Tag: charity shops

Charity Swap

Fenn Wright & Manson dress

Look! We have a garden now! An almost-completed deck, and an almost-completed lawn! By the end of the weekend it should all be done. We just need to remember to keep watering the lawn every day, especially if it’s going to stay sunny. We should probably buy a lawn mower at some point too…

So, we took two more boxes of stuff down to one of our local charity shops, and I managed to come home with this lovely summer dress. It’s a little bit too big, but that’s nothing a sewing machine can’t fix! It’s a bit lower at the neck than I’d normally wear, but I’ll give it a try with a t-shirt underneath before I set about putting in a modesty panel of some description.

Fenn Wright & Manson dress

The dress is by Fenn Wright Manson, a brand that’s usually well outside of my budget, so I was very pleased to bring this home for the bargain price of twelve quid! It’s a cotton and silk blend, with an acetate lining. The label says “dry clean only”, but it smells as though it’s been through a washing machine recently and doesn’t seem any the worse for that. I think it’ll survive a cool wash well enough.

I am tempted to grab a bunch of fabric paints to colour it in, but I do think those aqua splashes are lovely!

Charity Shopping

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I’ve lived in Reading for twenty years, and been driven past this shop countless times. Today was the first time I remembered to make a little detour and have a look inside. I think it should probably win some kind of award for Most Bonkers Place I’ve Ever Shopped, even by charity shop standards! Every surface is simply crammed full of STUFF. I wandered up a corner to look at some glassware, and when I came to wander out again, a lady had barricaded me in with a pile of briefcases that I had to clamber over. Bonkers.

I came out with a lovely selection of mis-matched decorated shot glasses that I plan to turn into little candles. I also found a set of 6 iridescent amber glasses that I think I might keep, just because they’re so pretty.

I do love a good charity shop, and I think this has to qualify as one of the best. Whilst I don’t mind the brand-name ones that have “vintage & retro” sections, with items priced accordingly, I do love the places that are more like a jumble sale, or an explosion in a grandmother’s attic. If I’d been able to concentrate enough to really look, I’m sure I could have found even more amazing treasures in the AUTISTIC SHOP. (Plus, proceeds go directly to the Berkshire Autistic Society, who do excellent work in the area.)

Glasses

These are just a few of the treasures that I’ve picked up in local charity shops over the past few weeks. All in need of a good wash, but beautiful nonetheless!

I think what I need to look for now is a really good jumble sale. Once I’m no longer working every weekend, I know of a couple of local church halls that I can frequent. If I can convince Paul that he wants to drive me there, a trip to the monthly Sue Ryder sale at Nettlebed might be in order too. Although their donations list does say that they don’t accept odd glasses and cups… which are the things that I most want! It seems criminal to break up a lovely set that could still be used, for the sake of turning them into candles. Much nicer to pick up oddments and give them a new function, I think.

To shop, or not to shop


Image © Zara

Yesterday I went shopping, and did not buy this silk blouse with hot air balloons and air ships all over it from Zara. I also did not buy two tops with skulls on them from H&M, and a pair of Thundercats Converse from Schuh.

I did buy four pairs of stripy over-the-knee socks, and a bright yellow skirt.

Yellow wool skirt

It’s calf length, 75% wool 25% nylon, fully lined, with pockets in the side seams. Smells a little bit of mothballs now I’ve ironed it (yes, believe it or not I did iron it before I took this picture – clearly not hard enough!), but that’s nothing that a little wash won’t fix. And it shows that somebody’s bothered to look after it. The label says “Yessica” which, if memory serves, is 1980s C&A. It cost a grand total of £6, from the Sue Ryder shop.

I have a sneaky suspicion that this skirt will sit in my wardrobe (along with the tweedy one I bought in May) and be relegated to “vaguely Steampunk dressing-up”. Which would be sad, as it’s a really lovely skirt, great quality, and with details that I really like.

So, why buy the skirt that won’t get worn, and not the blouse that will?

I’ve been trying very hard not to buy mass-produced things from chain stores this year. The biggest exception has been my ever-increasing collection of TM Lewin shirts, but I think I’ve got enough now to last me a good few years. (She says, having just looked at the website and seen a purple flowery one, and a blue one with birds… both reduced from £85 to £20… argh!)

So whilst the hot air balloon blouse is lovely, and silk, and would in fact look great with this yellow skirt… and the skull tops from H&M were just generally awesome (I’m still a sucker for anything with skulls on it)… and the Thundercats Converse were hilarious… they’re all mass-produced, fast fashion, and designed to be disposable. And I don’t want that from my clothes any more.

I’d always thought I wasn’t one to worry about what other people thought of my clothes (see: yellow coat, silly prints, bow ties, gold boots, pink hair, Being A Goth), but I think part of my reluctance to wear skirts like this and my tweedy one is the fear that people might look at me funny. I had a teacher at middle school (anyone remember Mrs Trubshaw?) who was widely ridiculed for wearing unusual clothes, including an a-line skirt with a forest design appliqued round the hem, which a) I would now kill for, and b) was probably actually quite fashionable in the mid 1980s. As kids, we were absolutely horrible to her, and I’m basically afraid of being treated the same way. Which is silly really, because if I coped with people shouting at me in the street when my hair was pink, I’m sure I can deal with a few sideways glances at a yellow skirt.

Perhaps one of my resolutions for 2013 should be to stop falling back into the comfortable trap of jeans and t-shirts, and start putting more effort into wearing the clothes that I really love.