But, let’s be honest, we also really love shopping their stores, going “Goodwill hunting” for great new scores, and sharing those finds with friends, family, and the interwebs. Which is why Amy and I started a fun little project called “Thank Goodwill It’s Friday,” where we share our favorite recent swapped and thrifted items on Facebook and on Twitter with the hashtag #ThankGoodwillItsFriday each week and ask our friends, fellow swappers, and blog readers to do the same.

Here are some swapped and thrifted scores sent in to us last Friday:

Left to right: Riding boots scored by ThriftD in Colorado; $5 blazer scored by Bullmeister in Milwaukee, WI; BCBG dress and vintage heels, $17 total, scored by TrueBelly in Boston, MA.

As “TGIF” has gotten more and more popular, we’ve stepped up our game and now spend each Friday visiting a different Goodwill, meeting with their teams to “talk swap” and going head-to-head in a styling “challenge”! Last week, I had the pleasure of heading North to Portland, Maine to hang with Michelle Smith at Goodwill of Northern New England — find out all about our visit, what we scored, and how we styled those pieces over on the Goodwill of NNE blog this week — and be sure to share your favorite swapped & thrifted scores/hauls with us on Facebook and Twitter today!

Swappers, by nature, are a bunch of trendsetters (hello, swapping/sharing is the lifestyle trend right now!) and every trendsetter we know is on Pinterest — so now we are, too!

We unofficially started using Pinterest about six months ago, with boards for the “Swapperazzi” — where Swap.com staffers share the best swapped fashion and swap event photos from around the world — and for cookie recipes and inspiration when we hosted our Cookie Swap for a Cause over the holidays, to name a few. Now, we’ve decided to create a dedicated Swap.com Pinterest account showcasing the “best of the best” in swapping: delicious recipe swaps; tips, tricks and how-to’s for making the most of your swaps; swap event photos, swap themes, and DIY decor projects; amazing outfit photos featuring swapped fashion items; inspiring news and ideas from the world of collaborative consumption…yup, we pretty much have all things swap covered.

And yesterday, in our latest new feature release, we added awesome new sharing tools so you can save your favorite swap items or broadcast the stuff you’re swapping using the “Pin It” button from any item listing page on the Swap.com Market (as well as more easily sharing on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+). To get started, go see what we’re pinning now or start pinning your own items to get more exposure for your swaps!

1972 MGB Roadster with Hard Top

Morgan says: “You can’t go on a road trip without a car, preferably a convertible! This MG is a classic
for enjoying the sunny days and getting the wind in your hair on the open road.”

Round Black Faux Wayfarer Sunglasses by KISS

Morgan says: “With the top down on the car, you can’t forget your sunglasses!
Love how these look vintage, and play off the classic rounded headlights of the MG.”

Black iPod Nano

Morgan says: “You can’t have a road trip without a playlist complete without music to help pass the time while driving. Download a bunch of songs that you and your friends will have a blast singing to, and crank the volume!”

$50 Gulf Gift Card

Morgan says: “Nobody likes spending their money on gas. Swap for a gas station gift card to fill ‘er up
and use your cash for something else, like awesome highway eats & adventures along the road.”

Large Black Purse

Morgan says: “When you’re on a road trip with friends, there’s only so much room in the car so that means packing light. Try fitting everything you need into a cute bag like this one. Only the essentials!”

What are YOUR top picks for a spring break getaway, whether it’s somewhere remote and tropical or a staycation adventure closer to home? If you’re swapping something others should see, feel free to link to & call out your listing in the comments below!

Image: Courtesy of Shag The Movie/MGM Pictures

Colorful Monkini, Size Small

Laura says: “This swimsuit is colorful and playful just like a vacation
should be.  A sexy swimsuit is a staple for a beach bound vacation.”

Hollister Jean Shorts

Laura says: “I love jean shorts because they are so versatile: perfect for putting
over a bathing suit or just taking a walk on the beach.”

Forever 21 Cobalt & Black Printed Dress

Laura says: “This dress is perfect for going out clubbing or wherever the night might take you.
I’m trying to swap for this dress because it is perfect and cute for those hot days and nights.

