There is a special kind of joy in walking into a thrift store with no plan at all. A shopper at Value Village did exactly that, wandering the aisles hoping to be surprised. She walked out with 1980s Halloween candy bags destined for her Etsy shop, a Sabrina the Teenage Witch book, a velvet purse she never would have bought for herself, and more nostalgia than one shopping cart should hold.

The shopper behind the camera is the creator of the YouTube channel NostalgicEpisodes, where she shares thrifting trips built around childhood favorites from the 1990s and 2000s. Her latest haul video follows her through several stores, and it is packed with ideas for anyone who loves a bargain with a story.

Starting In The Plush Aisle

She says she began where she always does, in the plush section. A Stitch was waiting there, as one nearly always is on her trips, along with a Pillsbury Doughboy she rarely sees. From there she moved through movies and books, finding a Hercules Zero to Hero VHS, a Thomas and Friends DVD called Thomas’ Snowy Surprise, and one of her all-time favorite Christmas movies, All I Want for Christmas, which she urges everyone to watch this year.

The book shelves paid off. She came across a Descendants book, a Chipmunk Christmas title, an iCarly chapter book, a Full House Stephanie chapter book, a Lizzie McGuire chapter book and a Goosebumps book that had once been part of a kit. She also saw a plastic Jar Jar Binks mask. She remembers finding a rubber one last year and says she looked absolutely crazy wearing it in a video.

The Halloween Candy Bags Headed To Etsy

The find she was proudest of was a set of vintage Halloween candy bags from the 1980s. They feature a ghost, a haunted house pumpkin, a little witch and a spider, and they came with miniature Halloween bags with little ties. She thinks she has stocked something like them before in her shop. The set is going into her Etsy shop, along with some pumpkin carving supplies that came in the same lot.

For her own collection she chose a Sabrina the Teenage Witch book titled Knock on Wood, published in the year 2000 and in pretty good condition. It seemed right since it is Sabrina and it is October. She also bought an iCarly book from 2009 with color pictures inside, to build a Nickelodeon bundle, and a classic holiday stories DVD to play on her portable player in the kitchen for a festive mood.

Buying What She Never Buys

The surprise of the day was in the purses and clothes, two categories she usually skips. A pink velvet Liz Claiborne purse caught her eye, and it looks barely used. She had been carrying an army style bag, and she says she is a sucker for pink and wants to be more cutesy in her life. She even made a Pinterest board on the subject. Nearby, in the clothing section, she picked up a knitted t-shirt cardigan from H&M that goes with the purse.

A Four Store Day

On another outing she visited four thrift stores, starting again at Value Village. A Hannah Montana doll had no clothes, so she left it behind. She saw an Easy-Bake oven she swears she owned as a kid, Sesame Street figures and a Garfield, then found a unique treat: a cat with kittens that stick onto the mom with velcro, which made her laugh.

Several things came home with her. An unused Hannah Montana puzzle will go in a Disney Channel bundle with a High School Musical card game she found. A Littlest Pet Shop plush mouse from 2008 was her second Littlest Pet Shop plush in one week. She also took a Playskool Friends My Little Pony plush from 2015 and a One Direction magazine that came with a Nicki Minaj Pink Friday perfume sample. One scratch of the sample sent her right back to November 2012, her senior year of high school.

At Goodwill she picked a Christmas mug to fill with a hot chocolate kit for a friend’s swap, plus a Santa Claus lamp with a popcorn wreath. At Salvation Army she spotted a Finding Nemo wall border and a Michigan J. Frog figure, and at Winners she found a Hannah Montana lunch bag.

What To Sell And What To Skip

Beyond the fun, her trips offer a few smart lessons for anyone who sells secondhand.

• Bundle by theme. She groups finds into a Nickelodeon bundle or a Disney Channel bundle, because collectors often like to buy a set.
• Check completeness. A Littlest Pet Shop game with a missing pet is worth less, so she plans to sell the parts or the whole set together.
• Be picky about condition. She left a colored-on Lalaloopsy and a worn Snow White purse behind.
• Look twice. She went back to the toy aisle and the board games for a second round and found extra treasures.
• Think seasonally. Vintage Halloween and Christmas items sell well in their season, and thrift stores put them out early.

She says the Christmas displays are getting bigger every year, with one store giving about half its floor to holiday goods. With such good stock showing up in October, she expects she will have to limit herself. For the rest of us, her story is a reminder that a bargain bin and a little patience can turn a regular afternoon into a nostalgic treasure hunt.

More Stories You May Like

• Vintage Candy Tins And Lunch Boxes Can Hide Repaint Rust And Reproductions So Inspect Closely Before You Pay Collector Prices
• They Cut A Hole In Their Bathroom Wall Expecting The Attic And Found A Sealed Cabinet Holding Over Twenty One Items With The Oldest Dated 1940 Plus Two Bottles Marked Poison That Turned Out To Be Mercury
• Putting Vintage China With Gold Trim In The Dishwasher Can Erase The Value Of A Piece That Has Lasted Decades