thrift shops - hamilton & burlington

Another short post. Need to make supper, plus it is Sunday.

First, compared to Ottawa, the thrift shops in Hamilton and Burlington are left wanting. To be fair, I have not hit every single one, but most of them and there is a general trend. That being said, the thrift shops are better in Burlington than Hamilton. Plus with Burlington, there are six of them in an easy to do loop. And, you can hit Sail and Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) if you like quite easily.

Hawaiian shirts are way over priced in Hamilton, and they are generally not genuine ones, so to me, really overpriced. Burlington has more reasonable pricing on them and more of them too.

As to housewares, if you are in to a lot of glass, Hamilton is your town. If you want decent pots and pans, it seems to be Burlington. I came across a couple of really good stainless steel stock pots, but they had no lids. Otherwise, they would be sitting in the back of my truck right now.

There is one gem in Hamilton. It is not so much of a thrift shop as it is a vintage shop. His prices are better than other vintage shops I have been to. The store is Deja Vu. I got a bit of a bargain there. I went in and found what I thought were early Vietnam or post Korea US military field pants. 

They looked like paratrooper jump pants. 25 bones plus tax. They could use a bit of stitching at the bottom hem of the pant legs, but it is not critical. When I got them back to my friend's place, I took a closer look at them. They are not military, but they were good enough to fool me. High quality fabric, high quality construction, they even have buttons for suspenders.

The best part of it, some guy was in the day before and thought they were too expensive and said he would come back in a couple of days to look at them again. Too bad sucker! I have them now. Even for a civilian copy, they were a deal, especially considering the high quality of the fabric and construction and attention to detail. They will be great for hiking.

If you are ever in the area, I recommend checking out Deja Vu. Free street parking around the corner too, great for a cheapskate like me. He has a lot in there, even leather jackets and some vintage college leather which I hear is all the rage in Japan. I was probably in there last about fifteen--twenty years ago. The place has been open for thirty-three years and is still run by the same person, Louie (sp.?).

That is it for me, time to fry up some onions, mushrooms, and Italian sausage for pasta tonight.

Cheers!