Luxury Resort Stay from RCI.com

Laura says: “I would kill to have my choice of one of the 1,400 resorts worldwide available
through this vacation voucher! There are so many places I want to go, how would I choose?

Faux Ray-Ban Sunglasses

Laura says: “These sunnies are perfect because they go with anything and are very stylish!”

What do you think of Laura’s beach getaway picks? Stay tuned tomorrow for Morgan’s road trip must-haves!

Hello Swap Peeps,

It’s Amy, your resident Swap Snob, here to give you a quick lesson in photography and to help you make the most of your swap items. Let’s face it: we live in a visual world. Your product photos are what attracts people to your items and profile. The better they look, the more successful at swapping you will become. (Better photos will also help your Haves and Wants get shared to Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook by other swappers!)

1. Buy a camera.
This might seem like an obvious statement, but we’ve all seen the dreaded webcam product shots up on the Market. Low on funds? Consider swapping your way to a better camera or even an iPhone (with which you can use our killer Swap market app to photograph and add your items seamlessly!) If you were out window shopping, you would pass right by that poorly lit, dingy store front, and the same thing will happen to your swap items and profile if your photos are less than attractive. The stuff that looks the most attractive will get swapped the fastest, plain and simple.

2. Use the right camera setting.
The majority of items on the Swap Market should be shot with the ‘macro’ setting (the flower or tulip icon on most cameras and smartphones). This is the best setting for taking close-up shots. If you are shooting larger items (cars, larger clothing items like long dresses, or furniture) from farther away, use a flash and an auto setting.

3. Use natural light.
Shut off that flash and head to a window or maybe go outside. A flash will blow out your object, obscuring all the items details and fine features, and create shadows. Your products will always look their best in natural light.

4. Choose your background carefully.
Photographing your items on a background that highlights your products is important because you don’t want to distract other swappers from what’s most important: your items themselves! You can never go wrong using a solid white background. Some other background ideas that work well are poster board, card stock, ironed solid-color fabric, clean white sheets, solid wood, grass, concrete, scrapbooking paper with a neutral pattern, or a blank art canvas.

5. Take a variety of shots.
Giving a few different shots of your items will help your swapper get a feel for the product and its actual condition. Try taking some shots close up and others far away. Always try to include at least one photo showing the entire item. If you’re using an iPhone, make sure to tap the screen once to focus before taking the shot to prevent blurriness. No one will be able to tell if the dress your swapping will look good on them with only three close up shots, or blurry photos that obscure the texture of the fabric, for instance.

OK, I officially crown you all professional photographers! Now go show off your new skills by updating items that might need a little love on the Swap Market!

~ Punky

For weeks (if not months), bloggers and editors across the globe debated which pieces from the Jason Wu for Target collection would be the hottest, what the best strategy was for scoring them, both online and in stores, and how the designer best known for dressing First Lady Michelle Obama would fare in popularity against previous Target collaborators like Missoni and Tucker and Rodarte.

Hundreds of fashion-hungry ladies lined up outside the doors of each Target retail store in the cold, early morning hours (myself included), while thousands more hovered on Target.com (many friends admitted to staying up all night long) itching to be among the first to grab coveted items for their carts. Designer collaborations for mainstream retailers have become more and more popular in recent years, and launch days have become a professional sporting event for the clothes-obsessed.

Along with that, an etiquette has formed around shopping the collaborations on opening day, and if a shopper is so much as suspected of opportunism, of having resale and profits from her scores on her mind, she’ll be driven straight out of those intentions by the stink-eyes abounding from all around.

Which is why I’m so stoked about that the new Swap.com Market and iPhone app are finally here! Sure, I’m biased, but it’s a totally feel-good alternative to making use of your clever collaboration scores without any of the exploitation guilt, which even I personally didn’t have just months ago — having a conscience, I chose not to re-sell my Missoni for Target cruiser bike on an auction site for a 3x profit, so it’s still taking up space here in the Swap.com office…but I digress.

