Les Petits Riens

This weekend I found myself with that all too familiar urge to go on a little adventure. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of adventures to be found in Luxembourg, but I wanted to get out of my apartment, out of Differdange, heck, even out of the country.

Now, something you need to know (if you didn't already) is that I love thrifting. There's something about sifting through piles of junk for that one little treasure that thrills me. The wonderful Cate introduced me to the realm of second hand in high school, while Laura and I found ourselves in some pretty funky shops during our European adventures. In Luxembourg there's really no 'thrifting scene' so I did a little research about Brussels.

And I hit the jackpot.

Allow me to introduce to to Les Petits Riens, a warehouse of everything located just outside of Brussels' centre-ville. A social project (think Salvation Army), employing the unemployed and donating the proceeds to local homeless initiatives, it was like walking into a different world.

Each of the four (four!!) floors was filled with piles of clothes, mounds of dishes sold by the kilo, luggage, speakers, frames, furniture. There were vhs tapes, fake flowers, records, record players - an amazing collection of the obscure and archaic mixed in with the quirky and intriguing.

 If you visit, chances are you'll also find scores of artsy-looking students scavenging through piles. A fashion show is hosted every year comprised only of things found at Les Petits Riens. Standing there, I could imagine infinite possibilities for project-runway-esque challenges (complete with Tim Gunn).

I came back to Luxembourg with a small trash bag filled with scarves, a crazy looking dress, and striped sweaters. The next task will be figuring out how to wash, wash and wash again my new finds made of knits, wools and some kind of shiny fabric I can't identify. And thus, the adventure continues...