There’s a special kind of magic that unfolds during family road trips, a blend of shared laughter, scenic views, and the thrilling possibility of unexpected discoveries. Last weekend, our family embarked on one such adventure, journeying two hours north to the vibrant landscape of Arlington, Virginia. The primary mission was for our daughter, Clara, to spend cherished quality time with her cousin Elsa. But as often happens with such journeys, what started as a simple family visit soon blossomed into an unforgettable tale of remarkable finds and incredible bargains, especially for those of us with a keen eye for home projects and unique décor.
Our trip to the Northern Virginia area, specifically the charming and historic Old Town Alexandria, proved to be a treasure trove. Cat, Elsa’s mom and a dear friend (who also happens to be Sherry’s BFF, whom we introduced to my cousin Travis back in 2007 – and now they’re happily married with two wonderful kids!), guided us to a truly captivating shop called Red Barn Mercantile. Nestled in the heart of Old Town, this boutique is a haven for those who appreciate curated home goods, vintage treasures, and distinctive gifts. Its shelves were brimming with an eclectic mix of beautiful and inspiring items, each piece seemingly telling its own story. As we browsed, taking in the delightful atmosphere, one particular display immediately captured our attention: a rustic bowl overflowing with vintage printing press letters.
Our family has a long-standing tradition of collecting these charming, tactile pieces of history. Each letter or number in our collection holds a special memory or represents a significant moment. The thrill of finding the perfect addition is always exhilarating. This time, after a quick search, we snagged a beautiful vintage “C” for just six dollars. This new acquisition proudly joined our existing collection of letters and numbers, which currently includes 7, J, S, L, O, V, and E. The first three — the “7,” “J,” and “S” — were discovered at a bustling flea market in NYC just weeks after Sherry and I began dating on July 7, 2005, a date that explains our enduring affection for the number seven. The remaining letters, L, O, V, and E, were added to our growing collection a few years later during another serendipitous visit to a flea market in Washington D.C. Each piece is a little marker of our journey together, and now Clara has her very own representation among these cherished mementos. We also scoured the bowl for an uppercase “B” for our beloved Burger, but alas, only lowercase options were available. Unfortunately, in the world of vintage printing, a lowercase ‘b’ often looks remarkably like a ‘d’ when viewed in reverse, which wouldn’t quite capture the essence of Burger. So, the quest for that elusive uppercase “B” continues!
While finding the “C” for Clara was a delightful little win, it honestly wasn’t the most extraordinary six-dollar purchase of our trip. In fact, our other major find from that weekend still has us pinching ourselves in disbelief. Are you ready for an absolutely incredible tale of thrifting triumph?
Just a mere six dollars got us more than just a single piece of cabinet hardware…
…it even got us more than this entire cabinet itself…
…it actually got us a grand total of SIX CABINETS! Yes, you read that right. All six for just six measly dollars. Not six dollars each, but six dollars for the entire set. It truly felt like hitting the jackpot in the world of home renovation and budget-friendly DIY projects.
If you’re finding this as hard to believe as I did when Sherry first called me with the astounding news (Clara was happily napping in the car, so I stayed outside with her while Sherry ventured in and then relayed the incredible details), allow me to offer some photographic proof:
We stumbled upon these magnificent finds at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Alexandria. What a stroke of luck that we decided to swing by there while visiting the area! ReStores are invaluable hubs for homeowners and DIY enthusiasts, offering new and gently used building materials, appliances, and home goods at significantly reduced prices. Their mission is truly commendable, channeling profits to support Habitat for Humanity’s work in building affordable housing, making them a fantastic resource for both budget-conscious projects and sustainable living. The staff confirmed they were indeed selling these units for just a dollar each. We learned that these cabinets once served as nightstands in a local hotel. The hotel generously donated a truckload of them to the ReStore, which had initially priced them at $15 each. They had successfully sold most of them until an “overzealous purchaser” returned a considerable quantity that they had leftover. To clear the inventory quickly, the ReStore decided to drastically drop the price to just $1 per cabinet. Given their “No Refund” policy, it’s safe to assume they had already recouped their investment, making these a phenomenal deal for us.
A quick, but incredibly important, note for anyone considering secondhand furniture: bed bugs. Having had a truly life-changing and harrowing encounter with them during my time in NYC (you can read about that rather unfortunate saga here), I am now an utterly obsessive checker. Before these cabinets even thought about entering our home, I meticulously inspected every single inch like a paranoid detective. And then, for good measure, I conducted another thorough check once they were safely in our garage. What I’ve learned is that bed bugs are, thankfully, visible to the naked eye. When inspecting items, you should look for the bugs themselves (small, reddish-brown, oval-shaped), their tiny dark droppings (which look like small ink stains), and shed skins. Pay close attention to cracks, crevices, seams, and any hidden areas. They tend to prefer softer, absorbent surfaces like mattresses, upholstery, and fabric where they can easily maneuver, and they love dark, undisturbed hiding spots. Conversely, they generally dislike slick surfaces such as glossy cabinets or plastic bags, which makes these cabinets a somewhat lower risk compared to, say, an upholstered armchair. For items with more potential hiding places, like fabric furniture, be extra diligent and look for those tell-tale small stains along the seams. A smart precautionary measure for any secondhand upholstered item is to leave it in a holding area like a garage or sunroom for a day or two and recheck it before bringing it inside, just to be absolutely sure no unwelcome guests are hitching a ride.
