Tour de Thrift – Stage 6

The weekend weather  report called for showers and cloudy skies. A perfect forecast for hitting some new thrift stores.  We headed west on route 17 and then north on route 32 through Windsor and past China lake to visit the Waterville, Maine area. Even with the overcast skies the drive was scenic and we managed to even find a few yard sales along the way.

Shop #1
Waterville Goodwill Store
10 Concourse West
Waterville, ME 04901
(207)-877-0673
Map
Hours: 9:00am – 8:00pm
*Restrooms available 

Waterville, Maine is home to Colby and Thomas college. The downtown has some shops and restaurants and of course a great Goodwill store!  The Waterville Goodwill store is smaller than our local store, in Rockland but, WOW! we found some great stuff during our visit. As usual the folks working there were fun to chat with and very helpful with directions and local information. I must have circled the store 3 or 4 times, every aisle had something I wanted! After taking a month off from visiting any new thrifts stores I was like a kid in a candy store.

Favorite Finds:

*Google Map Photo

Shop #2
Ken-A-Set
SKILLS Thrift Shop
1 College Avenue
Waterville, ME 04901
(207) 873-3932
Map
Hours:  Mon. – Sat. 9:00am – 6:00pm

We stumbled on this shop after leaving Goodwill as we were headed up College street on our way to find the Salvation Army store. Ken-A-Set/Skills thrift store is at the intersection of Elm, Main and College Streets. Located right next door to the Waterville Fire Department in an old brick building, reminiscent of an old department store. *Note- Google maps thinks the address for the Skills thrift store is much further north on College street so I used the fire department address for the map link.  SKILLS is a non-profit organization which provides a variety of community-based businesses designed to employ and/or train individuals with developmental disabilities.  This store was busy and although a bit dark and old inside we once again managed to find some great bargains. We found a great vintage chair for $3.99, that with a little love can find new life. For the low, low price of $5.00 a large grey metal shelf from a local bank, was destined to come home with us ! It’s already being put to use, loaded with books in our office space.

Favorite Finds:
 

Shop #3
Salvation Army
184 College Ave.
Waterville, ME 04901
(207) 680-2531
Hours: Wed.-Sat 9:00am – 4:00pm
Sunday closed

The Salvation Army Family Store is a short drive north on College Avenue. This was by far the largest store we visited with some very unique items. The antique organ pictured was only$40.00! As tempting as the organ was we had already packed our car full so we had to leave it behind.

The size of the store and the amount of inventory requires a bit more time to check out but after sifting through some piles we found one or two things to bring home.

After several hours of thrift shopping and finding so many good bargains we decided to head downtown for lunch. Since we had never been to Waterville and didn’t know our way around I used my handy dandy iPhone app, Yelp to find a place to eat. We ended up at Thai Bistro 147 Main Street, Waterville, Maine 04901 Tel: 207-872-2200

They received several good reviews on Yelp and the reviews were correct. The food was good and not too expensive and the service was fast and very friendly.

Next time we’re in town we will have to explore the other restaurants and shops on Main street.

Yard Sale Finds 

Now that summer is almost here every weekend brings many, many yard sales to visit. The local paper and Craig’s list provide a good place to start. We got very lucky at a few yard sales on our way north during this stage of the Tour de Thrift.

Best Finds:

 We found another vintage green metal typewriter stand with a lamp, just like our other one. It’s a little beat up and doesn’t have the sides but the light works!  The old wooden blanket chest is missing a lid, but my very talented (professional cabinetmaker) husband can fix that and make it look as charming as ever.  A great bargain at $5.00!

If you are ever traveling near Waterville, Maine I would recommend a visit to any or all three of the thrifts stores mentioned above. Hopefully, you’ll get lucky and find some treasures to bring home. Be sure to have room in your car or better yet bring a truck cause you never know what you will be bringing home.

Let me know if you find something good!