goodwill shopping

Brain Overload & Goodwill

It is hard to describe how it feels to be me. I can describe the weather, my pets personalities, or my husbands habits. But putting energy into giving myself a definition is not something I know how to do. I can tell you that I feel overloaded. With exhaustion. With stress. With sadness. With confusion. I’ve started having regular headaches daily which has been thrilling. (NOT) When I upped my medications a few weeks ago I started to get them. After a week of trying to push through it, I gave up and went back to my normal dose. Unfortunately, the headaches did not stop. It is 3:30 PM and I want to get in the bed and lay there until tomorrow.

This is fun times considering we are moving starting tomorrow. Thankfully, last week I was able to put items into plastic containers that we got from Target. There are still things to be packed though. I would not be surprised if I just put them all into a basket and have them ride co-pilot with me over to the new house. I’m literally at that point where I don’t know what to do. Hopefully, tonight I will find strength to pack more.

Our Cocker Spaniel, Charlie, is laying on the ground wagging his little nubby tail in his sleep. It’s so dam cute. Why can’t I have dreams like that? Nightmares are all I ever have. Someone is always dying, getting hurt, tortured, I’m being chased, etc. What would a dogs version of a nightmare be? Charlie’s would probably be his inability to reach a tennis ball that he can clearly see. Like the squirrel in Ice Age, always chasing after the nut that gets away. Lucky for Charlie, he clearly found his tennis ball in today’s dream.

The book I’m reading is “That’s Mental.” It is relatable and funny, which I am enjoying. I can only read it in small doses though because it is so relatable. It’s almost as if I am reliving or being taught about mental illness. Even on my best day, that does not sound like my idea of a good time. I do think it is important though to educate myself on topics that apply to my life. Being informed helps me feel less alone. More sane if you will. That in and of itself is worth reading the book.

Goodwill has FINALLY opened back up. If that is not cause for a celebration, I do not know what is. It is refreshing just to be in an environment where I can focus on other things (that are not my emotions). Like being amongst the books. There is something magically unsaid about surrounding yourself with characters & stories. When I used to work in childcare, I learned about “redirecting” children when they are acting out as opposed to punishing. You could say that the thrift store is my redirection.

Sadly, my husband no longer enjoyed thrift shopping. We both used to get into doing it but times have changed. People’s interests change. I of all people should know that. Everyday, I seem to like a new set of things. Thankfully, thrift shopping has been pretty consistent in my life. It’s just hard not having friends to ever go with. On a daily basis, I tend to feel very alone. Most of that is my illness. Some of it is my reality. It’s hard to separate the two.

As far as what we got from the thrift store…. well….. several items. Somehow, the massive world globe for $4.99 had to come home with us. Along with a plant stand, set of galvanized angel wings (thanks to my husband finding them), brass horse, metal beaded flower, books, etc. We also stopped at a second Goodwill in SC and picked up a few more items. Currently, I can’t even remember what we got. Then today, we went back a 2nd time to one of the Goodwills. I spent under $9 on some books. Can you tell that I have a thing for buying books? When I am stressed, I want all the books. Or the true crime & advice ones anyway. My husband went outside to play on his phone while I finished looking at the books. He tries to be very patient with me but I can tell when he wants to go home.

Making a goal list may help me not go lay down. So let’s see, tonight I will pack (at least) 4 boxes. I will feed the pets. I will go get my husbands car with him that is at Firestone. I will work in my business journal some, if I can come up with some new ideas. Or anything for that matter. Ready. Set. Go! (Not) But I will do those things. Because I said I will. And strength is one of the few things I seem to always be able to reach for when in desperation. Or exhaustion. Or whatever the hell this is.

UPDATE: I did pick up my husband’s car with him (we also ran by another Goodwill…), I packed several boxes (more than 4!!), I fed all the pets, and am about to go lay down. I’m going to bring my business notebook in there with me even though I have no idea what to write. Having depression is like having rusty wheels in your brain. They literally don’t want to turn, even though they have a story to tell.

Can You Make Money On Poshmark ? & 16 Place Matts Later

I’m currently listening to GraceV to help me relax on Youtube. For those that suffer from anxiety, check out her ASMR channel. I’m coming down from a workout that I managed to push through at 10:45 PM. I walked on the treadmill for 30 minutes while listening to loud Taylor Swift Songs on my headphones. If you are struggling with exercise, I highly recommend music. Whether it is the radio, record, Alexa, phone, etc, it really helps. I wanted to write about today, because I have another one of those thrifting stories ….

