Thrift Store Olympics

[CoonhoundBetty]

I don't know if y'all would have laughed at me, or joined me, when I was at Goodwill yesterday.

I had had a hard dr appt (blood draw), so was trying to cheer myself up a bit by looking for ponies. I did two passes through the toy section with no luck. Seriously, I have only ever found a Pretty Kitty at Goodwill, never any MLP. and then...

*squeak* *squeak* *squeak*

An employee wheels over a three-tier cart FULL of toys.

I swear, I have not ever moved so fast in my life, bobbing and weaving, shooting my hands out to grab what I could see. The employee looked at me like I was crazy LOL And I kept at it for about ten minutes, moving stuff off the cart so I could see better, making the employee mad because I had put a ponyville house in the boys section... You would think it was Black Friday at Walmart with the way I was acting (no one else was even looking at the cart!).

I did find three different Ponyville shops (they were in bad shape, so I passed on those), but I did find 2 G3's, 2 G4's, and Rarity's train car for under $4.

Please tell me I'm not alone! Give me your best "thrift store Olympics" story 

[SunPony]

Heh heh, I'm sure people were amused by your pony hunting!  Sometimes I feel weird rooting around in the toys, but I can't resist    Sounds like you had some success at least!   I guess my thrift store olympic events are more like how-many-different-thrift-stores-can-you-hit-in-one-day!  And yeah, I almost never find any either...

[octocorn]

I usually feel like a spectator, you know when you get to the thrift store and there's someone in front of the item you're looking at from across the room and they pick it up and you're holding your breath hoping they'll set it down?  Not many thrift stores around here carry toys anymore, it makes me sad!

[PinkiePosh]

I never find ponies at thrift stores! :'c

[Thunderwing]

I find vintage stuff in the weirdest places - a near mint Swiftheart Rabbit - bagged up and labelled 'dog toys'.  Maybe because they are old and don't meet current safety standards they get relegated there?

[Karma]

I just finished cleaning some of my g3 ish pony furniture... Ferris wheel, a little house with a rainbow... I got them at a thrift store I think I've found three g1 a couple of g3s and a lot of fakies. I also found a kitty once, but I was off that day (I usually go to thrift stores after doctor appointments too! I just happen to have three a week xD) So I didn't adopt her.
My parents make sort of a game of it now, where we look under all of the other toys to see who finds the best pony.
I think my best is a G1 Sky Rocket whose tinsel is in amazing shape for being as old as I am!

[Ledbyrd]

I actually started collecting ponies because I found a bunch by chance at a local thrift store. Once I found a bag of 3 G1 so soft ponies for $2.99! They were kind of stinky and yellowed but actually cleaned up quite nicely.

Anyway, now that I am a "collector" I keep going back there once a week and wouldn't you know it...no ponies I will still keep checking though. I have to keep hoping my pony luck will turn around  

[honestjonstoys]

The new arrivals cart is the best place to shop.  Last week at Savers I found a Lily Lightly in her lobster dress, a Thistle Whistle, a couple of blind bag ponies and some Mcdonald's ponies.
 I also got the new Pony Friends Forever 10 pony set at TRU, With Celestia, Luna, Dr. Hooves, DJ-pon3, Octavia, and the Cakes

[ooizza]

My best thrift store story is when I found about 14 bags of G1 ponies! There was a woman in the section looking at boys toys and when I saw the first bag I gasped! Then I saw another and gasped again. With each bag I gasped again. I kept piling the bags up in my arms and under my chin! At some point I recall her looking over at me with a weird look on her face partially because of the noise I kept making and partially because my arms were overflowing with bags. My husband didn't respond to me willing him to show up from the other side of the store  so I had to carefully walk to the area with the carts. I'm sure I looked like a maniac with all the grinning that was going on. Whatever, I was excited 

[Mermaid]

I've got a good one!

A loooong time ago, back when my local goodwill had toys (2003) I was digging through the toy bins and had found 2 g1s: a te whizzer, and a pearly baby beach comber. when suddenly a lady came up next to me holding a flutter morning glory. We made eye contact and just started viciously digging. I came out with the two I had found, a sea shell, a ss hippity hop, 2 shs, and a Taf sweet tooth. She came up with a baby clipper, masquerade, a birth flower, baby stockings, and a winger high flier.

