Thrift Finds

Thrift shops can be a treasure trove of vintage clothes, old kitchen appliances, and tchotchkes galore—but sometimes a lucky shopper comes across a once-in-a-lifetime purchase.

For this week's Challenge, tell us about your top-tier thrift finds and show us the best pieces you've collected over the years. Whether you shop for clothing, knick-knacks, home decor, or any other second-hand items, we want to see the gems you've come across, either intentional treasure hunting or by chance. Did you stumble upon a designer piece at a bargain price? Did you find out the painting you bought is an original that's worth a fortune? Or, did you repurpose an old jacket and brought back a decades-old fashion trend?

If you peruse the charity shops, flea markets, yard sales, antique stores, or Depop, show off the items you've collected and share your discoveries and thrifting hacks or tips for finding the best deals. Be sure to include photos of your timeless acquisitions and tell us the story behind your items and how you came across them. Happy thrifting!

For your story to be eligible, it must be between 600 and 5,000 words and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Stories published on Vocal and entered into the contest up until April 13, 2021, at 11:59 PM EST will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here. To learn how to embed media in your story, check out this resource here.

The Thrift Finds Challenge is exclusive to Vocal+ members. To learn more and upgrade to Vocal+ visit https://vocal.media/vocal-plus.

To be eligible to win the grand prize, second place, or third place prizes, you must be over the age of 13 and residing in a country where Stripe is available at the time of entry. A complete list of countries where Stripe is available can be found here—winners will need to have a Stripe account created and connected in order to receive the prizes. For this reason, entrants located outside of any of these 39 countries will not be eligible to win.