This is the charity shop I use all the time. That water bowl is the very bowl that my dogs take refreshment from in the hot weather.
I used to get most of the stocking fillers and some Christmas presents from this shop until my kids got older and a bit wise to it. They were excellent stocking fillers, being an interesting and quirky assortment, just right for providing that ephemeral impact on Christmas Day. However, some seriously good and treasured presents were obtained from this shop, like a whole stack of
back copies of the Beano for £1.
It is also a good source of cheap, frivolous and spangly shoes for Eleanor, all obtained from under £3, so she can go tripping up and down the street with her friends. I also get music CDs from here for 50p, which is virtually like having your own CD library, and which I listen to while washing up, and this has given me much of my musical education.
It has recently come under new management and I notice that the ladies drive a hard bargain, which is fair enough as they are raising money for charity and these nice things are being got for a steal. These ladies could probably manage perfectly well bartering in any market anywhere in the world that you could care to mention. I notice that they don't put prices on some of the things and seem to make it up as they go along! They also have noticed that I buy a lot of shoes there and will make a point of keeping shoes for me that they think will suit in the back and bringing them out when I come in. Of course, I always buy whatever they offer because I am a bit soft like that!
I sometimes buy clothes from shops like this, or have in the past, but only from the thrift shops in the more upmarket areas because they get the best clothes donated there. Excuse me, but I do have a bit of class!
8 comments:
very cool. i used to buy a lot of clothes from charitable shops. i could never get used to wearing someone else's shoes, though.
but books... oh yes. and dishes. and knicknacks....
We have hundreds of books and CDs from charity shops - I tried to ban my husband, because everytime he went out he seemed to come back with a CD or a cassette - I don't think I've been successful, even when he goes to take something to the charity shop, somehow there seems to be some sort of shift in the number of cassettes - hur hur
Oh Bev, I adored seeing a bona fide English thrift shop. Joy! Funny, I see out front many of the same things we have an abundance of here as well, like the mugs (more mugs than the human population, I figure) and automatic bread makers -- seems like everyone has had one of those that they eventually realize they don't use.
It's nice that they save back the best shoes for you, even if they drive a hard bargain. And like you say, it's for a good cause, so you don't feel so bad paying an extra pound or so and still get a better bargain than you would new.
And leaving the water out for the dogs? That's priceless. Good PR that.
I'll have to take a shot and share the outside of one our thrift stores for you sometime.
Yes, Debi, they are probably being nice when they save me the shoes! They are still very efficient charity shop runners, though!
Lookey at the wooden salt and pepper, and inside the little figurines, wow...lucky you. I do love to go junkin' One of my favorite pass times. I must get a shot of my favorite junkin' store.
I love going to Op shops (as we call them) and we have quite a few in my area. I try to do a op shop crawl once a week. We've found that places like trade me have seriously hit the quality and style of the clothes that end up in the 2nd hand shops which is a bit of a shame and it must hurt the op shops in general because books etc sell nicely online! There really is nothing like a real shop though, the little fragments of peoples lives waiting to be treasured by some-one else!
Hi Beverly,
Are you trying to tell me there is no Santa (or St Nick?) - I thought he filled the stockings!!
And I sure know you have lots of class!!
~ Diane Clancy
www.dianeclancy.com/blog
Diane, sorry to shatter your illusions!
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