Jacklyn's Sweet Find

A friend of mine (Adele), Jacklyn, recently emailed an AWESOME furniture find from a local PA thrift store. Here's the pic:

Found at Blue Mountain Thrift Store, Cleona, PA

This brown leather sofa retails for around $2000. Jacklyn picked it up for a mere $450!! (Purse not included ;-)) She tells us it is in "new" condition -- no scratches or marks. The best part? It's a sleeper sofa! AND, the mattress was still in the original plastic wrap! What a fabulous deal! The Frugal Friendzies are a little bit jealous.

Keep your finds coming, fellow thrifters!

The Latest Finds

My closet is getting nicely filled out from this thrift store diet- so filled out in fact that I don't really need much more! However, being an avid shopper, I do manage to find the occasional items I just can't pass up.

Fossil watch- brand new with leather band and the plastic protector still on the back- $15 at local consignment shoppe. Mom's Christmas present :)

Trying to look more serious and model-ey in an Ann Taylor Loft cardigan I got for $4.00 at a local consignment shoppe. You can't see it well in this picture, but the top collar has a silk ribbon design all the way around.

Lilac Banana Republic shirt- $5.60 at Wannabe's Upscale Resale!

Pretty ivory scarf- $1.50 at Salvation Army

Hardcover and in good condition! $1.00 each at Mission Mart

So don't forget to keep looking and thrifting...there's bound to be a hidden treasure out there for you!

Merry Wind and thrifty recycling

In December Adele and I stopped in to our favorite Tea Shoppe in central Pennsylvania- One Good Woman. (If you are ever in Camp Hill, PA, you must stop in, it's truly one of the jewels of the area!) While shopping, we happened to find out that one of the employees, Merry Wind, has started her own business called Next Life Design. She uses old sweaters and suits she's not using anymore or clothes from thrift stores to make pillows, handbags, scarves, and tea cozies. We thought that was pretty green and pretty thrifty! She also creates soft and sentimental pillows upon request from loved ones' clothing. Oh, and because all of her pieces are made from old clothing, everything is machine washable! We at Frugal Friendzies thought this frugal innovator well worth a post of her own. Here are some pictures we snapped:

The artiste with her creations

More pillows!

Two of her tea cozies. Note the large selection of delectable tea in the background :)

So, if you ever have the chance, stop on in, get some great tea, fresh ground coffee, and one of Merry's awesome creations!

Lauren's Finds

Lauren is my (Adele's) friend, a mommy-to-be, and a fellow thrifter. She's located in the Philadelphia area, and boy, has she found a goldmine! She sent us a bunch of info about a second-hand shop near her called The Nesting House. It specifically sells baby and children's items (both new and used), including *gently* used cloth diapers! (And here at Frugal Friendzies, we're huge fans of cloth diapering, so this is an AWESOME find for Lauren!) Cloth diapering can be pricey in terns of start-up costs, so kudos to Lauren for finding a frugal way to make it happen! She got a variety of used items for her little Tidbit, and here's what she sent pics of:

Carter's brand Little Layette sleeper with hat, booties, and bib - tags still attached! Originally $17 - got it for $6.

Inserts for Fuzzibunz cloth diapers. Cotton inserts were $.50 each - and their more expensive hemp friends were $2 each. Lauren says cotton inserts found online go for around $9 for a 3 pack and hemp liners about $15 for a 3 pack.

In Lauren's words: "gently (and for something that holds poop, I mean gently) used Fuzzibunz brand diapers." She got them for $4 each. They retail for $17 - $20 depending on the store and quantity you buy them in.

Way to go, Lauren! You sure did hit a baby jackpot! The Frugal Friendzies wish we lived near Philly to have access to this awesome store. Maybe we'll get to take a visit out there some day. ;)

The Peda's Finds

Sickness and work have overwhelmed one or both of us friendzies for the month. Hence the posting delay. But here we go with our first official "guest finds" post! Sarah Jane's sweet cousin and her husband have been out and about thrifting around Central PA and found a couple of great, non-clothing-related steals! First:

Here, Brian is modeling skis and poles found at the Blue Mountain Thrift Store. Poles = $6, Skis = $8.

And their second frugal find:

Dresser and mirror from SalVal for $79. And in great condition, Erin tells us.

Awesome finds, Erin and Brian! And to all of our frugal friends out there, keep the pics coming our way (frugalfriendzies@gmail.com) so we can feature YOUR thriftiness too!

New Year, New Ideas

Welcome to the new year! If you haven't committed to a great resolution or goal yet for this year, we (of course) would suggest you consider a thrifty challenge of your own. With that spirit in mind, the Frugal Friendzies want to extend our blog posts to you, our loyal fans. We have decided to include our readers' frugal finds along with our own. SO, send us what you've got! We want to hear from you!

You can reach us at frugalfriendzies@gmail.com. Send us pictures, and any information you'd like us to share regarding your finds. We'd love to see what you can come up with, be it clothes, household items, gifts, or something totally and completely unique! Only rule is it all HAS to be second hand, naturally. ;)

Ready? GO! We're excited to show off as much thriftiness as we can this new year.

~The Frugal Friendzies

The Real Deal

Here it is, fellow frugal folks! The link to our debut on local television: http://www.abc27.com/Global/story.asp?S=13727094. Enjoy reading snippets from the interview and watching the segment that aired on TV this week.

May our story inspire you all to more frugal endeavors! Happy Holidays!

~The Frugal Friendzies

News! News!

Attention all Frugal Friendzies fans in the central PA area!!!

Tomorrow, Wednesday, December 22, ABC27 News will air an interview of the Frugal Friendzies on the 5:00pm news! Tune in to see us talk about our blog, our challenge, and our love of thrifting! 

And if you happen to miss the segment, ABC27 tells us that the clip will be available online for viewing on Dec. 23rd. Make sure you check it out!

Merry Christmas, and Happy Thrifting!

Love,
The Frugal Friendzies