Written by Diana Carreno
Moving from the Bay Area to Orange County the one thing that I would miss is waking up super early on the weekends to shopping at different flea markets in San Francisco or Oakland. Shopping at these locations offered exhilarating enjoyment because I never knew what I might find. Being in a new environment gave me the opportunity to seek new flea markets in orange county and surrounding areas. When I moved, I brought with me a few necessities I needed as I knew I would find what I desired along the way. Moving to a new location is never easy especially when you don’t know where good locations are for used goods such as furniture, bikes, household items, etc. Since the pandemic and stay at home orders came into place, many resources will take a little longer to transition to open.
Second-hand stores or thrift stores such as Goodwill and Salvation Army offer many household items at a major discount price. These stores have been around since the early twentieth century and are a staple of the American culture. You will easily meet someone who has shopped at a second-hand store and engage in a conversation about their finds. Thrift stores are great when seeking to buy used furniture, household items such as pans, and pots and they are also awesome when buying used clothing items. Some of these stores also offer discounts on certain days or some used a color price tag system and a certain color will be discounted at a particular day. These discounts are a great deal especially when buying furniture store. Mariner’s Church Thrift store located in Irvine is a good start but venture outside of Irvine to find Goodwill stores and Salvation Army in Santa Ana and Lake Forest. There are even second-hand stores dedicated to the sale of items to support a cause, such as Out of the Closet in Los Angeles, whose proceeds go into medical care with patients with HIV/AIDS. Second-hand stores offer an economic opportunity to support social causes.
As I mentioned I am a big fan of flea markets or as Swap Meets as they are called in Southern California. I enjoy the culture and the atmosphere of swap meets. Some swap meets in Orange County include Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, and Golden West College in Huntington Beach. Not only are these good locations for buying merchandise but you can also find quality produce and vendors selling food. You can say they have a little of everything. The best experience at swap meets is that for the most part haggling is expected, some vendors are willing to go down the price while others not so much.
Garage sales/yard sales are a staple of the American culture. During the 1950’s and 1960s Americans started buying more items and accumulating stuff. Eventually, some of these items were no longer needed and selling them became a phenomena. Garage sales are awesome because you never know what you might find, for example a few years ago a man bought a sketch for $5 and it ended up being an Andy Warhol original appraised at $200,000. Although garage sales are great for buying novelty items you can also find household, furniture and books are a fraction of what they would cost at a store. Browsing items in a garage/yard sale is a fun activity and a great opportunity to ask that new friends to tag along. Some listing for garage sales can be found on craigslist and signs will be posted on the street as well.
The internet has allowed us to connect anyone in the world and it is also a great place to buy used items. Some online tools include:
- Craigslist (www.craigslist.com),
- Facebook Marketplace
- Offerup (https://offerup.com)
- Letgo (https://www.letgo.com).
You will be able to find almost anything at these online marketplaces and sellers should be able to take payment through online payment platforms such as Venmo or Zelle. Everyone once in a while I like to browse Offerup and Facebook Marketplace for fun, I don’t necessarily buy anything, but I have been able two end tables using offerup for less than $10, such an amazing deal. I have also purchased non-essential items such as plants to beautify my space.
You don’t have to spend a lot of money decorating your space or obtaining necessary items for your home. Venture out and try these suggestions, you’ll be glad you did.