Thrift Store Review: GOODWILL I-45 SPRING CYPRESS

When I first moved here, I kept looking for a thrift store that would compare to my beloved Faith Farm in Florida. I had a hard time finding any. It took a lot of searching and word of mouth and luck to find the ones I have found. I would have really appreciated a thrift store guide, so I will be posting reviews in the future of thrift stores that I am familiar with or have recently gone to. I might throw in an antique store review here and there if I get time.

I think this may also be called a Goodwill Select store. They have a convenient location next door to drop off donations before you go in to buy more. They are located on the east side of 1-45 at 1417 Spring Cypress Rd 111B in Spring, Texas. They're in a shopping center right off the feeder road near a McDonalds.

I have to say this is the nicest Goodwill I have been in. The book selection was slim pickings, but there were some treasures in the toys. My son was very excited to get Hungry, Hungry Hippos (complete, $2), and we got this made in Israel bead toy for $.69 (see photo).
Totally worth it. It kept the toddler occupied for twenty minutes!
But this store is all about CLOTHES. Racks of men's suits and dress shirts, and twice as many racks of women's clothing. I haven't even told you the best part. They are all organized by color. All the long sleeve shirts together then broken down into reds blending into oranges into yellows and greens, blues, black and whites. Then there is short sleeve shirts then tank tops then dress shirts. Many of them still had store tags on them, like a lovely new Banana Republic shirt that, sadly, did not fit me. I was in heaven with the blue jeans though, which were also sorted by color - light denim, standard blue, dark denim, black. Ooodles of brand names, many had European sizes. The really nice brands were ridiculously small, like Hollywood small, but I found plenty of Gap and Levis to try on. I was only limited by time and money, and at $7.99 a pair, I only bought one pair.
If you are looking for a sundress, cocktail dress or semi formal, check out the wall of dresses. Oh, how I miss prom. I totally splurged on a $9.99 cream colored satin dress with a rosy ribbon waist. It still had the dry cleaning tag on it - ready to wear. Not a clue when I will wear it, but then it wouldn't be a guilty pleasure.
This is also a great stop for kids and baby clothing, which were much more reasonably priced. Much of the kids clothing looked barely worn. I'm not sure what kind of kids these people had, but I suspect I don't know any of them. I was able to find new long sleeved shirts for both boys, only $1.99 a piece. I'm fairly certain they've already put stains on them.
All in all, a really clean and well organized thrift store with brand name and like new items. Downside - high prices.
Here's a sample of prices:
Board Games $1.99-3.99
Books $.49 and up
Infant/Toddler 1 pc $1.99
Kids Shirts $1.99
Ladies/Mens long sleeve shirts $5.99
Dresses $7.99 and up
Jeans $7.99

You will probably find mostly upper middle class people shopping there. I was taken aback by a woman talking very loudly into her cell phone as she perused the dresses. "He doesn't care about me. He gave me this $4000 pin, and I don't even wear pins. I took it back to the store and got a fantastic pearl necklace. I showed it to him and he was angry. He wasn't even happy for me. He just doesn't get it. He doesn't care about me. Do you know he is always getting me roses and I don't even like roses!? I like lilies." Hmmm, I'm not sure that a thrift store is the best place to have such a conversation. I just had to share that because I simply cannot understand a woman complaining about recieving roses.

Mission Statement

A bit of background first:
I am constantly trying to figure out how to make our paychecks go further, and that's gotten even harder lately. Prices on food keep going up, which is really bugging me. I understand if clothes or electronics cost more, but food? That's just not fair. Anyway, I have always been a penny pincher, also known as thrifty, money wise, or just plain cheap. Recently, circumstances have come together in such a way that would indicate to us that we are supposed to adopt. People that know us would say we are crazy, mostly because we already have a few young kids. Oh well, you go where God leads you, and this should be interesting and exciting. So now I find myself in the position of having to make paychecks go further and pull money out of nowhere for what will probably be a very expensive adoption. This will be where I share with you any successes, deals, bargains, and what nots that I came across along the way. I will mostly cover Houston to Conroe, Texas, although some deals carry over to most areas. There will be thrift store reviews, my favorite current deals (these will probably be time sensitive), and best seasonal deals. If you find great deals that impress you, feel free to share them with us. I know my husband could never share my enthusiasm for $.25 spaghetti sauce or a package of Pampers for $4.00. He always listens with a glassy eyed stare that tells me he is just being sweet, but he would rather go play xbox.

A sidenote:
I am notoriously bad with grammer, so I apologize now for any run ons or bad punctuation. I try to be much better with spelling. I am new to blogger, so if you have suggestions or criticisms, I will be glad to hear them.