Now that you have your new space, you really need a place to sleep, sit, entertainment for yourself and your new guests. If you have a furniture bank voucher great....but if you don't...then you need to get busy...the floor can get quite hard after awhile, even when it is padded with all those free blankets you were given when you were in a shelter....blankets are given out by many well intentioned, and kindhearted people and churches in the Wintertime because yes technically homeless people need to keep warm...however most homeless people come in to shelters when the temps drop. Most places like Libraries, McDonalds, Burger King etc ( just a few of the places people go to hang out for the day and keep warm) do not allow people to come in with blankets.
When I lived in Pennsylvania my sis and I went to Saint Vincent de Paul and bought refurbished mattresses and box springs for $60 a set. Great bargain and the factory was right there...they only reused the frame and everything else was new. Personally I am not such a fan of buying a mattress in a second hand store for several obvious reasons...the latest being the dreaded bed bug infestation in many places. There are stores that sell "seconds" (those with slight defects) you might want to check out. Those same shops often sell refrigerators, washers, and dryers as well. Bed frames can be purchased for next to nothing at Thrift Stores...just be sure to buy the correct size...you can't always return, or exchange them. You can always plunk them on the floor which is where mine stayed until a year later when I needed surgery and my surrogate family did not recommend me trying to get up from that low point. My furbaby at the time...a ferret was offended...he thought the mattresses were on the floor for his bouncing pleasure!
Furniture can always be purchased at thrift stores...but the name these days can be deceiving...many thrift stores are not thrifty, often selling antiques and estate sale leftovers for profit....so check around for one that sells their items to help out those in need. I lived in an area where there were black plastic milk crates left everywhere and my friends often gave them to me. I ended up with 6 nice ones...washed them off in the shower and let them dry. Although I have since purchased a "real" bookshelf...I am still using my milk crate bookshelf in my office. The great thing is when I needed to move I put all the heaviest books in them and it was easy to move them although they were heavy...no worries about the bottom dropping out.
If you need a table and chairs a simple solution can be to buy a card table and chairs set...for $27 I had the table and 4 chairs and I made a tablecloth from a thrift store sheet. I still have that as well...you can always use the extra table and chairs. The folding chairs tuck neatly in the closet. My table is round so on occasion I have put the folding chairs around the table in between the regular chairs...table for 4 easily becomes...table for 8. If you don't have much space but you have extra money...Ikea has excellent alternatives to the stationary table and chairs. You can go to their website www.ikea.com and order a free catalogue or just look online.
So by now you should have a bed and a table. You have a place to sit....but where do u relax? You can check out Thrift Store chairs or sofas but again...buyer beware of bed bug issues. You may need to go to a more upscale thrift shop. My sis and I found a great alternative...camping chairs. We found some in 2006 reduced to $6 at the end of the season at a big box store. She purchased 1 and I purchased 2 in case we had a guest...well actually it was because I couldn't choose between the 2 colours lol...that happens a lot. I even found one reduced to $11 the next time we were there that was not only oversized but also had an attached foot rest...can't beat that at all!
Stay tuned for Part 2...THRIFTY COUTURE DECOR THE NECESSITIES
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