Speaking of getting them home, the logistics presented a typical DIY challenge, especially since we were so far from home. Miraculously, we managed to fit two of the cabinets into our Altima, a feat that felt like a masterful game of Tetris, considering we were already packed with all our travel essentials: a pack & play, a dog crate, a baby in a large car seat, a husband, a wife, and various other family paraphernalia. One cabinet snugly fit in the trunk, while the other occupied the front passenger seat, allowing Sherry to ride in the back, skillfully nestled among Burger, our little one (the bean), the pack & play, and the folded dog crate. The remaining four cabinets were kindly held by the ReStore, thanks to a stroke of serendipity: my dad was unexpectedly going to be in the same area for a meeting just a few days later! He drives a Honda Pilot, which meant the remaining four cabinets fit perfectly into his spacious vehicle. We’re usually the ones left scrambling without adequate transport for large items, especially when far from home, so this turn of events was a refreshing and welcomed change of pace. It truly felt like these $6 cabinets were simply destined to be ours, a perfect alignment of stars and budget-friendly karma.
Well, as evidenced above, after factoring in tax, they actually cost us a grand total of $6.30. So, I suppose it technically stands as the best six dollars and thirty cents we’ve ever invested! And let me tell you, these don’t feel like shoddy, dollar-store cabinets in the slightest. Their construction is solid, and the quality is surprisingly impressive for such a bargain. Just take a look at the interior fittings – hellooooo, smooth-gliding slide-out shelves! This feature alone adds immense value and functionality, elevating them far beyond what one would expect from a dollar-per-unit price point. They are built to last and ready for their next chapter.
For those who may not have connected the dots yet, these fantastic finds are destined to become the foundation of our long-awaited built-in office workstation. We’ve talked extensively about our ambitious office plans in this previous post, outlining our vision for a highly functional and aesthetically pleasing workspace. Our plan is to arrange them strategically: two cabinets against the left wall, providing a dedicated space for a chair, followed by two cabinets in the middle section, another open space for a second chair, and finally, two more cabinets against the right wall. This arrangement will create the seamless, built-in look we discussed in detail right here in our floor planning post. This layout not only maximizes storage but also creates a dedicated, comfortable workspace for both of us.
With this thoughtful arrangement, we’ll achieve precisely 30 inches of width for each of our chair openings, which is absolutely perfect considering our office chairs are 24 inches wide. This generous six inches of wiggle room is a luxurious improvement compared to our current setup, which involves a rather cramped small, homemade desk fashioned from a door. Of course, our new cabinet friends require a bit of TLC before they’re ready for their permanent residency. First and foremost, they’ll need a thorough cleaning, followed by a coat of primer and a beautiful glossy white paint finish. Given that they appear to be 100% solid wood, we anticipate excellent adhesion and durability, much like traditional painted kitchen cabinets. An important design note: we won’t be painting the inside of the cabinets. Many elegant white built-ins actually feature natural wood interiors, which not only add a touch of warmth but also cleverly hide minor marks and smudges over time. We loved this effect with the new white KraftMaid drawers from our first kitchen renovation, and we’re excited to replicate that practical aesthetic here. Rest assured, we’ll be sharing all the painting details and tips as we progress through this exciting transformation.
Beyond the aesthetic changes, we also need to address their height. Currently, these cabinets stand at approximately 26 inches tall, while our chairs are 27 inches high. This means that if we were to simply add a countertop now, the chair arms wouldn’t even slide underneath, rendering them quite impractical. Our ideal desk height is around 30 inches, providing comfortable ergonomics for working. To achieve this, I’m contemplating building a simple, sturdy box structure on top of each cabinet pairing. This box would then be painted along with the cabinets, ensuring a seamless, integrated look that appears as if it was custom-made. I’m still debating whether to design this addition as a small open shelf for quick-access storage or simply front it with a solid piece of wood, akin to the decorative “dummy drawers” often found in front of kitchen sinks. Alternatively, we could build them up from the bottom, integrating a custom kick plate or base. The exact method is still under consideration, but we will definitely keep you updated on our chosen approach and the execution process.
What made these $1 cabinets not just amazing, but truly perfect, was the realization that their initial height wasn’t too tall – a common predicament with 99.9% of standard base cabinets. Most base cabinets are around 35 inches tall, making them incredibly difficult to cut down and modify, as they’re typically constructed as one solid unit including the kick step. This made our find an enormous relief. Furthermore, these cabinets were still deep enough to function perfectly as a desk base. Upper cabinets, while often closer to the ideal height, are usually only about 12 inches deep, which would result in an uncomfortably skinny desk or require extensive building out from the back with far more lumber than simply raising these a few inches. So, yes, we are absolutely thrilled! After a pretty exhaustive search, it seems the cabinet gods were undeniably benevolent toward us. This was an especially welcome stroke of luck, particularly after the file cabinet gods proved less generous; we spent eight painstaking months searching for suitable secondhand file cabinets for the office, only to eventually give up and invest $150 in this system from Ikea. It just goes to show, you win some, and you lose some in the world of DIY and secondhand shopping.
Given that not everyone can simply stumble upon the cabinet equivalent of a dollar-store miracle, we felt it would be valuable to share our broader research. We explored numerous other options and considered many different solutions during our hunt for the perfect office storage. We’ll be back shortly to fill you in on all that extensive legwork and careful consideration. Hopefully, by sharing the various alternatives we looked into, we can offer helpful insights and inspire someone else who might be struggling to find suitable secondhand cabinets for their own unique project. In the meantime, we’d love to hear from you! What’s the absolute best under-ten-dollar purchase you’ve ever made? Was it a fantastic piece of clothing, a cherished home decor item, or perhaps a movie ticket that led to a magical encounter? Someone out there has to have one of those incredible stories that truly deserves to be made into a movie!