My Charity Shop Luck Turns

I have had no charity shop luck for ages. A change of scenery this weekend did the trick though! I was kitten wrangling and house sitting in the wilds of West Lancashire as my brother was off having a drunken birthday weekend somewhere. Whilst I was there, what could be better than a little trip to Ormskirk and Burscough to check out their charity shops?

M&S Limited Collection shorts

An old Pentax camera case. How cute a handbag will this make? Look:


Two scarves, only £1 each. If the Aquascutum one is real then I will be as pleased as punch. If not, it's still rather fab so I don't really care.

Jewels! The beads and scarf ring were both half price at 70p and 50p respectively. The marcasite brooch was the princely sum of £3.50.

Oh and some books. Obviously.

And in non-charity shop related news, I went to a sweet shop:




And ate leftover birthday cake (triple choc fudge cake with sea salt and lime chocolate shavings on top), made with my own fair hands:

Drank some wine. Well, I always do what I'm told:


And looked after the kittens:
Oh Titch, butter wouldn't melt, would it?
Bruce has the most ginormously fluffy tail EVER:
Home now though. Ahhhhh.

Vintage Bargains?

(but only when it's a bargain)

I've decided to start treating the big Oxfam store in town as less of a charity shop and more of a bargain vintage store. I'm just as guilty as anyone of bitching and moaning about how prices have gone up in charity shops recently but the same applies to vintage stores. I'm a girl in constant search of a bargain and I'm no more likely to spend £12.99 on a secondhand Primark dress from a charity shop than I am £55 on a dirty, ripped 70's maxi from a vintage shop.

But this particular store always has a really good selection of stock. Their stuff is clean, it's good quality, it's in good condition and I personally think prices are pretty reasonable. The frocks tend to range from £6.99 to about £12.99 (maybe up to about £20 for the more evening dress type things but I don't tend to peruse that section). I know this can't compare to unearthing vintage treasures for £2.50 in a little charity shop or 25p at a jumble sale but frankly, I don't have that kind of luck! I'm constantly envious of Vix's bargain hunting skills and have come to the conclusion that I just don't have that sort of luck/instinct/perseverance.

My general rule of thumb tends to be that if I love it and I'd pay the same price or higher for it in a High Street shop then I'll buy it. Do bear in mind that I'm quite stingy and rarely buy anything from proper shops that isn't on sale. Ultimately I'd rather my money went to the charity but I won't pay silly prices for things from charity shops. Barnados in Hunts Cross, with your £39.99 grubby Oasis frock, I hereby name and shame you. I know they have overheads etc but ultimately they're getting their stock for free so I strongly object to being swizzed on prices.

The manager of my local YMCA shop has strong views on this. We had an excellent chinwag about it last time I was in and most of the other customers chimed in with their thoughts (mostly outrage at the prices that the shops in Smithdown Road charge). She's firmly of the opinion that she prices on the low side of realistic because it gets people shopping there and they will come back again and again in search of a bargain. She won't implement the national pricing standards because the shop is always way ahead of its targets anyway. Rock on Mrs Charity Shop Manager.

Ahem. Where was I? Oh yes, today's frock cost £9.99. I think that's reasonable. It's a little too big around the waist but a belt sorts that out. I bought a couple of other dresses whilst I was there but one didn't suit me and has winged its way across to Pearl and the other has a pesky pinging zip which will need fixing before I can wear it out in public safely.

The print is a little bold but hey, I like the crazy prints. That's why I am drawn, magpie-like, to the vintage section in the first place. It's just so much more interesting, colourful and shiny.

Frock - vintage, possibly handmade? No labels anyway
Cardi & belt - Primark
Wedges - Dolcis, present ages ago
Ring - Stolen Thunder

A Few Purchases...

Despite living so close to a decent sized city, I think my spiritual home is probably a market town. I don't know if I could cope with the lack of theatres, restaurants and cinemas if I actually lived in one (hark at me sounding like a culture vulture) but the shopping on offer suits me right down to the ground. Charity shops, bookshops, teashops and usually a decent antiques/bric a brac shop that you can poke around in for hours - my idea of a jolly good time.




Top marks to Leominster, my destination this morning, because it has all of those, plus an amazing vintage shop. I really do mean amazing. I would have taken photos but the owner was moving the window displays round and looked quite harassed so I didn't want to bother her by asking. Sadly it was out of my price range but that's largely because a) I'm skint and b) it was none of your dodgy 90's gear masquerading as vintage. It was chockfull of 20's beaded dresses and Edwardian lace trimmed nighties and the most beautiful evening bags you've ever seen. I think the prices were probably pretty good considering the quality of the stock but like I say, I'm not very well off until payday.

