Unique Thrift - Irving Park
- ashleyposkin
- May 7, 2017
- 4 min read
Unique Elston
3748 N Elston Ave
Chicago, IL 60618
(773) 279-0850
Hours: Monday: 6am-9pm, Tue-Sat: 9am-9pm, Sun: 10am-7pm
Parking: Medium sized lot and street parking (don't expect to park in the lot on Mondays -and don't park in front of the Laundry mat or you'll be towed!)
In the 'About' section I talk a little about how we arrived here in Chicago a few months ago. Little did I know we'd moved so close to some of the most prime thrift shopping in the city. Shortly after we arrived, my friend Elaine and I met up at the Unique on Elston, on a Monday. If you've ever been to a Unique (owned and operated by Savers), you already know the significance of this. If not, let me educate you: Monday's at Unique are half price day. All Chicago stores open at 6:00 a.m. and stay open until 9 p.m. I have yet to actually go right when the store opens, but it's on my bucket list. I'll definitely update this post once I do. Anyway, we hit that store so hard. I spent $30 and came home with some really prime stuff -mostly kids clothing and books. The previous week Elaine scored a pair of hardly worn, super cute Sorel boots for herself, and Bogs for her boys.
I scored this pristine OshKosh navy polka dot trench for Weezy for $2, along with this adorable PJ top that she wears with cuffed jeans (as one would) for $1. Holla!
In the way of books, I picked up a bunch of MLK books for my hubby, and a few other political books I knew he'd like. Hot tip: Keep a list on your phone of authors you're looking for so you can recall it as you peruse the aisles. Unique has a great little "buy four get the fifth free" program, so always keep that in mind when you're shopping the (very well organized) book section. Oh! I also picked up a copy of "See San Francisco" by Victoria Smith of SF GIRL BY BAY -which I feel kind of weird about because I actually wanted to buy the book from her. But I guess someone already did. So theres that. It's so gorgeous and beautiful and I love it so so much. PS guys- keep an eye out for amazing art and coffee table books at thrift stores. They can be pricey if purchased new, but you can pick them up for a fraction of the original price if you buy them used. I love to keep an eye out for super colorful books for my bookshelves. Big, chunky books are fantastic to decorate with. And READ.
I hit the store up today to see if I couldn't better define what I like about it, and this was my takeaway:
Strength: It's book selection is fantastic -and I mean FREAKING fantastic. You want classics? Political books? Novels? Poetry? Books on gardening, cooking, woodworking?? You can find everything here. And whoever is in charge of organizing is doing it right. It may not be the Dewey Decimal System, but it makes sense. Yesterday we picked up books by Cornel West, Chuck Palahniuk, C.S. Lewis, and Malcom X, and one of those amazing "The Family Creative Workshop" books on embroidery. If you're counting, yes, that's 5 books, 4 of which we paid for, 1 came home with us for free.
Weakness: Definitely the furniture section. The furniture is always really dirty, like, you need to wash your hands after handling it (maybe it's because they have to store it outside because they've run out of room inside? Who knows.) and it's always tossed everywhere in the middle of the aisles. Either way, I'm sure it's just really difficult to keep up with that section no matter how organized you try to be. I've always come across a few really great little gems there, and if you know thrift stores- you know that disorganization usually works in the customers favor. If you're willing to get your hands dirty you can usually find great stuff for really cheap.
Clothing: Super easy to shop, actually organized by size, and then by cut: short sleeve, long sleeve, knits, jackets, sweaters etc. I've had great luck in the children's and women's section, men's clothing has been so-so. Priced very moderately.
Shoes & Accessories: I feel like every time I go I find a pair of insanely cute Converse baby shoes for Louisa. Other than that I don't really look for shoes in my size. The selection of womens 8.5-9's is pretty slim. If you're a 6.5-7 then definitely check out the shoes! They have a fantastic boot selection which they display on boot hangers -so they aren't all sad looking and flopped over on the shelves. Shoes are reasonably priced, the most I've ever seen a pair go for is $16.99.
Housewares: They always have great stuff. I brought home a cute little brass lotus flower candle holder the other day. I paid $2.99, looked it up online after I got home and saw that they're listed on Etsy for $65+. I don't intend to resell it- I just like to look up the value to see how big of a deal I got. Does anyone else do this?! Am I the only crazy one? If you need cups or glasses this is the place! Really cute vintage and newer modern stuff. All pieces are priced individually but if there is more than one in a set they are all placed next to each other so they are easy to find. Need bookends? I always find really fun bookends here.
Linnens: Fab linnens. I always check out this section because I'm a sucker for vintage tablecloths. Moderately priced, bring home pretty much anything in that section for under $5.
*Stroller friendly, carts w/ safety buckles available in store.
Overall, this place is really well organized, has really friendly and helpful staff, and sells stuff like crazy -so don't ever expect something to be there after you walk away. Go on Monday for great deals, go on Saturday evening if you want the store to yourself!
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