Thrifting Shopping Haul!

Just a quick trip to my two nearest charity (thrift) shops today. Both are run by local hospices; Acorns and Myton Coventry. They are both excellent charities and I would ask anyone who lives in the area to consider donating - or buying - or both. Thrifting is one of those times when everything just comes together perfectly, so everybody wins. The donor declutters and gets the warn fuzzy glow of knowing they've done good without even trying. The buyer gets a bargain. The charity gets a donation, hopefully with gift-aid to boot. And the planet gets to postpone the day when all this junk ends up buried in the ground. Once all of my surgery is out of the way, I plan to volunteer at one of my local shops; until then, I'll have to settle for retail therapy!

Not a vintage haul today, but:

Cluedo (just Clue everywhere but the UK, I think) had been sitting in the Myton shop for a week. Its condition looks too good to butcher for books really, but as nobody else was buying it, and it was only £2, it would be rude not to! I was chatting with one of my favourite volunteers about it. She thinks it looks too old for people to want. I have to confess, I have never once sat down to play a game then decided not to because the board is too 80's. And I thought the 80's were in again now, anyway?

Whatever, it's mine now and I imagine it will be board books by the weekend!

There's another board in the picture too - top centre. It's a Little Mermaid game board that had been donated, inexplicably, on its own. My lovely volunteer offered it me for free. I gave her 50p. A donation is a donation is a donation. I think this will become books as well.

I have to confess that there's nothing wrong with this Memory Game either, apart from that it's a bit dated and smells a bit musty. I had the exact same one when I was a kid and I just had to buy it. £1.50 from Acorns! I'm thinking mini-books, but that is because I am book obsessed right now. I have no idea if they'll be any good; each tile is just two inches square. I adore the pictures on them. They're just the right brand of retro kitsch. Plus, they bring back many happy memories. I was a five-year-old Rain Man and could beat anyone at it. 

Now, here's a question for you. What would you do if you owned a lovely Laura Ashley sweater? Hopefully you wouldn't wash it wrong then donate it to a charity shop, which is what someone did. Luckily I have a contact who keeps these things by in case they interest me. And at 70% lambswool and 30% angora, this interested me a lot! I gave £2, which I consider fair; I usually pay £3-5 for Laura Ashley garments that are in wearable condition. The picture above really doesn't do it justice, but it's a lovely deep red with embroidered and beaded flowers. I'm already thinking a couple of handbags and matching purses. The only downside is that I usually make my garments up before felting, because the finish ends up being so much better. But the thing about thrifting is that it's rare to find things that are already perfect; that's the challenge and that's what makes it so much fun!