ToniOnThrifting

ToniOnThrifting – Thrift Shopping Made Simple

Mount Vernon Has A Treasure Trove And A Blue Door — June 2, 2015

Mount Vernon Has A Treasure Trove And A Blue Door

Westchester County is an oasis of thrift shops. From Pelham to Bedford to Tarrytown, up and down the Harlem and Hudson line, you will be delighted to find some of the most notable thrift shops. There are shops more spacious than New York City but equally as impressive as their NYC counterparts. The consignment stores are numerous as well and new ones are opening all the time. You can spend a day just hitting the shops in one or two towns alone and I highly doubt you would go home empty-handed. There are wonderful estate sales in Westchester County every weekend and I know I have come home with some amazing treasures from these sales. If nothing else, it is always enjoyable just to browse.

The focus of this chapter is Mount Vernon;

Some quick history on Mount Vernon– In 1850, a merchant tailor from New York City by the name of John Stevens set out to create a property that would help improve the condition of the working class in the city. To this end, he founded the Industrial Home Association No. 1 of New York which enrolled 1,017 due-paying members. This land went on to become the Village of Mount Vernon. It was then a part of the Town of Eastchester. The community was named after George Washington’s estate in Virginia. (Mt Vernon info from CityTownInfo.com website.)

Treasure Trove’s Thrift Shop’s motto is “Where Lost and Hidden Gems Are Found”. I cannot understand for the life of me why Treasure Trove in Mount Vernon is not on everyone’s radar. They do have lots of gems. I understand that this place is off the beaten path, but on the upside it has tons of parking (which we all know can be a major issue at times in many places). The place is humongous; they have a couple of thousand feet of everything you can imagine not to mention the owners are incredibly nice.

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Parents, if your kid is going to college, this is the place to find some great dorm room pieces and accessories. For those getting their first apartment, this is the place that you should go to get started –they carry so much and have so many options for your decor. If you are looking to change-up your home décor a little, they have quite the selection. They have racks and racks of clothing in the back and shoes as well.

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This place should not be kept secret; it has quite a lot to offer – just check out the pictures.

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Treasure Trove Thrift Shop
152 South Macquesten Parkway
Mount Vernon NY 10550
Tel. 914.612.3215
Monday-Saturday from 10am-6pm

The next place up is The Blue Door Thrift Shop at the Community Church at the Circle. This shop hopes to provide a source for stretching the family clothing budget for people in the community. Proceeds from the shop provide a resource for church programs and maintenance.

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It is a pleasant little shop and everyone that works there is so wonderful. They have mostly women’s clothes and some men’s and tons of books, CDs and videos. The housewares section is right when you walk in and there are some other things all along the back wall along with kitchen items. It really is worth browsing because you never know what you are going to find there from one week to the next.

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They have 1/2 price Thursdays every week where selected items of a certain color will be half price. It is definitely worth shopping there on a Thursday.

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FLEA MARKET

The Community Church at the Circle will be holding a Flea Market on Saturday, June 6, 2015 at 7 East Lincoln Avenue, Mt. Vernon between the hours of 10:00am – 3:00 pm. There will be a wide selection of new and used crafts, jewelry, cosmetics and clothing. The event is in-doors. Admission is free and parking is available.

Tables are available for $25 for the day. Call 914.668.8989 for additional information.

The Blue Door
Community Church at the Circle
7 E Lincoln Ave
Mt Vernon, NY 10552
(914) 668-8989

I found this great website that I wanted to share with you; find garage sales, yard sales and estate sales in your area by viewing a map. Plan your next weekend bargain hunting trip on www.gsalr.com.

UNTIL NEXT TIME, HAPPY SHOPPING!!!!