Instead I hit the charity shops. I'm finding that a lot of stuff just isn't to my taste at the moment - perhaps I'm getting fussier or maybe it's because they've all put their winter stock out and I never enjoy browsing through rails of heavy dull coloured clothing in the same way that I do brightly patterned summer things. Having said that, I did find some gems. I should probably point out that I'm not just buying vintage stuff for the sake of it. If I see nice second hand High St things then I'll get them, I just don't seem to seeing anything in that category that I like much!

Hospice shops are just the best. Cheaper and with much more interesting stock on display. This is a very non matching sort of suit but that's good because I hadn't planned to wear it all together. I'm thinking the jacket will look good with jeans and heels, the pussybow blouse will look good with anything and I am ridiculously drawn to tweedy/tartan skirts at the moment so am very pleased with the skirt. £5 for the lot! Oh, and 50p for the lovely silk scarf.

Also the volunteer behind the till said "ooh, what a lovely rig" which made me feel rather deliciously girl about town with her new suit.

Another little independent charity shop contained these two beauties. I don't care if the cream jumper is technically a size 18 - it's very warm and very nice and that's all that matters. The dress is perhaps a little bit mad by my usual standards but if it doesn't suit me I'm sure I can think of someone who would like it.

I seem to be turning up the odd nice thing in YMCA shops recently and today was no exception. A green 1970's 100% wool waistcoat for £3? Don't mind if I do. And the buttons were too fun to leave behind.

While I'm a charity shop haul roll, why not share my Saturday purchases from Hereford?

Another silk scaf which is destined as a Christmas gift for a friend, some tights (the pair you can't see properly are Dior) and some rather fun vintage shoes.

A pretty plate which will no doubt get pressed into service as a jewellery holder.

Speaking of jewellery, this beauty came from the same shop.


Did I mention I'm in love with tweed? Char found this vintage St Michaels skirt with belt and pockets and I had to buy it. I love a good pocket. Might have to play with the length a bit as, being so short, I find below the knee/calf length skirts a bit tricky. We shall see.

And saving the best for last....

You all know my heart belongs to books. I found these three in a cracking little charity bookshop (basically a really good second hand bookshop but with lower prices). On the same shelf no less! I may well have squeaked with glee - they're three of my favourite authors and I've read my pb copy of Devil's Cub so much that it's falling apart.

I Love Payday

October was a bit of a frugal month due to some unexpected expenses. November won't be much better as I'm going on holiday and have to pay for that but I've done my budget for the month and allowed myself a small amount of spends for fripperies like clothes.

How to stretch that small amount? Firstly, sales shopping:

River Island currently has 50% off all sale prices so for the princely sum of £15.50 I got some House of Holland "House" tights, some green fishnets, a plain longsleeved cream top, a nice slouchy green top with a key & padlock pattern and the best bit - some gorgeous tapestry cord shorts. These are the first pair of shorts I've ever bought. I'm still not sure I'm brave enough to show that much of my thighs but I was too taken by the fabric to leave them behind.

Secondly, charity shopping:

I do love discovering a new charity shop, especially when it's a local one that doesn't dramatically overprice stuff. I think I spent £9 in there and got all of the above stuff. I'd almost given up hope on the white blouse hunt so was chuffed to find this vintage beauty. The patterned thing next to it is a more modern tea dress. And £2 for some vintage, never worn, burgundy leather sandals? Don't mind if I do!

Going home with a bag full of lots of lovely cheap books makes Alex a very happy girl. Elizabeth Goudge is one of my favourite authors and her books aren't always easy to track down, so I did a small jig of joy when I saw a 1956 hardback of Green Dolphin Country, in immaculate condition, for only 50p. The roaring 20's book looks like much fun too.

Thirdly, a little vintage store:

It sold such nice things and they weren't expensive at all. I fell mildly in love with a checked 50's day dress but as I'm nowhere near a size 8, it wasn't meant to be. I got myself a fluted chiffon green and white scarf instead, and this very cheerful white and yellow tank top.

I also discovered a little bazaar type shop with lots of interesting furniture and fur coats in. Tucked away right at the back was a true find but I'm not going to share pics because it's going to be a present for someone else and I don't want to spoil the surprise.

I think I did rather well. Can't have spent more than £30 in total and that wouldn't get me a nice jumper in most High St shops!