Summer is the perfect time for road trips to bizarre places you normally wouldn't go to, like Reno. In my opinion, Reno is a smaller and cheaper version of Las Vegas, yet it somehow still manages to preserve all the superficiality Las Vegas entails. However, I guess my preconceived notions of Reno as a tourist death trap were not all that accurate, seeing how the less comercialized areas are actually pretty great. My parents and I went around to various thrift stores in Reno because I convinced them the malls did not sound all that appealing. Who wants to go to mall stores when you can go to them anywhere?
The thrift shops in Reno were like candy stores for me, vintage items everywhere at affordable prices. I've long given up upon shopping at the vintage boutiques and thrift stores in SF because of the outrageously overpriced items. So to cope, I normally thrift at the Goodwill's and Salvation Army's, and resort to digging through all the rubble to find my own vintage items, or for that matter, anything to my liking. Unfortunately, most of the clothing selections are either from the reject corners of people's closets, or store brand clothing (such as Forever 21, Ann Taylor, H&M, Banana Republic, etc) that were in style 2 seasons ago. However, in Reno it's a completely different story. Vintage items were found in every corner, from old school stereosets, to vintage sewing kits, to the 1850's Sprite Centenial Collection, to vintage wedding dresses, to even vintage smoking pipes. There are also special sections in certain stores that have "bargin bins", in which you can buy a pound of goods for $1.25. This was where I found my Type 600 Polaroid film for $0.25, which I'm so happy about.
For the most part, I didn't buy a whole lot. I spent a majority of my time gawking and drooling over all the amazingly beautiful pieces of history that made me wonder what amazing stories they have witnessed. But I did manage to walk away with a new collection of mason jars for $0.30 a piece, a new picnic basket for $7, Type 600 Polaroid Film for $0.25, vintage overalls for $2.00, vintage U.S. Navy jacket for $3.50, vintage denim floral romper for $6. I would call this trip quite a success!
