What The Thrift!? The Knock-Off Doll Head Edition.

Welcome to the first installment of What The Thrift!? the Let's Go Thrifting full-coverage report on found oddities, knock-offs, strange sightings and all things thrift that just make you go, "huh?" 

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We lucky offspring of the 80's remember the fanaticism surrounding Cabbage Patch dolls. Those cute-as-a-button faces and manageable manes of yarn were all the craze. Be it the questionable inclusion of Preemies that were plucked from the Xavier Roberts' patch a tad too early, or the rambunctious older lot of the Cabbage Patch Kids, those dolls were "adopted" right off the shelves quicker than you can say Child Protective Services. 

Yeah, you know the Cabbage Patch. But have you met... the "Foster Children?"

Don't want a disembodied knock-off Cabbage head? Oh but I bet you would...if you were guilted by the reminder that this cellophane-wrapped soul is in fact a "Foster Child." Though I suppose the company could have done worse and simply called their wares Bastard in a Box.     

What the thrift!? 

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What the Thrift!? is also linking up with "WTF Tuesday" at Sir Thrift A Lot. Check it out! 

These Doll Heads Are How Much?

While grazing the aisles of my local Goodwill in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, I can’t help but wonder the many intricacies of thrift store pricing. That bejeweled Golden Girls style sweater is $4. So is that 1992 edition of Monopoly, regardless it is missing more than a few plastic houses and hotels. So who is deciding the monetary value of these goods? Is there a pricing guide somewhere that calculates the cost? Or is this completely arbitrary?
The world may never know the mysteries of the thrift store stockroom. We certainly know little of the previous owners, short of the occasional initials or gift inscriptions. One thing we do know…know damn well… is a good find. That perfect item that strikes the  balance between our personal value in how much we’re willing to spend and the actual cost. It may be different for everyone. A limited edition comic book, a vintage Barbie, the perfect floral print grandma sweater. We all have our ‘This is it’ moment now and then.
I’ve had several. And I intend to share those moments here on Let’s Go Thrifting. But I have much more to offer than my thrift store acquisitions. I have my wit. My wisdom. My unique insight into the socioeconomic benefits and leisurely pursuits of secondhand shopping.
Also, doll heads.

I have photos of doll heads. Doll heads affordably priced at 97 cents, albeit. But doll heads. Arranged neatly in rows, no less. And this is a sight that begs several questions:

• Who donated these and why?
• Who is buying them?
• For what purpose?

But this isn’t the end of my disembodied plastic encounter. Interestingly enough, two weeks later, at another Goodwill some 30 miles west of the prior thrift store, I stumbled upon these.

More doll heads! Okay…so… discuss:

• Is there some kind of donate-a-doll-head-pledge-drive that I didn’t hear about?
• What exactly is the demand for thrifted doll heads?
• And just how are these doll heads arbitrarily priced from $1.90 and $3.00, compared to the 97 cents from a neighboring Goodwill?

Ah, thrift stores. You house so many, many weird and wonderful artifacts. Your dutiful employees are so adept at pricing seemingly useless items that someone, somewhere will surely buy. Myself included.