13 Thrifted Home Decor Items to Buy and Save Big!

Let’s face it. Houses are expensive. Upkeep, repair, and remodeling can drain your bank account in a hurry. But have no fear. I’m sharing thrifted home decor that I have at my house, and have been able to buy for every home we’ve lived in. Hopefully, you’ll be inspired to save money while still creating a beautiful, cozy home.

Furniture and decor can be bought for huge savings, if you’re willing to go thrifting! Often they need a little tweaking. But sometimes they’re perfect as is!

In this post I’ll show you some of the things I’ve thrifted for my own home. Some of them are more recent, while others have been around for years!

1 Lamps

Lamps can be pretty expensive. I have to admit that every time I walk into Homegoods I head to the lamp department and just take a walk through. I don’t need any lamps. I just love them because they can add so much style to a room (and of course light!).

The exciting thing is that there are so many to choose from, on places like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace.

White lamps with burlap shades

I picked up two, huge white ginger jar lamps at an Estate sale years ago. They’ve lived in almost every room of my house. I only paid $10 each! I did change the shades. Even so, anything comparable that I’ve seen retail is at least $60. Cha ching!

2 Desks

I recently found a Secretary desk at a flea market. I’m sitting at it now as I type this.

I paid $50 for it and gave it a paint job. You can check out the before and after in this post.

Painted desk and Ikea Ektorp chairs with white slipcovers

It’s solid wood and looks much more expensive than what I paid. If I tried to buy a new desk for $50. I would either be out of luck, or end up with a pressed wood piece of furniture.

I prefer a well made piece that I can repaint. It’s got staying power so I can move it to different rooms, sell it, or pass it on to one of my kids. It holds up over time.

3 Dressers

So many dressers, so little time. Used dressers are plentiful. Solid wood dressers can be found for sale everywhere! The catch is that they may need a paint or stain job.

Chalk painted chest of drawers/dresser

I snagged a solid pine dresser at a local thrift store for $20. I had some vintage pulls that I had saved from another piece that had seen better days. I painted it, distressed it, and added the vintage pulls. It now has a home in my grandkids bunk room. They each get a couple of drawers to store their pjs and other necessities.

Now c’mon. We could spend $20. on fast food and it’s gone. This dresser will be around quite a bit longer.

4 Sofas and Chairs

I’ve had different sofas and chairs over the years. However, I’ve never been afraid to buy used and tweak them if needed. You can check out the post about bleaching my denim slipcover to see a sectional that I bought off of Craigslist almost 10 years ago!

Leather chair in farmhouse style living room

We also picked up a beautiful leather chair off of Craigslist years ago. It’s  still in my living room and pretty much looks like new. We paid $100 and have compared other leather chairs that come in around $1000. Huge savings here.

5 Decor Accessories

Of course decor accessories are an easy category to save on. Everything from vases to picture frames can be had for pennies on the dollar.

I’m always on the lookout for large seashells. I grew up by the coast and I still love some coastal touches around my home.

Large seashells in brass bowl

I bought all of these for one to three dollars each.

It’s a huge savings compared to buying in a gift shop, or taking an exotic vacation where I could find them on the beach myself! Although, I’m still willing to take the vacation of course.

6 Garden items: pots, fountains, furniture

Don’t even think about paying retail for outdoor furnishings until you look around in the used market.

Wicker patio chairs with black and white pillows

We scored these all weather wicker chairs at an Estate sale just a couple of weekends ago. They were $10 each and came with free spiderwebs and dust. But a water hose and some soap is all it took for them to look like new. Not kidding. Just like new.

The black wrought iron urns were also thrifted, as were several of my planter pots.

XL bowl terra cotta planter with succulents

The terra cotta planter on my patio table is huge!  It was only $5. at an Estate sale this summer.

You can even find plants for your garden on sale sights such as Craigslist.

The savings add up I tell ya!

7 Dishes

We have a mix of used and new dishes. I love the heavy old restaurant ware plates, and of course white ironstone.

Vintage white dishes in farmhouse style kitchen

Always inspect them for chips around the edges or cracks. Usually I can find pieces in excellent condition for just a dollar or two each.

More money for the food to serve on them. I’ll take it!

8 Dining tables

There isn’t really a reason to buy a new dining table unless you have your heart set on a specific one. If you’re just looking for something that will fit in with farmhouse style, for instance, then you’ll have a lot to choose from.

Farmhouse style dining table and bench

I bought this farmhouse style table with matching bench years ago for $120. It’s 7 feet long and  the perfect size when our family is all together on holidays.

I gave it a paint job and some new stain on the top and have been enjoying it ever since.

9 Benches and extra seating

Occasional chairs, benches, and ottomans can all be found used and at reasonable prices. I grabbed this cane back chair to go with my desk for $5. at a thrift store.

cane back chair with taupe and white striped seat cushion

A little sprucing up and it was ready for many more years of use. You can check out the makeover in this post.

10 Baskets and crates

I buy baskets, crates and other storage pieces at thrift stores and estate sales fairly regularly. Especially if they’re large, square or have a vintage patina.

Vintage baskets holding house plants

They’re great for “pretty” storage and to hold all of the many house plants that I love to live with.

11 Mirrors

Large or ornate mirrors can be pretty expensive in retail land. I’m always on the look out for modern farmhouse, wood framed mirrors. They look beautiful with chalk style paint on them.

Vintage chippy white mirror

I’ve had this full length, solid wood framed mirror in my bedroom for years. It’s quite heavy but I love it. I paid $20. for it at a garage sale and have never regretted it!

12 Art and frames

We talked about picture frames in accessories. But often you can make the art work, use free printables found online, or buy vintage books (or calendars) with prints suitable to frame.

Vintage book prints of flamingos in white frame
The Flamingo art prints are pages from a book that I added to simple white frames.

My most recent finds have been two Flamingo prints and several cow prints, all out of vintage books that were only a few dollars each.

13 Textiles

Drapes, curtains, sheets, throws, duvet covers, and pillow covers are all washable. This makes them fair game to buy used and save a bundle!

I especially like to look for vintage quilts in great condition, such as the one in my grandkids bunk room.

Vintage quilt and white bunkbeds farmhouse style bedroom

I’ve made several quilts so I know all of the hard work that goes into it. The $10. I paid is way undervalued. But at least it’s going to someone (me), that will cherish it.

Conclusion

Thrifted home decor is a great way to save money, while still getting the beautiful and cozy rooms that you long for. Check out these 13 different items (categories) for yourself and see how much you can save!

In my next post I’m going to go over the 7  thrifted home decor items that I never buy. Hope you come back to check it out!

 

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