When I moved to Washington and started working in DC’s West End, every day for our lunch break a coworker and I would pick a direction and start exploring.
One day, we found ourselves on a less traveled street in Georgetown where a small blue-and-yellow sandwich board read thrift shop. We followed a path that led to a side door, and once inside, our heads swiveled. There were cut-crystal goblets for $2 apiece, a Victorian card table for $20, and a $7 vintage Gucci purse that I snagged as quickly as a pond frog catches a fly.
Unfortunately, we hadn’t paid attention to the address, and when we tried to find this retail paradise again in the days that followed, we kept coming to dead ends. Our land of milk and honey, it turned out, was the thrift shop associated with Christ Church and open only on Wednesdays. It took me years to stumble upon it again.
Church thrift shops are indeed miracles. And they can be hard to find—both because the concept is dying out and because they keep unconventional hours. Not-for-profit enterprises staffed by volunteers (some as old as the vintage china and pocket watches they sell), these shops depend on donations from parishioners, neighbors, and—when I received too many cutting boards and decanters for wedding gifts—people like me.
The following list of church thrift shops in the area features the best of the best. Happy hunting!
Pro tip: Many shops close for the month of August to clean and restock. Those that do so offer half-off or fill-a-bag sales in July, so ask as summer rolls around.
DC
Christ Church Thrift Shop
Christ Church
Open:Â Wednesday 10 to 2
What to expect: More than 20 years after my initial discovery, this shop—currently undergoing renovation and slated to reopen in mid-April—continues to be a treasure trove, with designer labels like Tory Burch, Lilly Pulitzer, and even the occasional Chanel ballet slipper and Hermès silk scarf. Volunteers are enthusiastic, acting as personal stylists and pointing out new merchandise. Don’t miss the back room, where articles of clothing—including some great and often overlooked vintage pieces—are each $3. Hint: Don’t confuse this place with the Christ Child Opportunity Shop, a serious high-end, higher-priced consignment store around the corner on Wisconsin Avenue.
The Opportunity Shop
St. Alban’s Church
Open:Â Wednesday through Saturday 9:30 to 3
What to expect: A favorite haunt among local antiques dealers (who are usually first in the door), this shop has a great selection of costume jewelry and quirky antique sterling tableware (think Victorian lettuce forks and baby-food pushers), plus the usual fare of men’s and women’s clothing and bins of stainless flatware. Because the shop is on the grounds of St. Albans School, it can sometimes be overrun with students snapping up ’90s garb and vinyl records—who says kids don’t want their parents’ stuff?
Virginia
House of Mercy Thrift Store
Open:Â Monday through Saturday 10 to 6
What to expect:Â Though not associated with a specific church, this shop was born out of a Catholic prayer ministry, and 100 percent of the proceeds go toward stocking the onsite food pantry for people in need. As part of its rewards program, shoppers get punch cards and receive a punch for every $10 purchase. Ten punches get you a 10-percent discount. Between daily discounts (for seniors and military personnel) and weekly specials (25 percent off on Wednesdays), bargains are plentiful. On a recent visit, I bought a Frye bag and a perfectly broken-in pair of Doc Martens boots.
Pennywise Thrift Shop
Church of the Holy Comforter Episcopal
Open:Â Tuesday 10 to 4, Wednesday through Friday 10 to 2, Saturday 10 to 4, Sunday noon to 4
What to expect: On a recent visit, I found beautiful vintage Navajo jewelry for about $75 and sterling rings for $30, plus racks of clothing and handbags. Owl figurines line the perimeter of this spacious shop, and the best deals are the vintage home goods—including, when I was there, a beautiful Czech vase for $6 and hand-blown cranberry-glass vases for $5 each. A friendly volunteer told me the shop moved from its original spot across the street after a fire. And though it’s in Northern Virginia and not Palm Beach, I witnessed a guy score a white patent-leather belt for $1.
The Thrifty Church Mouse
The Falls Church Episcopal
Open:Â Friday and Saturday 10 to 3
What to expect: To say there’s a jumble of things at this little gem—hidden just a few blocks from the Falls Church Antiques Center—is an understatement. It’s a crazy quilt of home decor (including, the day I was there, a beautifully framed vintage mola textile from Panama for $24), cases of vintage and newer costume jewelry, and, in the back room, an adorably outfitted corner of children’s clothes and toys, some of them vintage.
Maryland
All Saints Thrift Shop
All Saints Church
Open:Â Wednesday through Friday 10:30 to 1:30, first and third Sundays of the month 9:30 to 12:30
What to expect: This sparkling shop—still relatively undiscovered by resellers (until now, sorry)—offers a time capsule of true vintage costume jewelry, including earringÂ-and-necklace sets from Coro and Trifari; Venetian millefiori beaded necklaces; and jazzy clip-on earrings galore. The manager, a veteran retailer, merchandises the shop like a high-end boutique, even though prices rarely go above $40 (and that’s for a 19th-century carved temple panel from China, scooped up the minute it went on the sales floor). I scored a brand-new Bonobos suit ($20) for my husband and a carved Inuit seal ($30) that turned out to be by a noted artist.
The Opportunity Shop
St. John’s Norwood
Open:Â Wednesday through Friday 10 to 4, Saturday 10 to 3
What to expect: Just two blocks from the church and one of the largest thrifts on the list, this shop’s best deals hang on the walls—from midcentury-modern Japanese woodblock prints to original oils (and, one time, a genuine framed and signed print by Renoir, which sold for $169). Rumor has it a volunteer once found a live hedgehog nestled in the lining of a donated bike helmet. (Owner and animal were reunited.) The prices of some items drop monthly. You can read the tag to see the date when each gets reduced, but as every true hunter knows, she who hesitates often loses. I’m still kicking myself over the Native American turquoise bolo I passed up.
St. Mary Magdalene Thrift Store
St. Mary Magdalene
Open:Â First and third Saturdays of the month 9:30 to 1
What to expect: Originally located in the church, this shop moved to its current location in 1992 when a parishioner bought the trailer that now houses it. Small and tidy, it’s the essence of a church thrift shop, where shoppers could probably furnish their whole house for less than $50. Don’t expect a lot of designer clothing or dishes without a few chips—the shop’s true mission, through the donations of church members, is to provide affordable items to the community. It’s a good reminder that it’s better to give than receive.
This article appears in the April 2025 issue of Washingtonian.