Two Blocks On The Upper East Side Equals Three Great Shops (Sadly, all closed) — May 26, 2015

Two Blocks On The Upper East Side Equals Three Great Shops (Sadly, all closed)

There are two blocks on the Upper East Side of Manhattan that have three of the most popular thrift shops in that area. “Thrifter’s Row” is one of the most popular names that it goes by. The (Memorial Sloan Kettering) Society Boutique, the Cancer Care Thrift Shop and the Arthritis Thrift Shop are all within three blocks. You would be hard pressed not to find a bargain in one of the three. Even though I find these to be “high end” thrift shops, they do have sales and good ones at that. And if you are into designer duds J, these are the shops that you want to visit. 🙂

Proceeds from the Cancer Care Thrift Shop helps offer free (and extensive) professional services for people with cancer and their loved ones.

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What I like most about this store is that they go by the color coded sale system so ultimately there is always a sale. This store definitely has more stock than the others but not too much space to move around in to shop. There are designer treasures buried among the racks, it just takes patience to find them. The shoe section is a definite must look for designer shoe lovers and the jewelry section tends to have some unusual pieces. The women’s section is much more extensive than the men’s. This is definitely worth looking a visit.

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Cancer Care Thrift Shop
1480 Third Ave. (between 83rd and 84th St.)
New York, NY 10028
212.879.9868
Wed. & Thur.     11am-7pm
Friday                11am-6pm
Saturday            11am-4:30pm
Sunday              12:30pm-5pm

Proceeds from the Arthritis Thrift Shop help make a difference in the lives of adults and children living with arthritis. They fund research to find a cure for arthritis, advocate for better access to care and connect families to the treatments and support that they need.

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Racks and racks and every single one is worth going through. There are lots of treasures to be found.

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The women’s clothes range from very casual to exceptionally dressy. The sales are exceptional; the day I was there it was 50% off jewelry, handbags and shoes. The shelves were getting thin by the time I arrived late afternoon. It can get a little crowded but this is where patience pays off. The shelves high above carry art work and I always enjoy checking it out. I would say this thrift shop is definitely worth a visit.

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P.S. Don’t forget to check out the windows and ask about special previews and sales!

Arthritis Thrift Shop
1430 Third Ave. (between 81st and 82nd St.)
New York, NY 10028
212.772.8816
Mon.-Sat.              10am-6pm
Sunday                  12pm-5pm

The Society of Memorial Sloan Kettering  (MSK), founded in 1946, is a volunteer-led organization within MSK dedicated to promoting the well-being of patients, supporting cancer research, and providing public education on the early prevention, detection, and treatment of cancer.

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The Society Boutique (formerly Memorial Sloan Kettering Thrift Shop) is the most expensive of the three. They carry more designer items than not and this is where you may find the piece you always wanted or even the one you didn’t know J you wanted. They are currently renovating the back room so they are not fully stocked at the moment. The have fine china, crystal and some houseware (a bit overpriced in my opinion). The book selection offers some coffee table books but be prepared to pay but it is still better than full price. They also carry some evening wear. The store is spacious so you can browse leisurely.

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This shop has a very loyal following but please don’t listen to the naysayers who think it is a shop for the older crowd, there is something here for both young and not so 🙂 young.

Great window displays, check them out.

PSA: Their Summer Bazaar takes place from Wednesday, June 17 – Saturday, June 20.

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The Society Boutique (formerly Memorial Sloan Kettering Thrift Shop)
1440 Third Ave. (between 81st and 82nd St.)
New York, NY 10028
212.327.2957
Mon.-Sat.              10:30am-6pm
Sunday                  11:30am-5pm

A thrift shop is only as good as the donations it receives. Now that summer is coming and you may be cleaning out that closet again – please, please bag up the clothes that you no longer use and donate them to charity. Donate to your favorite charity or any charity. Goodwill, Salvation Army, any local thrift store by you — just donate – thousands of people are being helped in New York every day by the money thrift shops raise throughout the area. They help so many people with a wide variety of needs. Hopefully as I tell you about each charity, you will understand how your shopping dollars help those in need. Pay it forward.

Until next time, HAPPY SHOPPING!!