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$30 Budget Challenge: Thrift Store Finds for Affordable Fall Decor

By Rachel

published 10/30/2025

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The easiest $30 budget challenge, brought to you by thrift store finds for affordable fall decor. You can totally style your home for less!

We all want our homes to look beautiful for fall but, let’s face it; the retail prices are just crazy these days! Since fall decorating is all about cozy ambience, I have a solution for affordable fall decor. Let me introduce the $30 budget challenge! The goal? To source enough thrift store finds to create a stunning and cohesive fall display on that budget. The best decor pieces tell a story, after all!

The Luxury of Low-Cost Fall Decorating for the Home

When it comes to thrifting, budget is the name of the game. However, affordable fall decor doesn’t mean low quality…it means prioritizing character, patina, and ways to cleverly layer without spending hundreds of dollars.

This post includes tips on how to make a small budget yield big results. I’ll also share a thrift haul and show you how to style pretty vignettes, on the $30 budget, using those finds.

Table of Contents

I want to prove that the most beautiful fall decor is often found secondhand. Join me below to see how it’s done!

Thrifted Goodies Volume 40- $30 Budget Challenge: Thrift Store Finds for Affordable Fall Decor

Hello, guys!

Welcome, or welcome back, to the blog and to the next installment in the ‘Thrifted Goodies’ series! If you are new around here, welcome!

This is a monthly series where my friend MaryJo from the blog Master’pieces’ of my Life and I share thrift hauls, thrifting tips, and general thrift shopping advice.

MasterPieces of My Life

My partner in this series, MaryJo, is sharing a post all about setting a table with thrifted finds. How great is that?! Perfect for the upcoming holiday season.

After you are done here, head over to her post and say hello! You may find just the thing you are looking for.

MasterPieces of My Life Social Channels:

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Shop Favorite Vintage Fall Decor

Why Thrift Store Finds Win the Fall Decor Game

So, why thrift for fall decor? Well, the answer to that is super easy…it’s cheap (in the best way) and it’s fun. I don’t know what could be better than that!

However, below are a few other reasons as to why thrifting for fall decor is always a good idea:

Patina & Authenticity

Thrifted wares bring an authentic story filled with character that new items can’t replicate. These qualities instantly make your home feel cozy and collected, which is lovely for fall.

Budget Mastery

Did you know that, by shopping secondhand, you can buy 3-5 high-impact pieces for the price of one single retail pumpkin?!

Sustainability

Thrifting is the most sustainable way to shop. There is no greater joy than styling beautiful, budget decor that is also an environmentally friendly choice.

High Impact Finds: The $30 Thrift Store Fall Decor Haul

On this antiquing and thrifting trip, I set out to see what all I could find for $30 or under. Did I have success with that goal? You’ll have to read the rest to find out!

This section details a recent thrift haul! Here, you’ll see found items that offer maximum impact for minimum cost.

It’s a smaller haul than usual…I just haven’t been finding much lately (and I’m also being very picky). But, the things I do have to share are SO good and super neat!

I’m excited to show them to you, so let’s get into it!

1. Vintage Wooden Box

I’ve never seen anything quite like this before!

I found this super neat old wooden box at one of my favorite antique malls. It was in the bargain bin, so I only paid $2.00 for it!

The design on it is raised, giving it wonderful texture, which is so cool! Can you see where it faintly says ‘ribbons’ on the right side?? Was this box made to hold ribbon? If it was, what a delicate and pretty way to store them!

It also opens up…how neat! Upon opening it, I noticed how old everything looks…the hinges are old, the nails are old, and wood is old. I LOVE it all! I’m pretty sure someone used this box at one point to hold pencils because there are faint pencil marks all over the inside.

But, that’s what I love about vintage…someone used the thing for an intended purpose and then didn’t need it anymore, so it got passed along to someone else. That’s the cycle, and story, of vintage pieces that is just SO meaningful.

Truly, I’ll be able to use this box in so many seasonal vignettes all year round. It also will be a great piece to use as a riser if a certain display needs more height!

