Lots of Pawnshop talk lately... Why WON'T you go/buy used? *PICS*

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#16
It has never occurred to me to go shopping for jewelry at pawnshops, I always see them as places to sell stuff at, not to buy!

Now after reading so many threads here, I am te3mpted, but, being in NYC, all the pawn shops are in bad neighborhoods. So, not sure if I would even find anything good at them
 
#18
I have no aversion to it, I would just have to be able to get it appraised and return it if it isn't what it's claimed to be. Hell I am still looking for my stolen wedding set in pawn shops around STL...
 
#19
I looked for my jewelry for about a month then gave up. It seemed hopeless and going to all those pawnshops was depressing. For some reason, even though most of the jewelry are good deals, it is hard for me to consider buying anything. Again, it is probably because of the burglary that happened and the police telling me that all my jewelry is probably at some pawn shop sold by now (when they came to our house to do the investigation.)
 
#21
Yes, I can see how that would turn you off.
They need to have a system there like where I live where the pawn shop owners are required to turn in descriptions of all jewelry sold to them to the police, so it can be compared to records from burglaries and robberies and matched up and the owner informed. And where the pawn shop owner cannot sell stuff turned in for a specified time, so that if the person who sold it was not the real owner, it can be returned to the proper person. It's too much to expect the person who was robbed to handle this, and plus it's not efficient.

One reason that I go to the pawnshop that I do is that I know they are very compliant with police and honest. As I said before, I was robbed myself and would NEVER want to profit from a robbery, however remotely. The story that finally decided me to look in this pawnshop was when one of my doctors told me how his father had been robbed and the stuff brought to that pawnshop and how it was gotten back to his father. Also, I have seen them cooperating with the police while I was actually in the shop. This impressed me a lot.

I am really sorry that you have had these awful experiences and I hope you see your property again, although I know that is a long shot (we never saw my mom's wedding ring or my dad's jewelry or our other sentimental things again). I have an awfully good alarm system now and always lock my door and also keep jewelry in the bank unless it is on my body. I have insurance. Also, I never travel with my jewelry, this is why I have fake CZ rings and earrings to travel with.

You know--it is probably why I have several diamond solitaire rings, too. I think I'm afraid that I'll get robbed of my engagement ring like my mother and grandmother. Also, after my mother lost her engagement ring and then her wedding in robberies, my parents split. I 'know' this really has nothing to do with it, but I think emotionally I want to be sure I keep my wedding and engagement ring safe--and have spares in case.
 
#23
There was a time in my life where I wouldn't go near a pawn shop or thift store.....fast forward........If I find a good one I'll surely browse. I go because you can find unique items there. I mainly look for vintage pieces and the prices are sometimes amazing in comparison to jewelry stores with their ridiculous markups.

Find one in a good neighborhood and browse away because sometimes you find something that you just can't beleive someone sold. Definately worth a look.
 
#24
edsbgrl said:
There was a time in my life where I wouldn't go near a pawn shop or thift store.....fast forward........If I find a good one I'll surely browse. I go because you can find unique items there. I mainly look for vintage pieces and the prices are sometimes amazing in comparison to jewelry stores with their ridiculous markups.

Find one in a good neighborhood and browse away because sometimes you find something that you just can't beleive someone sold. Definately worth a look.
Click to expand...

i was the same exact way, edsbgrl...it's amazing how wisdom and age definitely change your outlook on things like this. my mom used to drag me around to garage sales when i was growing up in connecticut, and i was miserable. not because i was embarrassed, but because i couldn't understand why we always had to go to vintage shops and garage sales, when there was a lord & taylor just down the street from us. LOL

now i know why. and to think my mom was so ahead of her time—she used to sit in front of the TV and do yoga.

i finally can appreciate her imagination and love of a geen lifestyle, before it was even 'trendy' to be green. kwim?

i love going to pawn shops and vintage shops mainly for jewelry, but even when i go to thrift stores for clothes, i'm amazed at what i can find. you just have to look and be tenacious.
 
#25
There used to be a social stigma but I think nowadays people are more receptive. I love going to such shops and looking at the trinkets that they sell. In fact there's a lot of modern pawnshops sprouting up and the staff are just as well groomed as those in the retail stores. Yes, I totally agree that such places are good hunting places. You never know what you can get.
 
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