I'm not cheap, I'm frugal

It's wonderful to have found this community of Melbourne op shoppers! Now I don't have to talk about 'charity' shops or 'thrift stores' on my other blog so non-Aussies can understand me. Plus, even though no one else will be quite as excited as I am over my purchases, no one will think I'm odd/somehow dirty/penniless either. Which is still a common misconception about those of us who do what we do. I won't deny that I'm incredibly cheap and love a good bargain though.

So, I've calculated that within a 5 minute car's drive there are around 12 op shops that I visit regularly. Sadly, 3 others (the cheapest and more 'traditional' ones) have closed down in the past few months due to rate increases. My strategy is to head to the book section, then if there's time, childrens' clothes rack, linens (I collect kids' floral doona covers, and vintage pillowcases), women's clothing, storage furniture (can never have too many bookshelves!) and crockery.

One of my more recent bargains was a girl's Charlie Brown cord jacket and pants (size 7) for $8, as modelled by my daughter. I wouldn't want her to wear it as a set, as it's a bit much, but it will look great with a denim skirt or jeans and cowboy boots. She loves it. It was purchased at the Sacred Heart Mission shop on Chapel Street, Windsor. Actually, I think I bought it there, as it was part of my Op Shop Frenzy one solitary Saturday afternoon. There are 4 shops all within a 100 metres of each other on that Chapel Street strip, but I rarely find anything but books. (Just so you know, the mouldy looking stuff on the top of the icypole is passionfruit, it looks repulsive in the photo, I know).