Sunday, July 24, 2011

The Treasure of A Thrift Store Find

My sisters live about 200 miles north of me, which means every 6 weeks or so I hop in the car and go for a visit. It's a drive mostly through farmland with a few cities scattered here and there.  Since I'm always hunting for odd bits and pieces to be recycled into jewelry, I stop at the tag sales and thrift stores I find along the way.  Even if I don't find any cool buttons or bits to add to my stash, I enjoy looking and the conversation with shop owners.

One of my sisters lives in the small town of Au Gres, Michigan.  This town boasts a single stoplight, grocery store, a couple of bars, a few restaurants and several churches.  It's small but charming, especially since it sits just off of beautiful Lake Huron.  It might have  1,000 people if you count the outlying farms.  In the summer, we'll often go "into town" to the ice cream shop.  This place is in a 100+ year old wood building and serves huge, delicious scoops of ice cream  in homemade waffle cones.  Yum!  That used to be the highlight of going into town, but now there is something more.

Castaways Thrift Store
A thrift shop by the name of Castaways has opened.  The first time I saw it, I immediately thought "Pirates!  Treasure!"  Turned out I was right as it's an absolute treasure trove of odds and ends at fantastic prices.  You name it and you're liable to find it.  I've gotten books for a quarter, jars of buttons and even a marked sterling silver ring for $5!  Plus, (even better in my opinion)  the place is run by a couple of women who are friendly and pleasant.  No matter how busy, they'll still make you feel welcome.  So, if you're ever in the Au Gres area, stop in at Castaway and then go down the street and get an ice cream!

Oh, should you want to see more of what life's like in beautiful Au Gres, check out their Facebook page: 

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001351557917

4 comments:

  1. What fun! I love finding new shopping spots to find treasure :)

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  2. So do I! Wish this store was closer as they always have nice stuff, it's clean and well organized.

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  3. We also have family in remote areas of Michigan and we love to go visit them. It's so nice to visit and see all the charm of small towns.

    If they sell homemade waffle cones, then it's my kind of place!

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  4. Homemade waffle cones with huge scoops of ice cream. My favorite is the Brownie Nut Fudge - milk chocolate ice cream, chunks of brownies, walnuts and lots of swirls of soft caramel. Yum!

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