For the next few weeks I’m going to be writing about the joy of secondhand goods and some of the best thrifty finds I’ve made, online and offline.

For me, thrift shopping takes on a treasure-hunt kind of feeling. You never know what you’re going to find. That’s why you have to (a) know your thrift store and (b) leave no corner unsearched.

This takes work, which is why I suggest you wear comfortable shoes.

There’s a Salvation Army storefront that’s close to where we live. This is almost always the place I make charitable donations of our gently worn clothing. After I’ve thrown the garbage bag o’ stuff in the bin (which always makes me feel 10 lbs lighter after I do it for some reason) I usually take a turn around the store to see what’s new.

As long as we’ve been going there, there has always been a glass display case at the front of the store where “special” items are kept. I usually limit my time here to a sidelong glance. The stuff is usually pretty junky and before this particular day I had never seen anything I liked on that “special” shelf. But one day I must have had time to kill, so I lingered. There was a hum in the air (or was it in my head?) and it spurred me on. I saw a red box. A.Red.Box. I knew there was going to be something great in that box. My heart skipped a beat and I held my breath. And there they were.

I have a thing for vintage toys. These finger puppets were expensive by thirft store standards… a hefty six bucks. A stamp on the bottom informed me of their heritage: made in Czechoslovakia. Those Czechs, they’re so good at this stuff. Look!

If there’s one thing I have learned about thrift store shopping is that you need to follow your heart. If you don’t, you’ll regret that special item you left behind and you’ll probably never see it again.

I’d love to feature some of your special thrifty finds in future posts here at the Used blog. Care to send me a photo and a description? Email it to me at andreaATquietfishDOTcom.