I went to my favorite Goodwill today to do a little sourcing (cough…$80+ worth). With the way I scour the shelves at the thrift store, people must think I am checking for dust. I can’t tell you how many times I find things underneath, between, or behind items. The other day, I found a Pink TI84 Silver Calculator for $2.99 that I sold in 24 hours for $46 on Ebay. If I could just sell calculators, I totally would. I’ve only ever found one though so that is kind of an issue. Anyway, back to my story. While I was on my shelf scouring mission, a woman came up to me holding a glass object and asked me what I thought it was. I told her it could be a small planter. She then replied, well I was thinking of putting a candle in it. I told her I could see that. This intro conversation lead into a long conversation about her Christmas decorations & reselling. I know better than to tell people I am a reseller. Yet, today, clearly I forgot. As soon as I mentioned I resell on Poshmark I got the very common response of “I was thinking of trying that!” You mine as well sign away the next 30 minutes of your life. Brace yourself, an avalanche of how to get rich quick questions are going to be shot at you.

I gave her some tips and told her some items I personally choose to resell. She looked at the items in my buggy like she was not that impressed. I was just getting that vibe. Anyway, it lead into the very awkward question that inspired this blog: “Can you actually make a living at reselling?” That is such an inappropriate question to ask someone that has just told you they resell full time. Like, do you actually think I am going to tell you what I make? Who even are you? Please tell me your profession so that I can broach the subject of your income in the middle of the store. Ok I had my vent…. moving on… I told her that YES it is possible to make an income on Poshmark. You can make an income selling rocks (the pet rock was a thing in past). It all just depends on the items you have to sell, time you dedicate to it, etc. She seemed to want to make money but not so much put the work into selling the items. Again, I was just getting that vibe. Don’t get me wrong, she was nice. But the kind of nice that I do not trust. Ever talk to someone that asks you so many questions you almost tell them your blood type? And yet, looking back, you know that stranger would not make time to buy you coffee. Yeah, it was that kind of thing. Don’t come for me (as Stephanie Harlow says), I’m just being real with you.

Moving past my thrift store trilogy for today, I want to explain to you my level of insanity when I become exhausted. True Story. The FIRST trip in Goodwill I loaded up my cart with a good amount of breakable items. This is never a good situation when you plan to pack your buggy full. After what I think was a few hours, and a line of about 10 customers that were ready to kill me at checkout, I escaped with $58 ish dollars less on my debit card. I methodically loaded everything into the car, tied the bags, and let the ceramics ride copilot. They did not exactly “ride” for a while though. Upon taking the buggy back inside, I went to look for a SECOND TIME quickly (right…) at the linens. This is a section that up until recently, I have not taken a lot of interest in. I’ve discovered though that you can find some really nice baby blankets, lace, pillowcases, etc, over there. However, placemats my friends, is what occurred tonight. 16 of them that is. I kid you not, I just typed pillowcases. Then I sat here thinking, did I really get 16 pillowcases. That can’t be right. Oh Lord.

The reason I got the PLACE MATS is because they looked vintage & were elegant looking. To me anyway. Tomorrow, I may have a totally different outlook. I tried to decide if I wanted just 4, 8, or all of them. I was going to leave them to walk around but I know better than to do that. People swipe things faster than you can blink off shelves around here. Even if you are the only one in the store, take your item while you ponder it. I’m never alone. I think I am and I turn around and it’s literally like a swarm of bees (shoppers) throughout the store. I told my husband I got 16 placemats. He was like SIXTEEN? WHY? I told him I didn’t know. I was tired & my car was stuffed with bags. He relaxed when I told them that they were 42 cents each. My insanity cost us about $8. We then joked about the different combinations that could happen with the placemats. Like, we could keep 4 and sell 12. (I just typed 8 – Reasons I did not go into accounting). Or we could keep 8, have backups, and sell the other 8. I swear that I am going to look back and really laugh at the craziness of the lack of judgement in these buying decisions one day. It’s a good non fiction story though right ?

If anyone needs placemats, I’m your girl. For everything else, please ask someone else (just for tonight). If I can’t math, am buying mass linens, and worked out too close to midnight, my brain is fried. My chihuahuas current state is that she is snoring in her bear pillow basket. If you need a basket for your dog or cat, look at the thrift store. I found her a nice wicker one that she loves for I believe under $2. My cat, Snuggs, has taken up residence in my lap while I am trying to work. Therefore, I of course had to get him another basket. BOTH of them are snoozing in their baskets right now. They are rotten.

Goodwill Story: Can I Be Rude?

