Goodwill Hunting

I've been Goodwill shopping, or as I fondly call it Hunting for a couple years now. It's been exciting to find things that are of good worth and sort of recycle them by getting them out of the thrift store and back into hands that will use them. I'm kind of a go-between gal. And because it makes me some extra cash I really love it!

It started back when I fell in love with the kooky NBC comedy The Office. I think they were well into the second or third season and Target started selling stationary items in their $1 aisle featuring the cast and some of their funny quotes. I bought a few for gifts and for myself. I then decided I would check on eBay to see how much I could score the 1st & second season dvds for. Lo and behold some of the $1 items were selling like hotcakes and not just for a dollar! For $3 and up. I thought to myself here's an opportunity for me to make some extra cash (it was around thanksgiving and Christmas shopping was still undone). Well as things at retail chains go in cycles, Target started clearancing out their $1 stuff. I scooped up a bunch of things for 50% off. I started selling on eBay and was doing well. Then about a week later I was at Target and noticed there was a 90% off sale in their $1 stuff but no more of The Office so I asked a sales clerk about it. She said that they donate their stuff to Goodwill when they are done with it. This was something I'd heard of once before and thought it was very valuable info. Especially when about a week later I hit the pay dirt at a Goodwill with a huge crate full of my Office stuff. Over the next week, I hit every one of the 8 stores in Las Vegas and scooped up as much of The Office memorabilia as possible. Great this is that they sell Target $1 aisle items for only 33 cents a piece. From then on I was hooked!

Over the years I've bought and sold tons of different items at Goodwill. Most of The Office stuff sold very quickly, and I've gone back and forth between selling in groups and individual items, depending on the demand. I've also sold pottery, cake pans, collectibles, clothing, party supplies, toys, you name it! In the early days/years I was really good at keeping records. You really should, in order to find out what your profits are. There are eBay fees, Paypal fees, s&h fees, and all that jazz. Lately I haven't been as good but I think I just need to do some streamlining, maybe a spreadsheet.

I recently found a wonderful site called My Dear Trash and am so thrilled that others are out there having good success and loving the adventure of it just as I am. She recently posted about being contacted by Goodwill. I am happy to know that they too are supportive of this kind of recycling. It really is helping all involved. In this economy everyone can benefit from it.

I thought I would start a blog to showcase some of my deals as well as add in some of my other favorite hobbies. I love couponing, bargain hunting, crafting, and blogging. So here's to a new fun adventure!