But, for the fall season specifically, I styled it into my hutch. I placed it behind some pieces from my milk glass collection, acting like a background to break up the all-white color palette. I just love it…the natural wood tone is so stunning!

2. Oval Lace Linen

This next find is fun…I haven’t found a vintage linen for quite a while!

I sourced this from the same vendor as the wood box. If you notice, there are little angels are cherubs going around the lace edge. Isn’t that the sweetest thing ever?! I don’t have anything else like this in my collection and, for only $3, this pretty linen was a no-brainer.

I am using it as a base on the hall bath counter (though linens such as these can truly be used anywhere!)

On top of it, I placed a thrifted basket that holds extra hand towels. I love how the linen grounds the basket where it is rather than feeling like the basket is just floating on the counter.

3. Vintage Thread Spools

Up next are a plethora of vintage threads and thread spools!

Again, sourced from the same vendor as the other two items above, I purchased a pack of four of the small wood thread spools for $2.00, two cream colored thread balls for $2.00, and four large wood thread spools for $4.00. So, ten thread spools for only $8.00…such a great deal!

Here on the credenza, a few of the spools are scattered about on my favorite brown transferware platter.

To help my space feel cohesive, and to tie the hutch in with the rest of the living area, I also placed a few spools on the top shelf, sticking out of a brown floral mug.

And, to round it all out, the rest of the wooden spools sit elegantly inside a milk glass compote on the bottom shelf of my hutch.

Thrifted Decor Tip: When you have a larger collection of something, such as thread spools, try spreading them out amongst your living space. This method of decorating helps to tie each display together, creating a unified look.

4. Copper Egg Pan

I’ve saved the best for last! It’s been a long time since I’ve found a piece of copper out in the wild.

This incredible copper egg pan was found in the most random of shops in a small town in southern Minnesota. I decided to walk in quick and see what the shop offered and, lo and behold, this thing was literally just sitting on top of a mini fridge for just $18! Isn’t that crazy?!

It was so dusty…the pan had been sitting there for who knows how long. It’s okay…I rescued it and cleaned it up 🙂

Was I looking for a copper egg pan that day? Nope! Was it meant to be that I randomly walked into that shop? Totally! Did I know that I needed a copper egg pan in my collection? No! Am I mad about it? Not one bit!

I believe, as with everything in life, that what is meant to find it’s way to you always will, even if it seems like the most backwards way.

This pretty pan now graces my kitchen, hanging beautifully alongside its thrifted copper siblings. She’s such a beauty!

Go Forth and Thrift!

If I did my math correctly, all of the thrifted finds in this haul add up to just $31.00. Obviously, the goal was $30, but the copper egg pan is what pushed me over by one dollar. (sorry not sorry!)

I write these posts so that you can visually see how much you can get from thrift stores or antique shops for a very little amount of money. You truly don’t need to go to spend hundreds of dollars at big-box stores to achieve a beautiful fall look!

Through the power of thrifting, and a little effort, you can stretch your decor budget ten-fold. Not only are you saving tons of money by buying secondhand, you are also taking care of the environment because you are purchasing things that already exist. I can’t think of anything better!

Closing Tidbits on a $30 Budget Challenge: Thrift Store Finds for Affordable Fall Decor

That concludes this month’s haul and thrifted styling! The best affordable fall decor comes from creativity and smart sourcing, not endless spending. This $30 budget challenge is all about bringing warmth, texture, and character into your home for the season with found items.

With an intentional shopping list in mind, I urge you to visit your local thrift store or antique mall to see what you can find. It’s the thrill of the hunt because you truly have no idea what pretty thing could be waiting for you!

Be encouraged to live in a simple and meaningful way, finding cozy comfort along the way.

Leave me a comment! What thrift store items(s) is always on your fall thrifting list? Share your best find in the comments! I love hearing from you.

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If you are new here, I’m Rachel, the writer and content creator here at The Antiqued Journey. I’m so happy to have you! I encourage you to stop by the ‘about me’ page to get to know me a little more.

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