I love op shopping. Have done for years. Although I did have a break for a number of years for lack of opportunity, but now that I’m on maternity leave, I’m back in the swing of it again.
What I like about op shopping is the potential of finding something truly amazing that someone else has discarded, of giving something a new life.
I like all my finds. Rarely am I disappointed. I like to think my finds serve a purpose, they have a practical life in my household, whether it is a toy for my toddler, or an item of clothing for me.
I dislike having too much stuff, I live in a small house, and my cupboard space is limited, so I make it a point of taking roughly the same number of items back to the op shop as I take home. This means that I avoid that drowning feeling that I sometimes get.
Because my household does not own a car, I walk everywhere – with baby in pram and pre-schooler by my side. Therefore, I only frequent my local Yarraville op shops. The Uniting Care Bargain Centre and the Green Collective.
The Green Collective has a more ‘commercial’ display; the items are more expensive – not always better quality, though often it is. The UC Bargain Centre has better bargains; it’s more a ‘traditional’ op shop, so you do have to have your ‘hunter-gatherer’ instincts in working order. Oh but the good finds are always worth the effort!
These are my April finds.
First up are the toys that my pre-schooler has found. I am training him to be a discerning op shopper. We like toys that you can build with and make things with, like Duplo and Lego, Fisher Price’s Little People, and a very cute 1974 Palymobil toy (unfortunately, he is missing his headpiece). All of them fit into his range of toys, so he is building up his collection of characters. These toys were less than $1 each. Some were twenty cents. The Duplo puppy face has been used in so many of his 'robot' constructions!
Then to the stuff for me, here are some very comfortable jeans ($18) top ($5.50) and jacket ($15). The jeans are sass and bide (I am told out of fashion, since skinny jeans are all the rage now). The top is pure cotton and very soft. The jacket is Barkin and is made of hemp. My favourite though are the 63 bright red glass beads, very beautiful and with a nice weight - purchased for $2.50, re-strung with silver clasp for $20.
