We want to keep encouraging people to go to garage sales and resale stores this summer. Here in the Midwest, there are less garage sales the closer it gets to school restarting. We still go out always hoping to find a great deal. The items in this post are the best bargains we found this summer from garage sales and thrift stores.
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Best Bargains from Garage Sales this Summer
#1 — Hope Chest
Cost: $5
This chest was one of the best things I have found this summer. It matches my daughter’s bedroom furniture, and it was very clean.
#2 — Hamilton Beach Toaster Oven
Cost: $5
My husband and I found a toaster oven that was like new while out at a sale on a Saturday.
It belonged to some elderly ladies that said they had a hard time figuring out how to use it. It didn’t have any instructions, but it really wasn’t hard to use.
It was also small enough to fit on top of our small microwave oven.
#3 — Photo Paper
Cost: $5
One garage sale that we went to earlier in the spring had unused 8.5” x 11” photo paper. There were multiple packs that had not been opened plus some packs that had been opened. It was all premium photo paper, too. There was enough to print 75-100 photos.
#4 — Books
We have found a lot of nice books at sales this summer.
We have found a lot of Harry Potter books with dust jackets. In fact this past week, we bought three of them for 50¢ each. They sell well on Ebay if you have the whole set.
We have also found other books to sell and books for ourselves. I collect Dr. Seuss books, and I thought I had them all until I found I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today and Other Stories.
#5 — Clothes
I haven’t found a lot of nice clothes for myself, but my daughter has found some really nice dresses for 25¢ to $1. She also found a nice coat for $5.
You don’t want to pay a lot for clothes at garage sales since you can’t try them on, so we were happy to find these deals.
Best Bargains from Resale Stores
It is a lot harder to find anything to sell or really nice stuff at resale stores anymore. Most stores sort through everything and sell anything of value online. Every once in a while, someone overlooks an item and we happen to find it.
#1 — Board Games
All games do not need to be old to be of value.
We have found two Cash Flow games over the summer. The game is an investing game from 2010. The box looks really plain. If the game is complete, it usually sells for about $50 on Ebay.
Another game that isn’t really old is Cariboo made by Cranium. It is a memory treasure game for young children. We have found two of these games within the last month at resale stores. They sell for $30-40 on Ebay if they are complete.
Other older games I have found are Masterpiece and Mall Madness.
#2 — Jigsaw Puzzles
We love making jigsaw puzzles. Besides the fun of making them, some puzzles are actually worth money.
I have found a lot of Charles Wysocki puzzles at resale stores in the last two months. Many people collect these puzzles, so some are valuable.
If you want to see which ones have sold on Ebay recently, you can do an advanced search to find out at what price puzzles are selling. You just need to make sure sold items are included under the advanced search options.
If you don’t care about keeping your puzzles, you can make them to see that they are complete and then sell them. We sold two different Charles Wysocki Halloween puzzles for $20 each in June.
#3 — Dolls
In the early summer while at a Salvation Army store, my husband found a bag of dolls (13 vintage Strawberry Shortcake and 5 Rose Petal Place). All had their full outfits with some accessories and in very good condition.
The bag did not have a price on it, so my husband asked a man working in the back. He seemed irritated to be bothered and hurriedly slapped a $1.99 sticker on the bag. We sold them for $46 on Ebay.
#4 — Vintage Items
Sometimes old toys are not recognized by people who sort them at thrift stores. Recently in a Goodwill where I rarely find anything, I decided to look at the stuffed animals. I found three original Star Wars Ewoks fully clothed and never played with for $2 each.
I think someone thought they were teddy bears. They had the original 1983-4 tags with Wicket, Princess Kneesaa, and Latara on them.
Why You Should Keep Shopping at Garage Sales & Resale Shops
Keep on looking for deals in thrift stores and at sales. Some weeks we don’t find anything. Some weeks we find a few things, and once in a while, we have a really great day at thrift stores or garage sales! You just never know what bargains you may find.
What are the best bargains you have ever found while shopping at garage sales & thrift stores?
Comment below! We would love to hear about your experiences.
Related posts:
10 of My Best Garage Sale Finds