Bartering and trading sizes and styles already happens among all of us well-intentioned shoppers in the dressing rooms and by the mirrors while we’re still in the store, and hundreds of Facebook groups have popped up online expressly for the purpose of trading and bartering designer collaborations. Adding your Haves and Wants to your Swap.com profile is so much more fun and efficient! Just check out the amazing array of Jason Wu for Target items already up for swapping here on Swap.com, plus dozens of other designer collab pieces that have recently surfaced, as well — many new with tags:

Jason Wu for Target Milu the Cat Scarf from PunkyStyle

Jason Wu for Target Black Accordion Pleat Skirt from Lisatella

Jason Wu for Target Blue Floral Dress with Yellow Belt from JPKalima

Zac Posen for Target Safety Pin Gown from xgaray

Lela Rose for Payless Metallic Bow Flats from elleC

Rodarte for Target Tulle & Satin Bow Dress from SparklingFootsteps

And SO many more on the Swap.com Market, see for yourself now!

~ Melissa ( Stealfinder)

Phew! January was a complete whirlwind here at Swap.com, where we swapped up a storm all month long for World Swap Day, both online and in person. Our expert swapper-judges are on a first name basis with the folks at the post office, because we couldn’t help ourselves from getting in on the swapping action, too — especially after seeing all 1.5 MILLION of the amazing items you listed on the new Swap.com Market!

Even though there could be only two lucky winners in our List Your Way to $1K Giveaway, damn, did you give them a run for their money. Here are our picks for the two lucky winners of the $1,000 AMEX card, to use toward getting what they Want, along with our favorite runners up — plus a few listings that really caught our attention.

WINNER! Eileen McCormick (Sodapopiswaycute)
Not only did Eileen impress us with the volume, variety, and quality of items she listed for swapping, she’s offering up her apartment in downtown San Francisco, too! We always say that swapping is a lifestyle, applying to almost every type of stuff & services, and Eileen really is a tried & true (not to mention chic) swapper. We can’t wait to see what she does with her winnings!

1st Runner Up:
Alicatstrut

2nd Runner Up:
ElleC

WINNER! Curt Wiederhoeft (Curtw)
A veteran community member who’s been with us our entire journey (since the beginning of the Swap Media days), Curt fully embraced the new Swap.com Market as a leader among men. From vintage board games and collectibles to popular gadgets, audio equipment, and electronics, he had no reservations about listing all the fabulous stuff he wasn’t really using, not even doing it for the contest — how’s that for a true swapper?! Hats off to you, sir, we really look forward to following your swaps.

1st Runner Up:
Tdros234

2nd Runner Up:
nwtreehugger

• A “life swap” opportunity with CosminPopescu in Florence, Italy
• A 2002 Jaguar X-Type from clsb9 in Virginia
• Two champion lineage broodmare horses from mudgie in Michigan
• A ski timeshare at Whistler in Vancouver, BC from sir2u in Washington
• Vintage owls in exchange for MS Society donations from cocomlle319 in Georgia

Plus, in addition to our List Your Way to $1K Giveaway, we also supported more than 100 local swap events happening in cities and towns around the world. Check out the awesome photos, videos, and blogger reviews of those swaps over on The Swapaholics blog today, and find an upcoming local swap event happening near you in our Swap Events directory.

Also, follow me, Amy & Ryan on the Swap.com Market to see what we’re personally listing — we’d love to swap with you!

~ Melissa

We had some very fashionable items left over at the end of the night, and since World Swap Day is such a special event, we decided to do something special with them: we’re swapping them for a cause.

Each of the items below is available for swapping in exchange for a small donation (between $10 and $25) to Goodwill’s Fresh Air Camp, a wonderful overnight summer camp program for boys & girls ages 9 to 15, bringing them from the inner city to rural Massachusetts for 500 acres of woods, fields, and ponds.

Make me or Amy an offer on one of these 8 special items by joining or logging in, then sending us a message from the item listing page, and make sure to list all the amazing items you have to swap on the new Swap.com Market today to enter for a chance to win in our List Your Way to $1K Giveaway!