Today, my husband and I went to Goodwill after church. I used to enjoy this particular thrift store a lot more. It is now over run with resellers that are quite aggressive. A crowd of people literally follow the bin of new items out and grab the items off the shelves as soon as the touch it. It’s definitely intense. We still go though because, clearly, I continue find things. The majority of the items in this buggy I ended up leaving the store with. When I first got there, I found this “Home Sweet Home” sign rather quickly. It was laying on the shelf with all of the frames stacked on top of each other. Though I did not know at the time, this farmhouse crochet sign was going to become a prime topic of my blog at 1:30 AM.

Long after this sign had been added to my buggy, a random customer came up to me. Her exact words were “Can I be totally rude?” How in the world am I supposed to answer a question like that? What kind of question even is that? I thought for a moment she was going to correct or criticize me in some way. The awkward thing is that competitive people are often so polite so it throws your expectations of what is about to occur off. The customer continued with this question: “Are you buying that home sweet home sign?” Once again, how do I answer this? This item is in my buggy. I didn’t put it there to give it a stroll. I told her I was considering it but that if I didn’t, I could let her know. She explained that she was leaving soon but could she take a look at the sign. I wanted to say “I have no idea who you are, you are trying to buy by items, and now you want to hold them.” I let her take a look at it though because I am not good at being mean to polite people on a mission. She continued to educate me on the kind of crochet that it was and complimented the frames that I had picked out to go with it. I told her the type of style that I was going for and she agreed it would work well. Before she left she told me that I should definitely get the sign. Looking back, I am trying to figure out if I was in fact in the twilight zone, not Goodwill. This is one of the reasons I made this blog though. I’m going to look back and have a good laugh one day.

If you are interested in the other items in my buggy, as long as you don’t want to take them, I will tell you what I purchased. (Just Kidding). The light pink shabby chic vase I picked up. It has nice weight to it and the color was appealing to me. I paid $3.99 for the vase which I think was fair. The Green Bubble Glass Murano Style Ruffled Bowl/Vase I found in the vase section as well, for $2.99. I got it originally to sell, however, the more I look at it the more I want to keep it. I’m going through a phase where I really like glass, which has not happened since I was young & collecting tiny glass animals. The white shabby chic votive candle holder I found on an end cap. I’ve found that candles bring me peace and like books, I tend to collect them. I could see this piece in our new house, so I decided to add it to my growing collection of items. Art is a category which I have no business buying right now because I already have so much of it. It’s in our attic & storage unit. However, today I felt the strong urge to get another large piece. I loved the scene of the woman and little girl with dog. The colors were beautiful and I was just drawn to it. For $2.99 I had to bring it home. If I have a little girl, I can see it going in her nursery. Just like I can see the elephant canvas and world map that is stored also going in there. The struggle with art is real.

I almost forgot to mention that I bought a barn while I was there for $2.99. Yes, you heard that right. I am now the new owner of a barn. It is actually a barn display shelf that is great need of a face lift. It was sturdy though and inspired me. I can see repainting it, adding floral, and displaying some of my breakable items on it. When there is potential, it is worth it to give it a shot. If I am being realistic, when am I going to have the chance to purchase a barn again? Especially for $2.99!

My husband found some good items too. He got a pair of jeans, collector Donkey Kong Jenga Game, and fun long sleeve top. My husband is actually incredibly patient as I look around at the thrift store. He looks for a chair & plays his phone game. I greatly appreciate him for this and for guarding the buggy when I leave it next to his chair to shop more. Nerf guns and hats are his favorite things to find. He’s very particular though about the type of hats he likes. They need to have 5 panels or are no good. I ordered him one with hot dogs for Valentine’s Day off of Poshmark that he personally picked out.

While I have been writing this entire blog, my gray cat named Snuggs has been sitting posted on one of my legs. He always wants to be next to me or on me so that he does not miss out. I’m sure he is wondering what in the heck I am typing about. He is also trying to levitate my cereal bowl over to his face. Snuggs is incredibly loyal and invested in Poshmark. He takes his percentage of the business in soft cat treats.

Unicorn Plush Haul

Today is Valentine’s Day. I should be feeling more romantic than ever considering the amount of conversation hearts I stuffed in my mouth last night. I was having killer cramps & trying to find some form of sugar in our house at 1 AM. I’m sure my PMS greatly affected my mental stability when it came to thrifting items yesterday. I clearly had sweets on the mind when I went to Goodwill because the largest plush I found was a Peeps Candy Bunny. My friends, had he been marshmallow filled, he would have been eaten before I got to the register.

