Seriously surprised to have fould Houston quite the Mecca for thrifting.... wasn't planning to go out while down for a good friends' wedding this past weekend but had some unexpected time Friday- which I had gobs of fun filling up with my favorite kind of retail therapy!
First off, Houston is totally new to me, never been there before and so I had no clue what awaited me. I stepped off the plane and into the hot humidity, following the crowds I went down the escalator to baggage claim and met hoards of soldiers in military regalia alongside civilians waiting for someone to arrive... it turns out they were expecting the arrival of wounded soldiers. It was quite a grand welcome, a live band performing, flags waving, and lots of smiles and applause. While in baggage claim I thought about renting a car rather than super shuttling it to the hotel... good move...at only 6.99 per day for an economy car how can you go wrong? I quickly typed in "antique Houston" into my iPhone browser and voila... I learned a little about the cool and apparently thrift- central Montrose neighborhood in southern Houston... which as it turned out was on my way to the hotel!
As I approached Montrose via Westheimer road, I saw signs for an estate sale starting that day! Clearly this was a sign that my afternoon was going to be fun. Oh boy... this looked like a good one....as I approached the little house I saw old massive doll houses from the turn of the century, old movie row seats on the patio, love them! but they don't fit in a suitcase. I rummaged through the many rooms of the smallish house, this lady was clearly a collector, pack rat, crafter, lover of the mystical, and around young children. Drawers and cabinets were still stuffed with random possessions, a lot of it junk but you never know what you'll find. In the end I found items ranging from old plastic mermaid drink decorations to a giant bag of plastic insects ( perfect for a Gold And Bee activity), a funny Wonder Woman mug, some crafting supplies, and a few vintage kids toys. There were some super cool things that I had to pass up simply because of the suitcase factor. Overall it was not bad, but moving on proved to be a good idea.
Heading down Westheimer I soon found the hub of shops that I was here for. Walking down the street I found shop after shop packed with mid century furniture, pastel rainbows of vintage Pyrex, gorgeous old glass jars, kids toys from long ago, truly outrageous vintage ladies hats and clothing, and lots more... it was dreamy. I picked up a mint colored pedestaled dish that was too adorable to leave behind. Also found a great blue plastic desk organizer from the 70's that looked a little familiar and I instantly fell in love with. I went into another shop where I found an assortment of trucker patches, got one for Ami that read "daddy's girl" in machine embroidered cursive, and Rowan got one too that said "Bouncer". Next off to a couple of great consignment shops where I found lots of great steals, found a vintage plaid western shirt for a fathers day gift, a cool vintage top that actually fit me, and the find of the day..... Peggy Guggenheim repro glasses... Omg!
I love going thrifting in a new city. It is so cool to see the different stuff people have/ donate/ consign compared to where I live. I always find unique special things that remind me of the city and my travels.
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