Faux Miu Miu Glitter Heels from Charlotte Russe

MICHAEL Michael Kors Zebra Print Linen Blazer

Marc by Marc Jacobs Black Wool Dress Pants

Notify “Anemone” Skinny Jeans

Authentic Gucci Sunglasses

Silpada Sterling Silver & CZ Pendant

Joie Plaid Cotton Western Shirt

Moschino Patent Leather Bow Keychain/Purse Clip

I was so unbelievably impressed last week to find this story about 43-year-old mother of four Sandra Chambers, who lost 100 pounds over 3 years by making simple food swaps and taking up figure skating in a “moms and tots” class. (I used to coach a similar one!)

Since I (ahem) haven’t managed to maintain my skater’s body out in the working world, but have made 2012 the year I’m going to get it back (maybe even compete in an adult competition like Sandra), I especially love that Yoplait Light’s “Do the Swap” campaign is all about simple food swaps, which, over time, can make a BIG difference when watching your weight. Plus, recipe swaps help save you calories without sacrificing taste: like my two new favorite out-of-the-box recipes using Yoplait Light in place of traditionally higher-calorie alternatives, such as mayo and sour cream:

Waldorf Salad with Apple Yogurt
{recipe at Facebook.com/Yoplait}

Fresh Pineapple with Ginger Yogurt Sauce
{recipe at Facebook.com/Yoplait}

“Like” Yoplait Light on Facebook for more clever recipes and food swapportunities, plus truly drool-worthy photos of the results. And, natch, make sure to tag us both if you end up making them yourself, we want to hear all about it! I know I’ll be making a few of their fabulous recipes for the Patriots viewing party my husband and I are hosting this Sunday — hopefully we’ll even catch a glimpse of this fun Yoplait Light spot during the commercials so I can share my story with friends:

Photos: Courtesy of Yoplait Light & Melissa Massello
Videos: Courtesy of Yoplait Light and Yahoo!

When discussing New Years Resolutions with some friends over coffee this weekend, it certainly seems that I’m not the acception to the rule here. After reading Sarah’s post about New Years Resolutions last week, I’d decided swap my strategies this year to make my goals more attainable. So with that, here’s 5 things I’d love to improve in my life, and some Swap.com Market items that may help me along the way:

I’d love to start biking to work.
Not only is biking a great way to work out, it’d certainly cut down on my commuting costs. Earlier last week it was announced that Boston would be hiking T fares, somewhere up to 43%. It may be time to take that bike that’s been sitting down in the basement to the shop for a tune up so I can start biking to Swap HQ this spring. Now all I’ll need to do is make an offer on one of these bicycle helmets, after all you can never be too careful when swerving around those famed Boston drivers.

I’d love to learn how to take amazing photos.
I’ve always been slightly jealous of friends who can always capture the perfect shot at weddings and get togethers. Photography has always been an interest of mine, yet I’ve never had the proper training to really hone my skills. So I’ve considered turing to Swap member lucybell for some new photography lessons to really learn how to take great shots my friends might be jealous of.

I’d love to try some new restaurants.
The beauty of living in a city like Boston is that you get to try new things all the time, especially when it comes to food! With so many options around I’ve gotten into the unfortunate routine of just sticking to my favorites each time we dine out. To shake it up a bit I may make an offer on this $100 Restaurants. com gift card and try some new places around town.

I need to upgrade my DVD player.
If you can believe it, I’m still using an old PS2 console to play DVDs on my new TV! While it’s entirely still serviceable (and currently listed on my Haves for the taking) I’m constantly hooking it up every time I want to watch a DVD. Since I use it as a true gaming console, I opt not to leave it out hooked up to the TV, but this slim Phillips DVD player could change all of that.

I’ve been told I need to watch Breaking Bad.
A ton of friends have recommended this TV series on AMC and it’s gotten to the point where one or two ask me every time we meet. I politely tell them I’m still trying to swap for a set of ‘Breaking Bad‘ DVDs and they understand, but continue to urge me on as the story progresses and gets, as they describe, better with each new season. Is this series really that good? May be time to take the dive and offer up something I have for this combo set.