You've been there before. You check out a thrift store you've heard about or maybe you just randomly stumbled upon it. But after a few minutes, you walk out empty handed. Your thrifty little heart is crushed and you leave discouraged.Though I've been thrifting for about 10 years now, this still happens to me. Last year I checked out the Salvation Army on East 23rd St and walked away feeling it was the Worst. Thrift. Store. Ever. I couldn't find anything and the racks were half empty. I vowed to never go back to this whack location, but after a few months, I went back and I'm so glad I did.

If you guys follow me on Twitter or Facebook, then you know I spent last week in San Francisco. Besides enjoying some serious thrifting {more on that later this week}, I took in the sights, as this was my first time in the Bay Area. And of course, I rocked head to toe thrifted looks. I never intentionally wear head to toe thrift store finds, but because the majority of my wardrobe is secondhand, that's just how it works out!During my first day in the city I went for a denim top {Salvation Army} and cobalt blue maxi skirt {Goodwill}. The skirt was actually free because I redeemed my Goodwill Rewards Card points. If you're a serious Goodwill thrift shopper, check with your local store to see if they have one of these cards, you won't regret it.

Fashion trends come and go but one thing is constant: no matter what the trend, you can find it at a thrift store. Some people still think of thrift stores as having crappy leftovers other people no longer see fit to wear. Sometimes that's true but other times, you find awesome, current threads. And because fashion is so cyclical, what was hot years ago is once again in style. While thrifting last week, I came across a few trends that I've seen on the runway. Instead of dropping major cash on an "it" item of the moment, you can save a ton by thrifting the trends.

Florals were seen in collections by Alexander Wang, Prabal Gurung, and countless others and I found a ton of them at the Salvation Army, from blazers to dresses to skirts. It was an absolute explosion of flower power.I scoped out a Diane von Furstenberg blouse for $7...

Another month down {seriously, how is it April already?} and another month of my Thrifty Threads 365 challenge. If you're new to the site and don't know about TT365 {read up about it here}, it's a year long quest where I can only purchase thrifted clothes and accessories. The only new items I can wear are undergarments {obviously, I'm not going to buy secondhand undies} and any gifted clothing I may receive. Oh, and did I mention I can only spend $50 a month? Yeah, only 50 bucks. Though I went over my clothing budget in January, I've been under budget every other month.

For March, I spent...$40. Yay, I didn't go over budget and I managed to snag 10 items. Here are my thrift store scores for the month of March...

Goodwill Purse

I found a hieroglyphics style purse at Goodwill for $5, which I showed off in a what I wore post a few weeks ago. The bag doesn't hold much but the design and gold clasp is simply gorgeous.

Thrift Shopping Commandments Last week I gave you the first part of my 10 Thrift Shopping Commandments and here's the final five. They're in no particular order as they're all crucial to ensure a happy, productive thrifting experience.

Would I Buy It At Full Price? This is the question you need to ask yourself before buying anything. Cheap prices can be mighty alluring so you want to be sure you're not solely buying something because it's a steal. Though a dress may be $2, it'll be a total waste of cash if you never wear it.