Students find hidden treasures in unlikely places.
From The Galleria to Pottery Barn, there are endless shopping possibilities for shoppers;unfortunately, the endless choices usually come at the expense of a hefty buck. Some students choose to look in unconventional places such as thrift stores and garage sales, often finding many diamonds in the rough.
Erika Ellis, a junior anthropology major, said she found some of her most prized possessions in random places such as in dumpsters.
“I found this really pretty cabinet in the trash once, and I decided to fix it up,” she said. “I polished it, painted it and added baskets where the drawers were missing. The end result was this really cool, funky-looking dresser drawer.”
Some of Ellis’ other craft projects also began from trash can adventures.
“I found a scrap piece of wood in the trash once and shaped it into a headboard for my bed. I fitted some nice fabric over it to match my room,” she said. “Once I fitted it on my bed, it created a great look and feel for my room.”
Although Ellis often hits garage sales in search of random items, she once came home with formal gowns instead.
“A few years ago, I found this beautiful prom dress at a garage sale,” she said. “It was custom made for somebody by Neiman Marcus back in the 1960s, but it still fit me perfectly.”
Ellis said she wore the sea green dress, which was made entirely of raw silk, to a friend’s prom and received many compliments on it.
“The dress was the most beautiful, vintage-looking piece of clothing I had ever seen,” she said. “I never plan on letting it go. The best part was that I only spent 10 bucks on it.”
Ellis’ garage sale treasure inspired her to shop for her own prom dress at vintage stores.
“I didn’t look in regular department stores because I knew that’s where everybody else would be shopping,” she said.
After hitting up the vintage shops, Ellis bought a very “old-school” gown that was tea cup-shaped with a petticoat and puffed sleeves.
Other students, such as Darcy Modouni, find their “going out” outfits at places such as Value Village.
“I’m a big fan of the retro look, but I can never find authentic-looking clothes in regular stores,” said Modouni, a psychology graduate student.
Modouni enjoys rummaging through thrift stores and the Salvation Army, where she has found corduroy pants, velvet jackets in four different colors, and baggy jeans that were “a little floppy.”
“I love all of the clothes that I found at value places because they are just a lot of fun to wear,” she said.
Sana Mohiuddin, a junior history major, doen’t necessarily wear what she buys at vintage stores. Instead, she treasures the artifacts that can be found in such places.
“I once found a really old British copy of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice in an Austin resale shop,” she said. “The publishing date was back in the 1950’s, so I bought it immediately because I love reading. I also figured that it will be worth something someday.”
Mohiuddin said she has also found items that decorate more than just her bookshelf.
“I found these old, really funky-looking flowers for really cheap in a vintage store once,” she said. “I put them in my room and they looked very out of place. I kept them anyways because they add character to my room setup.”
Mohiuddin said she has always been a fan of the alternative shopping lifestyle.
“In all reality, thrift stores are the only place left to find things that have at least a little bit of originality to them,” she said. “I never really liked going to the mall because the prices are usually too high. After all of those setbacks, there is always a good possibility that somebody out there will have the same thing that you bought from the regular store.”