Have you ever found a doll at a thrift store?

Sadly no BJDs, but I've gotten tons of deals on vintage and antique dolls over the years. Probably the best was a 1920s boudoir doll I bought for $5 and sold for $300.

What helps with online doll bargain-hunting, I find, is searching for keywords that people who know nothing about dolls might use. "Old doll," "jointed doll," "articulated doll," etc. I even try "creepy doll," "scary doll," and "haunted doll," since almost all haunted doll listings online are fake (even if you DO believe in ghosts, like me). You'll have to wade through a lot of irrelevant hits, but you can find amazing deals like that.

 

I shopped at charity shops all the time before COVID. A few months ago, a lot of dolls that came in my local shop (and I mean, A LOT, like perhaps 200), perhaps because a collector passed away. Unfortunately, I did not take a liking to any of them and I saw no BJDs among them. There was no props either. So I did not buy anything, but it was very impressive to see!

I found several props for my dolls, plushies, a medieval guitar (in French we call it a mandoline), some cutlery...

But my greatest finds are an antique furniture set (a sofa and two armchairs in what appears to be cherry wood and red velvet) just slightly too big for my SD-13 and a toy hand cranked sewing machine from the 70s.

 

I am pretty sure I saw one when I was a lot younger. She was on display and I remember that I asked my mom if I could have the big bald barbie. The answer was no. I cannot remember the price.

 

I haven't found one at a thrift store, but in July 2018 I did find two in a consignment shop. A male SD sized doll for $150 and a Doll Chateau Elizabeth spider version for $300. I took photos, but both were of questionable authenticity so I won't post them. Neither had boxes and the description on the sales tags were super vague. I seriously hope whoever bought them (if they even sold) looked into them a little more for those prices. Elizabeth seriously freaked out everyone I was with though!

As for haunted dolls, I will be haunting my Bluefairy Sarang when I die, so don't buy her in a thrift store if you're not ready to take on that responsibility.

 

I found a Volks Miku in a violin case on Shop Goodwill, but her price was too high for me to even think about bidding on.

I have however found Ai BJDs at Tuesday Morning. They're off topic but still a pretty cool find.

 

I have become one of these mythical creatures by proxy.

I work for <unspecified brand name charity shop>. They have both Ebay accounts for some of their larger area stores, and their own Ebay-style site. A few years ago, one of their big Ebay accounts got a pile of old Soom dolls- some other brands too. They had all the classics: Amber, Beryl, Saiph, and Cuprit, just to name a few. About twelve dolls in all. I wanted to bid, but didn't have the money. But I still would check the company auction site once in a while.

Fast forward to now. This thread had new posts, and I was reminded to check the auction site. Lo and behold, they had a fullset Kuroshitsuji Ciel Circus version by IOS, sitting at a comfortable $167. I didn't get my hopes up, but I stalked his auction.

I just won for a steal.

He appears to be missing his demon contract eye, which is a shame, but the rest of the set is intact, box and all. It's surreal. I'm kicking myself a bit. I didn't need him, and I might just resell him. But I couldn't let the opportunity go. I haven't seen any posts about a missing Ciel. I'll even be able to replace the eye via Ersa Flora if it is gone.

I still hope I'll find a cool legit doll or body at thrift one day and be able to nab it, but this is great too. Never would have expected it. I've only bid on two other auctions on that site. Might have to check it out more often.

 

I've never found a bjd at a thrift store sadly, but tons of off-topic dolls and doll clothes. I have harvested clothes a lot of doll clothes in thrift stores, and even though they are sometimes a hair too big I can just adjust the size. But I still hope one day I can find a bjd at a thrift store!

 

As I started getting in the hobby more I did goto a couple thrift stores, however I think (at least in my area) that stuff just gets sold online now.

 

Yes and very recently! It was so shocking because I'd had literal dreams about it but never thought it would really happen.
It was actually at a local used bookstore chain, which also carries movies, music, games, collectibles and any random things that people sell them. There was an airbrushed Camellia Dynasty Sage and an Ai doll in a glass case near the comics and tabletop games section.

While researching the Camellia Dynasty doll I found a WorthPoint listing for that *exact* doll, which I guess had been sold on eBay at one point (secondhand, she is authentic), and it turned out she'd been airbrushed by AngelToast (she was originally white resin but is now a kind of pastel rainbow, I have made a doll profile for her on here if you want to see, her name is Opal!). She also had her original box and everything.... and she was $28. Literally unreal!!! Of course I bought her ASAP once I checked her and her box out.

I left the Ai doll at first because I actually didn't recognize her and I wanted to double check and see what kind of doll she was, but I went back for her the next day. She was around $20, and had an outfit and wig (not original). I feel so lucky to have found them there, it was just amazing!!! On top of that I always wanted a Camellia Dynasty Sage, I came close to buying one at a con once but didn't end up doing it.

I'm sending all of you good vibes and good luck to find a BJD in the wild someday too!!

OMG, sorry to respond to such an old post but Bookman's is where I found my Camellia Dynasty Sage and an Ai doll, which I just posted about here before I saw this reply! Bookmans is blessed I guess!

 

I haven't but a friend's sister found some Obitsu/Azone dolls I think. I really want to find props or furniture or even clothes. I should check our 2nd & Charles because I have found some OT stuff there before. But I am also not actively looking to acquire more so hmmm

 

I have yet to find anything at a thrift store that is BJD related unfourtunatly

 

I picked up an MSD sized body from a local thrift shop not long ago, actually! It was around $15, unstrung in a plastic bag without a head. This is the second time I've found a BJD there, the first time was over a year ago iirc? And that one was a full Resinsoul doll! I used to go there pretty often pre-plague times, but there's not often doll stuff there at all so it's definitely either a hit or miss, but when it hits you strike gold, apparently! I've got a huge collection of floating heads, so a new body is always welcome (even if I have to string it myself, which is quite possibly my least favourite thing in the world to do). I never manage to find any clothes that would actually fit my dolls at thrift stores, so it's lucky I also found a good sewing machine while there.

I've seen a few dolls on the goodwill website, that you can normally get a good discount on if you're lucky, but I always forget to actually keep an eye on the auctions, oops. I'd love to add more RS dolls to my collection since they're such pretty sculpts, so I keep an eye out for them, but it always slips my mind when I actually find any. Worth noting, I think.

 

Yes. There is one sitting in the window of a thrift store a few blocks from my apartment in Korea. I want to rescue the poor thing sooo bad. Unfortunately, the store is NEVER open. I've even called twice to ask in my best Korean and got vague answers about how they're only open some mornings. Someone is moving her though. I work mornings, but I will keep trying my luck on weekends. Hopefully she shall be mine one day.

 

I recently found a 17 inch clawdeen wolf with all her accessories. Not a bjd but one of my rarest finds XD
I also have gotten so many msd chairs from thrift stores! I’m a secret doll chair collector XD

 

Not a thrift store, but many years ago helping my grandma at the local doll collector's club (primarily antique dolls, porcelain, etc. Demographic skewed towards the elderly) found someone selling two BJDs and scored them both for $200. One was a 1/3 boy who I only recently traded for a body for my Switch Taerin head, and the other was a 5stardoll 1/4 girl who I ended up selling for about $350 or so? I still have the outfit from her. Overall the best surprise find I've had so far!

 

Yes, I found a doll in a thrift store but it is not considered a BJD. It is just a 60cm jointed doll made of plastic but it wasn't an actual resin BJD. Still worth it though.

 

Wasn't me who found it, but my mom not knowing what it was picked up a still in box pullip doll! I still have her but she's in rough shape, I'm hoping to give her a new face up and a new style!