Thrift Shop With Me | Des Moines, Iowa

It feels like forever since I’ve spent the day thrifting!! That doesn’t mean I haven’t popped into the thrift store when I’m out running errands, but I haven’t blocked off a day to go in awhile! Come thrift shop with me in Des Moines, Iowa today!

Typically when I do spend the day it is a Thursday. There are a few reasons for this. One is that by Thursday I have done most, if not all, of my tasks for the week. I’ve recorded and edited a video for YouTube, written a blog post, made and scheduled content for social media – Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest, and posted products to the website, etc. This means I am ready to get out of the house!!

I also go Thursdays because one of my favorite shops, Thrifty Flea Market opens on Thursday! Getting there the first day gets me first dibs on all the new goodies that have arrived that week. Take a look at Thrifty Flea Market HERE.

What I’m Looking For

I’m always at the thrift store looking for vintage and antiques to resell on my website. I’ve also been on the hunt for some bowls I can use for a future project on Hello Iowa. Watch some of those episodes HERE. And, with our daughter moving into the dorms, I’m still trying to find thrifted versions of the things she wants. We’ve already returned quite a few items we bought new initially, but then found thrifting! I share what we’ve bought along with some tips on insurance HERE.

Thrift Stores

On this day we opened with Thrifty Flea Market at 9am and then proceeded to zigzag our way south. One of my favorite flea markets is St. Vincent de Paul on 6th. I’ve said on YouTube that it’s a little sketchy, which got me A LOT of hate, but it doesn’t change the fact that it is a little sketchy. It also doesn’t change the fact that it’s one of my favorite thrift stores!

On the weekends in the summer they spill out donations into the parking lot for a “garage sale.” Stuff is like $1 an item cheap! They also always have good furniture and I’m pretty sure they get furniture delivered every Monday and Wednesday. They also do so much for the community at this location and I love that!

Then, I headed to DAV. Years ago when I would drive to Des Moines from Centerville, I would always try to stop at DAV. Since then it has even gotten better! They’ve done a little remodeling and made changes in their pricing strategy. They have a flat pricing strategy, so name brand items are the same price as non-name brand. Note they rarely have furniture and really deal in clothing and smalls.

Next I visited Collectamania. I hadn’t been in forever it seemed! It’s an old bowling alley and full of vendors. I just haven’t been having much success finding pieces, so I stopped visiting there weekly. It is a place where I will use the restroom and they sell bottle water and canned pop for $1! It’s just like any secondhand shopping, you never know what you will find!

I continued my way south with my next stop Salvation Army on SE 14th. This Salvation Army is big and clean. They have tons of smalls and furniture.

Then I stopped at St. Vincent de Paul on Army Post Road. This St. Vincent de Paul had undergone a complete store reset! New shelving and a different floor plan made this thrift seem brand new! There doesn’t seem to be as much room for furniture as this used to be one of the best places for furniture. I believe they get new furniture on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s.

Next up I went to New 2 U Treasures. This is another indoor flea market essentially, divided up into different vendor spaces. I should note very small, narrow spaces. A nice variety and good prices.

Then, I passed up stopping at Animal Lifeline Thrift Shop, but it is often a stop on this route. Instead I headed home to stop at Goodwill and Salvation Army in Ankeny. I had no luck at Goodwill, either they don’t get the things I like donated or they fly off the shelf immediately, but I rarely buy anything here. Salvation Army in Ankeny has also had not only a store reset, but a complete remodel. Salvation Army can have pretty high prices in their hard goods, but they seem to get things donated that I like.

YouTube

I routinely share my thrifting trips and vintage hauls on my YouTube channel. I would love for you to Subscribe and follow me there! I just hit 10,000 subscribers and I couldn’t be more excited with this accomplishment!

See today’s thrifting adventure HERE.

Shop My Finds

Go HERE to see New Arrivals on my website and HERE to shop by category. If you are in the Des Moines area and would like to pick up an item versus have it shipped, just use code ANKENY at checkout.

Happy Thrifting

Now that you know some of my frequented thrift stores in the Des Moines area, I’ll also share with you a few thrifting tips HERE. I also put together a list of what I think is trending when it comes to thrifting items. See what I think you should be picking up HERE.

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