How To Buy Flatware Blog 2017

Well the season that most of us have been preparing for is here!

It's entertaining season!

I hope you have been visiting Goodwill and scooping up various items to help make your gatherings a lot less stressful and less expensive. If you haven't started, no need to worry. I have just the thing to get you in gear!

I admit it…I have a lot of flatware. I don't just buy random forks and knives, but I do buy them if they are unique and if there is a lot of them. Seeing that I just took out the sideboard in my dining room to make room for captain chairs, I need to make sure I have enough utensils for everyone (and in my case matching utensils).

I was at Goodwill on Friday browsing through the aisles, not thinking I would find any gems at this particular store. This Goodwill is located in an expensive part of the city, but the bargains get swooped up rather quickly. As I walked down one aisle, I didn't see much. After grabbing a handful of vintage ties, I headed back to the bric-a-brac section where I spotted 64 matching pieces of flatware!

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They were all just sitting there and I couldn't leave them behind. I don't score as many complete sets of flatware as I did back in the day, however, I want to give you a few tips on how to get great flatware from Goodwill.

1. Buy As Many As You Can.

If you are like me, you are bound to lose pieces to your flatware set, so buying extras is always a good idea, when a few pieces become missing. The forks, knives and spoons are all 29 cents each so it's even cheaper than Dollar Tree!

2. Take Your Time. Get it All.

Unless you get very lucky and each piece is held together by a rubber band, you may need to dig and dig to find all of your matching pieces. Oftentimes in Goodwill or any thrift store, the associates will just toss them in to a huge bin with other loose flatware. Although it may take time to find them all, you can score big if there are a lot of pieces.

You can also score big if it is a really interesting set Goodwill has marked it as a special set and has it in the glass case. You may pay more, but you won't have to dig and dig to find all of the pieces.

3. Buy What You Need.

I just cleaned out my dishes. I have been buying beautiful dishes for years and I finally took time to donate the ones I have used back to Goodwill. Although the savings are unbeatable, don't buy more than what you will need, because they will often sit and go unused.

4. Buy The Best.

People donate all kinds of flatware. Some of them are basic and others are really nice. You never know if a really nice set will be there, but I can pretty much guarantee at some point there will be a nice set. So if you have the time, wait and buy something really nice. After all, they will probably be the same price as the basic ones.

I want to add that I never look for markings on my flatware. I am not buying flatware to resell, I am buying them to use for gatherings and possibly intimate dinner events.

Do you have any tips to add for picking up flatware at Goodwill?