While my family is clothes shopping at Goodwill, I find some 'free money'! These sterling silver spoons are in a cabinet with a few non silver ones and some other items. At $4 each I'm able to pick up these at quite a deal.
Be careful. I've been fooled before by plated items that I later found out are worth only what the utensil side of it would govern.
Finding sterling is really only profitable if you have a place to sell it. Refiners don't deal with individuals, and with businesses only when dealing with 100 oz or more per transaction.
Pawn stores won't pay you hardly anything.
Ebay can be an outlet. Just be aware of 14% in fees(ebay/paypal), plus shipping expenses if offering free shipping.
Craigslist can be hit or miss, plus the risk of dealing with unknown people.
If you are trying to buy silver cheaply for trade/barter/investment for some time in the future, then this can be a cheap way to increase your stack.