Saturday 29 January 2011

Thrift Shop / Charity Shop Bargains

Some people don't like to admit that they shop around in charity shops because they feel embarrassed.  I am what you called 'thick skinned', I don't particularly care if people want to tell me that I should never admit to shopping in these shops!  Some people are millionaires from buying other peoples cast offs.  Many businesses are successful by buying antiques that can be found in charity shops.  I however, don't know the first thing about antiques, but I do like to look around for bargains!  I have bought many things for my sewing projects from these shops.  Buying Large Quilt Covers or curtains with lovely designs is my speciality.  The picture above shows a curtain I bought really cheap and managed to make about 6 children's aprons and 5 slip covers for storage boxes.

Don't get me wrong, not everything in these shops are in excellent condition.  I always have to triple check everything by looking for blemishes, holes or cuts in the fabric.  You will also find items for sale that are brand new (still with original tags on) in the shops too.  Its amazing the type of things that people give away for free.

The small independent charity shops are the best when looking for value for money.  The major high street shops have set prices for their stock and generally don't give any discounts to individuals.  The small independent ones that I visit, sell their items much cheaper and normally discount when you buy multiple items.  If you bring in a few bags of donated items, you may even get more discounts from them, because they really appreciate your donations and reward you for it.  I also find that the staff in these charity shops are much nicer to deal with also!

The things I often purchase from charity shops are things I can repurpose or upcycle.  For example, I will buy a dress that I know I will be able to change into an apron, or large curtains and quilt covers which can be used for various projects.  As soon as I return home, the items I purchase are placed straight into washing machine before I do anything with them. I know some shops will actually wash the items before they sell them, but I still prefer to give the items a wash myself.

Most of the time you will find something that grabs your attention, but don't give up looking if you don't find something straight away.  I went out today and looked through all the high street charity shops and came out of all them, disappointed!  I didn't even find one thing, but I will check again in a week's time once they have new stock put out.   Good bargain hunting!

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