Florida woman dumpster dives for her Christmas gifts and decor

By Michael Lee Simpson

For Melanie Diaz, the magic of Christmas doesn’t come from shiny store shelves or online shopping — it’s found in dumpsters.

The dumpster diver has saved around $20,000 by retrieving gifts and decor from trash cans - including wreaths from Michaels and toys from TJ Maxx.

The 22-year-old Tampa, Florida resident has spent the past two years dumpster diving in December and January - uncovering discarded holiday treasures that would otherwise go to waste.

“It is my favorite time going dumpster diving on Christmas because they start throwing out a lot of Christmas stuff,” Diaz said.

“I love saving everything so I can put it in my house and decorate it for the next year.”

Frequenting the dumpsters behind popular retailers like TJ Maxx, Burlington, Michaels, Jo-Ann Stores, Pop Shelf, and Home Goods, she has uncovered a jackpot of holiday items.

Some of her biggest discoveries happen in January when stores begin clearing out their leftover holiday inventory.

“My biggest finds are in January,” Diaz explained. “I went dumpster diving to the TJ Maxx store, and I found a lot — the dumpster was full to the top.”

From ten wreaths salvaged from Michael's — worth approximately $400 — to $500 Christmas trees, Diaz has curated a festive collection.

She’s also retrieved puzzles and dog toys from TJ Maxx, saving around $200 each, and countless other holiday staples, including ornaments and stockings.

The abundance was so overwhelming, Diaz had to enlist help. “I even had to bring my family to help me because it was too much,” she recalled.

“I remember we took everything into cars, and the next day we did a garage sale. We also kept most of the stuff. It was incredible.”

Her discoveries include ornaments, festive shirts and kitchenware.

“I found Christmas trees before, Christmas ornaments, and in general Christmas decor — creations of every kind of stuff,” the content creator said.

“I find Christmas shirts and Christmas decorations for the table or Christmas stuff for the kitchen and stuff like that.”

But it’s not just about saving money — Diaz also enjoys sharing her finds with others.

“I start saving everything for myself for next year,” she explained.

“And I also give some stuff to my friends and to my family. I don’t sell anything that I find. Definitely the Christmas trees and the ornaments are my favorite.”