I’m assuming that the previous Peep bunny owner also donated the other plushes I found. Each stuffed animal I plopped into my buggy was unusually soft, sparkly, and multicolored. If you ever find something you like, always look for a second. I can’t tell you how often I find matching items if I take the time to look. This is what happened when I discovered both of the mini llamas. I knew immediately I wanted to sell them together, as they were basically twins. Unicorns also still seem quite desirable. I’ve learned that animals, other than horses, can be unicorns too. I found a sparkly owl and pig in this category. It’s confusing but I have learned not to try to make sense of anything in life. Sweet purple Easter egg looking hippo also had to come along with us. Just because, how often exactly do you see a pastel hippo plush?

The last two items in the buggy are Chocolate Lab Pillows. The ladies that worked at Goodwill joked with me as I considered those pillows. There was a Poo Poo pillow that one of the ladies recommended going along with the two puppies. I definitely knew that was going to be a nope. I have never understood the trend with fecal matter. Who decides what becomes popular and plastered all over every retail item possible? I mean really. The puppy pillows are very sweet though. I am selling them separately but am hoping they will be sold together. I’ve definitely sold throw pillows on Poshmark. If you take a quick trip over to Marshalls you will realize how insanely priced one single pillow is. I bought a Christmas dog pillow there last year and still cannot believe I paid what I did for it. This is why everything I own is from a thrift store. It keeps me from having a life threatening anxiety attack when I go to the register.

Goodwill Thrift Haul

I have acquired a few more cute items to add to my Poshmark Closet. I must admit that it is hard to sell some of these items because they are so adorable. My goal is not to hoard so, alas, I must sell. The Easter bunny seesaw above is a vintage piece. Rarely, I find items that come in their original boxes, but this one was an exception. This rabbit playground figurine looks festive & whimsical. This would be beautiful sitting on an Easter coffee bar.

I may be jumping to conclusions but I would say that this narwhal is an artsy extravert. His wardrobe is not only colorful but creative. I found this long guy when I went to shuffle through the plush animals. A child was originally holding him but he ultimately got thrown back in. Immediately, I knew he needed to come home with me. I know that someone needs a cuddly, soft, and sweet looking narwhal in their life.

These fun cactus pillowcases have been sold from my Poshmark Closet. However, I definitely wanted to include them because they were an unusual find. This was my first time seeing smiling succulents that were dressed for a New Orleans Mardi Gras. These pillowcases are definitely going to cheer up the new owner’s bedroom. My advice to picking up bedding is to keep your eye out for really unique patterns. I’m interested to find some llama pillowcases, considering llamas are on everything from coffee mugs to landscape. These pillowcases were a lot of fun to sell.

Lately, I’ve been keeping my eye out for farmhouse items. From what I have observed, there is definitely a market for this category. I saw this galvanized metal letter holder for $2.99 on the bottom of a shelf. This is one of those pieces that I did not look up the price on. Sometimes, it makes sense to sell things that are just my style. I enjoy seeing animals and home decoration in my Poshmark Closet. This item was easy to photograph and added some rustic charm.

Life Of A Reseller

A few year ago I discovered some Youtube videos about how to resell on Poshmark. I watched and listened as people explained how you can make a profit by selling items from thrift stores. Since I loved thrifting, I decided to create my new business immediately. I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit that often acts before having any dam idea what I am doing. I started going to the Goodwill bins, where they weigh the clothing per pound, and loading up with plus size items. My knowledge of brands, style, or really anything involving clothes was pretty much nothing. I had a plan though and if other people did it, so could I. Fast forward over two very broke years……

Today, I am still a reseller. I sell on Poshmark, Mercari, Ebay, and when I am feeling adventurous I add on Etsy too. Learning to resell, price, list, organize, thrift, ship, etc, has been an absolutely roller coaster for me. Nothing has come naturally or worked as I planned. Reselling is not easy, as the unbelievably annoying commercial for reseller apps make it sound. There is such BALANCE involved that no one talks about. One must learn to balance their life with their business. You may have to choose between listing items and spending time with your significant other. There is a lot about reselling that has no easy answer.

Stop doing what everyone is doing. Right now. STOP. Spend some time thinking about colors, photographs, lighting, business names, etc, that you are in love with. Let me tell you, you need to be in love to put up with seeing these things every day. Don’t be afraid to step outside the box of your “competition.” It is only a competition if you are competing. I witnessed two women bicker over a couple of metal lawn mosquito ornaments the other day. One woman was going for them but another beat her to the punch. You better believe she let everyone near her in Goodwill know that a set of mosquitos was unfairly taken from her. Don’t be that woman.