Thriftactular Thriftacular

Discovering thrifting was one of the greatest things to ever happen to me. Cheap, unique (like my treasure to the left) and environmentally friendly, with the usual added benefit of helping an organization? Count me in. However, thrifting can be super intimidating when you don't know which stores to hit up. I've stuck my hand in one too many wet sweaters to not be willing to share my spots. So, here are my favorite thrift stores and vintage spots in the Omaha and Lincoln area:

Omaha:

New Life Thrift: 36th and Harrison, huge, cheap (and prices get lowered if an item doesn't move), well organized, has complete sets of dishes all organized into boxes, this one is my favorite

Goodwill: 41st and Pacific, there are other Goodwills, but this one is my favorite out of all the ones in Omaha

Lutheran Thrift Store: 24th and Leavenworth, cash only, volunteer run, cheap and still relatively undiscovered, I have a full set of Noritake China from the 70s that I bought here for $20.

Saint Vincent DePaul: 19th and Leavenworth/59th and Maple, the one on Maple has free magnets

Tip Top Thrift: 59th and Maple, run by little old ladies (including my grandma!), cheap, cash only and has great jewelry, as well as a collection of vintage aprons in the basement but you'll have to ask them about those

Salvation Army: 25th and Dodge (Omaha)/34th and West Broadway (in Council Bluffs, just across the river) the CB one usually has great vintage dresses

Thrift World: 29th and Leavenworth: Most of the Thrift Worlds are pretty decent, but they are the Wal-Mart of the Omaha thrift scene because they buy stuff from other thrift stores and mark it up. That said, it tends to eliminate a lot of the junk you see. I like this location because of their selection and because they are by an enormous, beautiful Hispanic grocery store that has a wonderful produce section and super cheap avocados.

Second Chance: 11th and Jackson, this is an antique store, not a thrift store, to be accurate, but you have to go in the basement. Vintage jewelry, clothes (for both men and women), shoes, hats, sewing supplies...

Lincoln:

Ruby Begonia's: 13th and P, great little vintage store, two levels and there's sometimes a box of free stuff outside

St. Teresa's: 36th and Randolph, only open certain days of the week, so call ahead, but it's so cheap and packed with great stuff that it's totally worth it, 402-474-1952 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 402-474-1952 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Goodwill: 48th and Vine, 17th and O, the one on 48th is enormous and I always find great glassware, dresses and shoes here.

Salvation Army: 48th and Leighton, also enormous, Alaina tends to find lots of vintage dresses here

ARC Thrift Store: 27th and O Street, tends to have lots of great sales, as well free cookies and Santa Claus mugs around the holidays

Family Thrift Store: 17th and O Street, I once found the perfect pair of black over the knee boots with a heel here, but they were half a size too small. It was the greatest tragedy of my young life.

Rialto Extra: 17th and O (in the antique mall) This is no longer a free standing store, but is instead crammed into a vendor's booth at the antique mall next to where the store used to be. I haven't been back to check recently, but they used to have an amazing selection.

That's my list- I sometimes stray and hit up other places, but these are where I have the most success. I hope this helps at least one person out there (Sarah, you let me know if this helped!) and that you discover your own cats in a shoe cookie jar like I did this last weekend.