thrift store is much easier.
3. Visit the public library or local bookstores and browse through books on Western Americana. These resource books can give you an idea of the many styles of Western Americana collectibles and the more common manufacturers.
4. Purchase a collector’s encyclopedia of Western Americana, which is available at most major bookstores.
5. Searching eBay for examples of Western Americana dinnerware and current price points.
By focusing on one style or line of merchandise at a time and learning everything there is to know about it, you will be better equipped to identify those antiques when you see them and determining if they are worth purchasing.
Get in the habit of cruising
Finding valuables at the thrift store is a combination of knowledge and luck. To stack the odds a little more in your favor means cruising the thrift stores on a regular schedule. Eventually you will discover the times that thrifts typically put out their new merchandise which is the time you want to be in the store. In our town, most antique dealers hit the thrifts between 10-12 in the morning. While most dealers do a cursory walk-through for the valuables that jump out at them, from my own experience I discovered that it was best to make two loops through the store, coming through at opposite directions. Some of the more valuable items I found were tiny things hidden in some of the most unlikely places that only turned up after a second walk through. Patience and thoroughness is definitely part of the secret!
Learning how to distinguish between cheap goods and antiques takes a little time and practice, but eventually you will come to develop a gut instinct that tells you when something may be valuable. By visiting local antique stores and browsing through collectible encyclopedias at Barnes & Noble, you will be able to stack the odds in your favor and find those valuable antiques as well.
