Haulternative - recent charity shop finds

(NB - firstly, I just want to say that, although these charity shop buys would not break the rules of my Buy Nothing New Challenge, I bought them in January.  I'd decluttered enough stuff to fill up a couple of charity donation bags, and I felt a bit rubbish with a cold, so I treated myself...!)

So let's jump in:

First up, there's a T-shirt from George (Asda) for £1.25 at Cancer Research.  I live in T-shirts and jeans, so an extra tee never goes amiss, especially at that price. 

Next, a new cotton facecloth for 50p, also Cancer Research.  For a long time, muslin cloths have been the thing, but actually, I prefer an proper old-fashioned facecloth.  I've noticed that hotels are more likely to provide them with the towels these days, so maybe they're having a bit of a comeback.

Then I got a bracelet and a necklace for 99p each from the Salvation Army shop.  I've noticed they've put their prices up quite a bit, especially in the trinket and ornament department.  These two didn't have price tags, but the lady at the till just asked for 99p each for them, which was fine by me.

Here's a closer pic of them:

The bracelet has a casual, summery feel, and the little charms are extra cute. I haven't worn it yet as it doesn't feel right with long sleeves and wintery layers.  I've worn the necklace a couple of times, though - it's really delicate and pretty. 

Next, I got a book about houseplants, also 99p from the Salvation Army.  I need more plants in my life, and this is a good place to start. 

And finally.... a gorgeous little penguin!  (£2.99 from Oxfam, for the record.)

OK, I don't actually need a penguin ornament, but I couldn't walk out without him.  The lady at the till was not best pleased - she'd had her eye one him, and was hoping he wouldn't find his way out to the shop floor.  Too bad - he's mine!

(And the Buy Nothing New Challenge? I've had a blip, but not a terrible one.  I'll let you know how it's going in my first update, which will be on its way very soon...!)

Thrifted Thursday - recent frugal charity shop finds

As an antidote to Black Friday, and on a different day, here are my recent finds from my local charity shops.  It's a little home wares haul this time, and all the pieces are already being loved and used in my house. 

Even with charity shop visits, I have started a process of not buying something I like there and then.  Regardless of how inexpensive it might be, it's still a waste of money if you buy on impulse, and that item just becomes another unit of clutter.  So I spotted all these items on the first trip round the shops, but left it till the next day to go back and buy them. 

This way, if I've forgotten about something I've seen, then I can't have wanted it that badly in the first place.  If an item has been sold by the time I get back to the shop, then the decision is taken out of my hands.  If I go back in search of something, and it's still there, and I'm sure I'll use/enjoy it, then I'll go ahead and buy my thrifty little treasures. 

So this time round, I got:

1) A couple of plant pots.  Their simple, minimal designs caught my eye, and they were under £2 each. 

2) A ceramic pot with a lid, which says Le Bain on the front.  As the name suggests, I've put it to use in the bathroom, to store cotton buds and cotton face pads. It cost £3.

3) The candle dish that the red candle is sitting on, which was £1.

4) And finally, a plate, originally from M&S, for £3.99.  I loved this complex peacock pattern at first sight, and I'm using it as a decorative item rather than as a dinner plate.  It would do as a serving plate if I was ever to find myself in need of making canapés available to guests (not something that happens very often...).

So that's my haul.  No Black Friday stress, no need to trouble the overdraft, and I've given a little bit of cash to charity into the bargain.  It's all good...!

Charity shop mini-haul

Another mini-haul! I've noticed that a lot of charity shops are charging much higher prices than they used to.  Of course they have to make money for the charity, but when they start to charge the same as it would cost to buy things new, it gets a bit much.  Recently, I've seen things like cafetieres for around £10!  It's not really an incentive to buy second hand if you can buy new for about the same money.

Set against that, my local RSPCA charity shop likes to keep its prices down, and I picked up these little bargains on my last trip there.

1) A piece of fabric, £1.  The colours are so vivid, and it's going to be big enough to make a great shopping bag.
2) A little compact Denman brush/mirror, 20p.  I travel quite a lot for work, and this is a really dinky little brush that I can keep in my travel bag, all ready to go.
3) Food for Free, by Richard Mabey, £1.49.  This is a book about foraging for food, including plants, fungi and seaweed.  I'm kind of nervous about foraging, so I'll avoid mushrooms for now, but I want to give it a go with the non-fungi items. 


Food for Free was published in 1972, but is still in print, and has been updated with more colour illustrations.  The original has lovely little drawings of the plants, although I'd still want to cross-reference with another source before eating anything, just to be sure...

 

This is the little Denman brush opened out, complete with mirror.

 



 

Further charity shop haul

Do two items count as a haul?  I don't know, but I was really pleased with these little items.  Both came from the Salvation Army shop, which still keeps its prices (mostly) pretty low. 

The little notebook cost 29p, and it's just so pretty, with the printed pages.  The soap was 99p, which was great considering that Neal's Yard soaps are normally more like £5 each.  This particular scent, Geranium and Orange, has been discontinued, and it has always been a favourite of mine, so I was chuffed when I spotted it. 

So a total spend of £1.28, which made me disproportionately happy with my mini haul...!

(Note to self - do not start out on a 7 posts in 7 days attempt when there is a bank holiday complete with visiting relatives taking up a big proportion on those 7 days - duh...)

Charity shop mini haul - Coca Cola glasses

Day 2, Post 2 - I'd seen these little Coca Cola glasses before in a charity shop, but when I went back for them, they'd gone.  This was part of my policy of walking away and thinking about a purchase before buying - yes, even from charity shops.  But somebody else nabbed them whilst I was thinking, so I ended up saving my money on that occasion.  So when I spotted these two, a week or two ago, I snapped them up.  (They came from the Mind shop, which is a mental illness charity.) They're lovely to use, they feel nice and weighty in the hand, and I like the retro look.

They were each a different price - apparently, the purple colour is more sought after. Fair enough.  I see it as £3 for two, which is bargain enough for me!