thrifted gifting

White Elephant Exchange

Every year, my office gathers for a holiday lunch and white elephant gift exchange.

Since my thrifting habit has been insatiable, and I constantly seek excuses to be in the shops, I decided to create my first thrifted basket of the season for the holiday lunch.

We have several animal and nature lovers where I work, so I’m hoping someone enjoys the items I found — brand new and unopened (!!!) — at Goodwill.

I’m always snagging baskets when I find them, so it was easy to pull one from my growing collection in which to place all the white elephant items.

I think, ideally for a thrifted basket, I would arrange the items cutely and tie a ribbon on the basket handle — kind of like a typical fruit or gift basket.

But, the whole point of a white elephant exchange is that nobody can see what the gift is before selecting it from the pile.

So, I decided to tie up all the items in a thrifted scarf.

I don’t love the look, but it got the job done.

I found a fun dog puzzle and wild flower field guide — both great gifts for the animal and outdoor lovers.

Our white elephant gift spending limit is $25. This puzzle would’ve almost reached the limit, had I purchased it elsewhere.

I don’t imagine anyone is going to pull this field guide from their back pocket whilst traipsing Mounts Botanical Gardens, but I think it’s a fun thing to have on a table or bookshelf.

I added this beautiful glass ornament I found at the Nearly New Shop in West Palm Beach.

To decorate the basket, I tied on a bow of holiday ribbon (I found a collection of ribbon at Goodwill a few weeks ago), and another ornament found at Goodwill.

I’ll never tell you I’m good at wrapping gifts or tying bows. It’s a skill I have sadly not mastered, but I did my best and I think it looks kinda cute!

Happy holidays!

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Last week’s thrifted ‘fits round-up:

>> Last week’s thrift haul video on my instagram page <<

Lord & Taylor gingham dress from Goodwill West Palm Beach, layered with a non thrifted sweater.

Baby girl’s top from Goodwill West Palm Beach

Top and GAP jeans from Goodwill West Palm Beach

Linen top and pants from Goodwill West Palm Beach

GAP oversized button up and jeans from Goodwill West Palm Beach

Comfy coastal dress and MANGO tote from Goodwill West Palm Beach

Baby girl’s dress from Goodwill West Palm Beach

I forgot to do a proper outfit selfie, but the top I wore to brunch with Santa is from Goodwill West Palm Beach!

Thrifting into the Holidays

It’s hard to believe the holidays are nearly upon us. After October it’s basically Christmas, so buckle up, folks.

One of the challenging things about being a mama is that holiday gifting for the kids, family friends and extended fam usually falls on your shoulders.

Baby girl and I stopped by A Timeless Treasure in Northwood to start our holiday gift hunting. This store has treasures in every nook and cranny and also sets up a booth at the Lake Park Rust Market!

My husband is in charge of arranging with Santa the big gift each kid will get, but there’s still stockings to fill and smaller presents to find — all while attempting to maintain some semblance of a budget and keep the spending even among all kiddos.

There’s also sharing gift ideas with extended family — you have to keep straight what you’re getting the kids vs. what you recommend the family gets for them.

*Parents, take note:* Last year, my genius idea was creating a Pinterest board for each kid and sending out links! It worked great.

We scored several perfect, vintage gifts at this shop! And, naturally, a few things for ourselves as well. 😏

Lucky for this mama, I love gifting and shopping, so sourcing holiday gifts is mostly fun.

It’s going to be even more fun this year because I was inspired by an influencer I follow, Margo Roth, to gift thrifted baskets.

The Goodwill by my house always has a variety of cute baskets to choose from, so I’m collecting them and filling them with thrifted items that remind me of the people in my life.

Baby girl’s favorite thing about the shop.

I can’t emphasize how primo (often brand new) the items I find in the shops are. I’ve already started collecting and will eventually share the details on each basket I make.

Gifting this way gives me an excuse to be in the shops even more than usual (twist my arm), and also allows me to share about my obsession with thrifting and its benefits with my people.

It’s been so much fun searching for things that are personalized — can’t wait to share what I’ve found with you soon!

Last week’s thrifted ‘fits & treasures round-up:

>> VIDEO THRIFT HAUL HERE <<

Sterling silver shell necklace from Jupiter Medical Thrift

Shorts and shoes from Goodwill West Palm Beach

BCBG heels – BRAND NEW, $9.99! – found at Goodwill West Palm Beach. Perfect for holiday outfits.

Goodies found at A Timeless Treasure in Northwood.

Can’t wait to layer this shell necklace with others.

Not thrifted, but a pretty poolside moment this weekend – love the light and how beautiful this thriving Crown of Thorns is!

Our daughter is besties with the little girl who lives across the street, and any time our families get together, the kids run around and scream and the parents drink wine.

So, inevitably, wine glasses break. When my neighbor had a birthday recently, I decided to go in search of a nice set of wine glasses — fellow thrifters will know that it’s hard to find 6 or 8 matching glasses, much less quality ones.

I don’t want this to jinx me or anything, but I truly feel that the thrifterverse has my back. I found six gorgeous Italian wine glasses and (bonus!) two fish-shaped stone serving dishes, glazed in a pretty blue color (wish I had taken photos).

I shined everything up, packed them in tissue paper, and gifted them.

This was the first time I’d thrifted a gift for someone who isn’t family (me, my mom, and mother-in-law all love thrifting and have a shared understanding that secondhand gifts are more than welcome).

So, I felt the need of course to disclose that I’d thrifted the items and say, “…I hope that’s not weird?”

Girly girl with her thrifted suitcase and heels. 💅🏽✨

This led me to wonder how people in general would feel about receiving a second-hand item as a gift.

I think because most people who know me understand that thrifting is *gulp* (whisper) my life, they probably wouldn’t be surprised or offended to receive a thrifted item.

It would be curated by a careful and practiced eye, of course, and cleaned prior to gifting.

Baby girl in a beautiful top found at Goodwill West Palm Beach

The more I’ve been in the shops — which has been weekly lately (coping mechanism? these times we’re in are trying) — the more I’ve thought about how important and ideal shopping secondhand is.

First of all, the stuff is FANTASTIC. I live in a place where people give away pristine, quality, high-end pieces. But also, shopping secondhand offers a way to scratch that pesky consumerist itch without breaking the bank and harming the environment.

A short list of the benefits of thrifting:

–It’s affordable (still screaming over my $60 chair/ottoman set…will be riding that high for the foreseeable future).

–It’s sustainable: Thrifting keeps usable items out of landfills and reduces demand for new manufacturing, making it one of the easiest ways to live more sustainably.

–It’s fun: I can’t fully describe the high I experience when I find a high-end item for a steal. If I could bottle it, I’d give it to you for free.

–It supports your community: I frequent charity shops that donate a percentage or all of their proceeds to a cause.

–It keeps things interesting: Thrifted finds spark creativity and give you a reason to switch things up in your wardrobe and rearrange things around your house.

I’m considering practicing mostly thrifted gifting for the holidays this year. What do you think? Would you be skeeved to receive a thrifted gift?

Last week’s thrifted ‘fits & treasures round-up:

I took my kids to Resource Depot in West Palm Beach and, let me tell you, we had a time.