The holidays are upon us, and in our corner of the world, a new relationship is blooming!  Two rather stony faced characters, Estelle Donahue and Josh Ramirez found themselves in the same aisle at SVdP Thrift last week, searching for the perfect holiday outfit.  Estelle, holding a dazzling sequin dress and Josh towing a new argyle tie and posh velvet sports coat, bumped into each other, blushing as they clutched their merchandise. Apologizing, Estelle turned to go, and in her sudden movement, tripped and fell in the aisle. Josh, ever the gentleman, took her to the front of the store to rest, quickly turning to a store attendant for a glass of water.

As Estelle rested against the luxe velour chair, the two got to talking and laughing, reporting the various family dysfunctions they anticipated during the approaching holiday, exchanges about their childhood, and amusements about previous SVDP thrift store finds.

While she recovers, Estelle has asked Josh to keep her company. Although he has tried his best to maintain composure, Josh is swooning for his new mannequin companion. The SVdP store and its team members are happy to host the two young store residents .

Stop by and say hello, and if you have any thoughts on the activities the two might take part in during the coming weeks and months, we’d love to hear your ideas!!

The Livermore Store has long had a loyal fan base that stops by regularly to shop- some as often as a couple times a week! Jamie and her team wanted to say thank you for all the years of support the community has offered and celebrated them with a party this past Saturday. It was very well attended and everyone enjoyed food, a live band and getting to know each other better. We love Livermore and the great people that make the store an even better place to work and will be here to celebrate you for many years to come!

The best part of the holidays is getting ready for them! Let's face it, we all love the autumn feel, the colors and scents, and the great decorations that make us want to prepare for holiday gatherings with friends and family.  

Here at our Fremont and Livermore stores we are preparing right now for the biggest and best holiday season yet!  On November 15 we will unveil a years’ worth of fabulous finds that we have been squirrelling away - we are stuffed to the rafters (quite literally) with bright lights, baubles and curio of all sorts. We love this time of year and can help you find just the right decoration to make your home sparkle with the season!

We will be featuring some special items this year, thanks to Ed Frakes who donated hundreds of nativity scenes.  We will display these scenes from the 15th to the 24th of November and starting November 25 we are making these beautiful sets available for sale. Stop by to check out this amazing collection of memorabilia.

​Don’t BUY at the mall, choose to REUSE our beautiful items AND benefit those who need our help in Alameda County.    

 The best thing you can do to reduce your use of resources that are used for clothing is to not buy them- to reuse something you already own.The second best? Shopping at a used clothing store.  The clothing industry is the second largest polluter in the world … second only to oil. We are a nation of shoppers and that shopping results in the use of precious resources for items that may last in your closet a matter of months, or even weeks. Some top clothing designers, are on the leading edge of reforming the fashion industry and are reducing water use and carbon emissions and working to make their supply chain sustainable by 2020. But all of us need to take part and focus on more sustainable shopping NOW!   The best way to start? Buy your clothing at secondhand thrift and vintage shops and we happen to know a few Great Ones around the East Bay.  Shop our stores and help us fund the programs that feed, provide job training and other vital life resources while you shop!  For more great thrifting in the East Bay our friends over at Thrift Store Junkies have a complete list