We both were panting and panicked. I started laughing and she scowled and asked me what I planned to do with the ponies. I told her I collected. She then explained to me that these were really valuable and that she went around to thrifts and flea markets picking them up and selling them on ebay. She then offered to buy the ponies from me for double their price sticker (.25) yeah right! And when I refused her offer, she asked me if I wanted to buy the ponies off her for $35 a piece. Yeah right!

We both scowled and double checked our bins, when I found a glow and show happy glow and a baby ballerina. She had obviously had it up to here with me. She proceeded to yell at me saying I was taking her ponies and business away. I laughed her off and walked towards the shelfs where I picked up a lone firefly that I had spotted behind her. I then smiled at her and went along my merry way.

She was so mean! I was super jealous of her clipper though!

But there you guys go! My one and only Olympic pony story, and one of my largest finds at a thrift store. I still get a kick out of it today, thinking of her scowling, disapproving face!

[shimmlight]

One time I was in a charity shop and I was pony hunting. I couldn't see any and was about to leave, but then I saw a small basket on the shelf which was out of sight. I reached up and put my hand into the basket, and felt HAIR! So I pulled it out and voila, it was a g3 pony   

[nessy_86]

I've got a good one!

A loooong time ago, back when my local goodwill had toys (2003) I was digging through the toy bins and had found 2 g1s: a te whizzer, and a pearly baby beach comber. when suddenly a lady came up next to me holding a flutter morning glory. We made eye contact and just started viciously digging. I came out with the two I had found, a sea shell, a ss hippity hop, 2 shs, and a Taf sweet tooth. She came up with a baby clipper, masquerade, a birth flower, baby stockings, and a winger high flier.

We both were panting and panicked. I started laughing and she scowled and asked me what I planned to do with the ponies. I told her I collected. She then explained to me that these were really valuable and that she went around to thrifts and flea markets picking them up and selling them on ebay. She then offered to buy the ponies from me for double their price sticker (.25) yeah right! And when I refused her offer, she asked me if I wanted to buy the ponies off her for $35 a piece. Yeah right!

We both scowled and double checked our bins, when I found a glow and show happy glow and a baby ballerina. She had obviously had it up to here with me. She proceeded to yell at me saying I was taking her ponies and business away. I laughed her off and walked towards the shelfs where I picked up a lone firefly that I had spotted behind her. I then smiled at her and went along my merry way.

She was so mean! I was super jealous of her clipper though!

But there you guys go! My one and only Olympic pony story, and one of my largest finds at a thrift store. I still get a kick out of it today, thinking of her scowling, disapproving face!

That is crazy! I can't believe she tried to sell those ponies to you for $35 and then yelled at you! I would have done the same thing as you... grin and walk away! Funny story

[reanna-mator]

I've got a good one!

A loooong time ago, back when my local goodwill had toys (2003) I was digging through the toy bins and had found 2 g1s: a te whizzer, and a pearly baby beach comber. when suddenly a lady came up next to me holding a flutter morning glory. We made eye contact and just started viciously digging. I came out with the two I had found, a sea shell, a ss hippity hop, 2 shs, and a Taf sweet tooth. She came up with a baby clipper, masquerade, a birth flower, baby stockings, and a winger high flier.

We both were panting and panicked. I started laughing and she scowled and asked me what I planned to do with the ponies. I told her I collected. She then explained to me that these were really valuable and that she went around to thrifts and flea markets picking them up and selling them on ebay. She then offered to buy the ponies from me for double their price sticker (.25) yeah right! And when I refused her offer, she asked me if I wanted to buy the ponies off her for $35 a piece. Yeah right!

We both scowled and double checked our bins, when I found a glow and show happy glow and a baby ballerina. She had obviously had it up to here with me. She proceeded to yell at me saying I was taking her ponies and business away. I laughed her off and walked towards the shelfs where I picked up a lone firefly that I had spotted behind her. I then smiled at her and went along my merry way.

She was so mean! I was super jealous of her clipper though!

But there you guys go! My one and only Olympic pony story, and one of my largest finds at a thrift store. I still get a kick out of it today, thinking of her scowling, disapproving face!

Oh wow. O_o Some people. I feel like if she was really a collector she would have been a much better sport about it. As it was she was just being selfish!

