Is there anything more perfect than a beloved piece of decor, furniture or even clothing that its owner got “for a song”? The Keys has a thriving “reduce, reuse, recycle” market and few outlets to satisfy the demands. We haunt resale shops, yard sales and estate sales and charity shops. Who wants to drive to the mainland for a new coffee pot? Who can bear to throw away a beautiful handmade quilt?
(By the way, the Keys have many lovely antique shops and consignment shops in the Keys, but not the kind where there’s an underpriced bargain to be found; they’re not on this list.)
Salvation Army
Salvation Army has three stores in the Florida Keys — Key West, Big Pine Key and Key Largo. Expect to sort through A LOT of stuff. The stores carry clothes and accessories, furniture, small appliances, construction odds and ends, frames, lamps, plates, glasses, etc. The Key West store is open 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. All stores are closed on Sunday.
Nearly New
St. Columba Episcopal Church in Marathon operates two resale shops. The clothing shop, the Nearly New Thrift Store, is located in Gulfside Village and opens Thursday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The furniture and housewares shop, Nearly New Furniture Store, is just west of Key Colony Beach on the oceanside. The hours are Thursday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The clothing store also carries a few housewares.
Habitat for Humanity
There is only one Habitat for Humanity Re-Store open to the public in the Keys, in Key Largo, near MM 99 in the median. It is open from 10 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. every day except Sunday and Monday. Habitat for Humanity of Key West and the Lower Keys operates an online store with housewares, furniture and construction materials. Pictures are posted online and the shop is only open by appointment. Search Facebook for “@HabitatforHumanityKeyWest.”
Join your local yard sale group on Facebook. During the pandemic, these pages were going gangbusters. People with reduced circumstances, or just plain bored, were looking for deals ranging from cars to mattresses to random pieces of decor. Facebook Marketplace — which showcases offers from places further afield — also has tempting offers but … caveat emptor. Good news, Facebook operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Estate Sales & Yard Sales
Check the Keys Weekly classified sections (also available online at keysweekly.com) or Craigslist for notices of yard sales and garage sales. There are also some really nice estate sales that happen in the Florida Keys. Follow Susie’s Key West Estate Sales (@SusiesKeyWestEstates.net) on Facebook. She has a sale almost every week, sometimes two, and posts lots of pictures in advance. Finally, look on estatesales.net and provide a ZIP code for a list of nearby (many on the mainland) sales.
