...but only if you have the time to devote to it! Just like signing up for sale alerts, this really only works if you have a longer engagement and have the time to wait for the good deals to come around.
Thrift stores are amazing. Yes, you almost always have to sift through the junk to find a true treasure, and that's only if you show up at just the right time, before someone else has snatched it up.
But also remember that some things exist at thrift stores in abundance. The #1 wedding resource that I have found at the thrift store are vases and candle holders. There are shelves and shelves of glassware at the thrift store in my hometown, which is exactly what I want to use for my tables! In one shopping trip, I got 6 thin vases that all looked alike for only $0.59 each. Try finding that price at a traditional home goods store or a rental service. Even better, after the wedding, I can save them for friends who are getting married, sell them online to other brides, or keep them around to decorate my home or use as craft projects to give away as gifts. Granted, I need more than 6 vases. But if I go back again today (or send my mom, since I'm at school), I could probably find 6 more. By the end of this year I can easily have 20 semi-matching vases for my tables.
The important thing to keep in mind as you shop thrift stores is to keep a "How can I fix that?" mindset. Maybe you're looking for white baskets (which are another thing you will find extremely cheap at a thrift store!) but they only have brown. Don't give up and pay $10 each for baskets somewhere else. Instead, go buy a can of white spray paint for $4, and voilá, you have two beautiful white baskets for about $6 instead of $20. If something's not the right color, or isn't fancy enough, just go to the craft store or raid your craft closet, and you probably can fix things up to fit the style of your wedding for a lot cheaper than buying it at another store.
Thrift stores are also ideal if you're more flexible, and not set on everything being identical. I'm doing a lot of thrift store shopping for things for my centerpieces since I will have a lot of guests, which means a lot of tables. I'm looking for picture frames to display the table numbers. I can pay a couple hundred dollars to get twenty identical frames at Target, or I can go to the thrift store and just look for wooden picture frames, and get them for less than $1 each. They'll be different colors, shapes, and sizes, but they're cheap. The candle holders I'm using are actually an assortment of candle holders, small glasses, etc. that I found on the glassware shelf at the thrift store. I don't care, as long as they're about the right size for votive candles and they're clear glass. That strategy will not only save you money, but bring about a unique twist to your wedding decorations, so that everyone will be wanting to wander around tables and look at the variety of centerpieces that you have.
Another reason that I love thrift stores is that they inspire me! I'm a crafty person, so finding something that makes me think of a project I saw on Pinterest or some craft I've been wanting to do is always fun, and sometimes a spontaneous project like that turns out better than anything I could have planned to do!
Lastly, I like to shop at the thrift store in my hometown because it supports the Rescue Mission that we have. Just like I go to Hobby Lobby because I like to support a Christian company, I like to spend my money at a store that is helping people who need food, shelter, support, and Christ's love.
Hopefully this helps and inspires you to go check out a thrift store! You'll be surprised at what you find.
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