I don't have any particularly amusing stories, I'm afraid. I have had some awesome thrift store finds though and I'm constantly nervous that I'll get harassed by someone for some reason. I do know that resellers frequent my favorite thrift store, so I do have competition.

[Haruna]

My best thrift store story is when I found about 14 bags of G1 ponies! There was a woman in the section looking at boys toys and when I saw the first bag I gasped! Then I saw another and gasped again. With each bag I gasped again. I kept piling the bags up in my arms and under my chin! At some point I recall her looking over at me with a weird look on her face partially because of the noise I kept making and partially because my arms were overflowing with bags. My husband didn't respond to me willing him to show up from the other side of the store  so I had to carefully walk to the area with the carts. I'm sure I looked like a maniac with all the grinning that was going on. Whatever, I was excited 

Oooh, nice!

I've got a good one!

A loooong time ago, back when my local goodwill had toys (2003) I was digging through the toy bins and had found 2 g1s: a te whizzer, and a pearly baby beach comber. when suddenly a lady came up next to me holding a flutter morning glory. We made eye contact and just started viciously digging. I came out with the two I had found, a sea shell, a ss hippity hop, 2 shs, and a Taf sweet tooth. She came up with a baby clipper, masquerade, a birth flower, baby stockings, and a winger high flier.

We both were panting and panicked. I started laughing and she scowled and asked me what I planned to do with the ponies. I told her I collected. She then explained to me that these were really valuable and that she went around to thrifts and flea markets picking them up and selling them on ebay. She then offered to buy the ponies from me for double their price sticker (.25) yeah right! And when I refused her offer, she asked me if I wanted to buy the ponies off her for $35 a piece. Yeah right!

We both scowled and double checked our bins, when I found a glow and show happy glow and a baby ballerina. She had obviously had it up to here with me. She proceeded to yell at me saying I was taking her ponies and business away. I laughed her off and walked towards the shelfs where I picked up a lone firefly that I had spotted behind her. I then smiled at her and went along my merry way.

She was so mean! I was super jealous of her clipper though!

But there you guys go! My one and only Olympic pony story, and one of my largest finds at a thrift store. I still get a kick out of it today, thinking of her scowling, disapproving face!

lol! Definitely not a nice, or reasonable, lady. 50 cents versus $35??

I don't have a thrift store olympics story of my own, but my mom has one. She randomly wandered to the toy aisle in a little thrift shop one day and saw two baskets of G1 ponies. There was a guy there, lingering, but once he left (thankfully) mom started pulling them out in piles and then dragging them to the check-out counter until she had a group of about 40. Then the cashier was talking to her about ponies, and said that yeah, she wasn't sure how to price them but was going to do $1 for the big ones and .50 for the little ones. The cashier looked on Ebay on her phone and was marveling at how much they actually go for. Thankfully mom just had to pay the lady's original $1 and .50 prices. So now when we go there the ponies (only ever found a G3 since) are $2, and probably more if there were ever G1s. But at least my mom got a great haul that day!

I've once or twice seen garage sales on Craigslist (out of my vicinity, unfortunately) for MLPs exclusively (!) or eighties toys. I think if I ever went to one of those it would be garage sale olympics for me! It actually sounds pretty stressful. I wouldn't want to make other people sad or see other people carrying away the ponies I wanted! So it's probably better I haven't been able to get to one of those.

[Sprinklecupcake]

You are NOT alone!

I am a thrift-store junkie. I LOVE to look for old toys locally nstead of tryng to fight for them in online auctions. Every week I go out in the middle of the week to the plaza thrift shopping center and hunt for toys! My local thrift store like to take lots of toys and stuff them into clear bags for sale. Once they divided up some G3 and G4s into a bag including a taking celestia for $3 and I ran over to get it before this teenage couple could see it!!! Theres like these 'saloon doors' in the back where yu can see them process the toys and clothes out and I see a whole bin of toys and just state through!.0_____o waiting for them to bring some out! LOL!

Last week at the flea market I ran over, snuck past a ton of people, and dove myself at a booth of neopets, pokemon, and disney plushies from the 90s-early early 2000s! I also ran when I saw another booth of dolls! I go kinda crazy sometimes. Today..... I go out again into the wild!