BSL Eltham this week.

After a few weeks where nothing much was coming into our shop, it looks like the locals have started their spring cleaning in earnest. We have been flat out sorting the donations, and there has been some good stuff come in. One of the other volunteers showed me this purple scarf before she put it out in the shop. "Thought you might be able to use it for patchwork" she said. No way!! I'm into purple at the moment, and can't wait to fling this around my neck and waltz down Main Street!

This enamel brooch for $5 caught my eye in the display case. It is made in Ireland, and based on the calligraphy in the ancient Book Of Kells. I have a scarf that has Kells calligraphy on it, so I'll use the brooch to pin it up next time I wear it.

Speaking of purple, I saw this Katies blouse on the rack for $4 and decided to add it to my wardrobe of many shades of purple! It looks grey here, but in the right light it has a sort of mauve shimmer.

This extra long Millers cardigan looks great on me, as short cardigans and jackets make me look even shorter than I am. In great condition for $3.

Some pre-summer bargains!

Usually on a Friday morning we'll nip to the Vinnies in Altona North to see what we can see. Well, I saw this!

 It hadn't been priced so we asked the staff lady who offered it to us for $8 - of course we snapped it up! I felt a bit guilty actually as they probably could have asked a bit more.
I also found this awesome sparkly Crimplene dress for only $6 - original tags still attached!

Sometimes you find one thing that just makes your day, and for me it was this dress - I felt like I shouldn't even look at any of the other racks cos I'd be pushing my luck! Of course, that didn't stop us from sneaking off to Savers Footscray at lunchtime. I nabbed this lovely rayon fabric (about 3m) for $3.99.

And my partner in crime scored a great Hawaiin shirt for $8 too.

I'd also just like to respond to Dian's post about the pushy customer - I think that kind of behaviour is unacceptable. Well done Dian for supporting the sales lady. Volunteers should not have to deal with that kind of drama! She should have reported HIM to the media!!

Happy shopping weekend everyone!

Dandenong Savers

Savers Dandenong is closing at its current location on 20th October. Until then it is business as usual - then 18th - 20th October there will be a 50% of everything sale.

Brand new bigger store opening 8th November at Fountain Gate Shopping Centre (next to Sam's warehouse).  Visit www.savers.com.au

Women's Circus troupe performing in op shop windows

This October a troupe from the Women’s Circus will be somersaulting and cart wheeling through Melbourne op shop windows for Buy Nothing New Month.

In homage to the month that promotes conscientious consumption, the nouveau cirque troupe will encourage shoppers to take a second look at second hand by turning every day op shop donations into a razzle dazzle spectacle.

Presented by Sacred Heart Mission, the performers will tell the story of a little girl’s toy room coming alive through its show-womanship of contortion, stilting, acrobalance, tumbling and just plain clowning around - using only op shop donations for props and costumes.

Women’s Circus performer Michelle Buza said Buy Nothing New Month was a chance to show off what can be done with both the ordinary and extraordinary objects that can be found in op shops. 

“Buy Nothing New Month is about taking the challenge to buy nothing new for the month of October, except for essentials. It’s about thinking of the alternatives to purchasing new stuff such as buying second-hand, borrowing, renting or swapping; choosing experiences like going to the circus with friends instead of splurging on a brand new dress; promoting community over consumerism.”

The troupe will perform in four Sacred Heart Mission op shop windows.

People are urged to get in early to secure a good window view and kids are encouraged to press their noses against the glass.

Showtimes:

Saturday 6 October 2012

10:30am - Hawthorn, 86 Riverdsale Rd (cnr Glenferrie Rd) (ph 9819 9593)

11:45am - South Melbourne, 365 Clarendon St (ph 9690 3392)

Saturday 27 October 2012

10:30am - Bentleigh, 271 Centre Road (ph 9557 0895)

11:45am - Elsternwick, 1/486 Glenhuntly Road (ph 9528 5893)

All proceeds from Sacred Heart Mission op shops go towards its work with people who are homeless or living in poverty.

www.sacredheartmission.org

www.buynothingnew.com.au

www.womenscircus.org.au

Lions Trash and Treasure Sale

Blackburn North Lions Club will hold its next monster trash and treasure sale on Saturday, 6 October 2012.

Time: 8 am to 1 pm

Usual place: 1^st Vermont Scout Hall, near the corner of Canterbury Rd and Mitcham Rd, Vermont.

Lots of bargains and something for everyone.

Tuesday

Today I needed to fill in some time before a hairdressing appointment  so I walked over to the Salvos Store in Mount Eliza.

This is a very high quality store featuring mostly clothes, shoes, accessories and some very good china, silver and glassware.

 Today it was the fashion that caught my eye.
This little leather vest was marked at $25 and is a size 10.  Something for the young ones.

Behind it is a fake fur jacket.

 There are lots of hats - some already to wear and some waiting for personal touches.

A good place to buy that special cup day accessory.

 On this shelf there were amazing shoes.  mmmm













How about some pink ribbon shoes and a floral bag.

Sorry about the sideways pick, but these are my purchases.

A pretty china plate for $3.99, a rectangular melamine snack plate for $2.99, and a Dolce & Gabanna purse for $12.99.

 Once my hair was done I thought a little trip to Vinnies in Tyabb Road Mornington was in order.











I picked up some metallic paint suitable for fabrics etc, a doiley, led light, a couple of tins, a clothes brush, some cross stitch kits, an awl and a little porcelain pill box.

All for $14.50 - Vinnies had everything in store at half price so I was really thrilled.

My final call was to the Salvos in Tyabb Road and I found so many lovely things there.
The gorgeous little skirt is for one of the twins  I mind.  At $2.99 it was a real bargain.

 I bought some very pretty Royal Albert pin dishes (4 for $6.99) and of course some embroidered linen (99c each) and hankies.(10 for $6.99).

There are some craft items and some little farm animals and bouncey balls for the twins (I mind them 3 days a week).

A partly stitched tapestry also made it into my basket.($3.99)













I just want to make some comment about pricing in the op shops.

The Salvos in Mount Eliza is much more expensive than the other shops I call on but they have a great range of designer and top fashion items in good clean condition.  The clientele also tend to be a bit better off so can afford the prices charged. 

When I was at the Salvos store in Tyabb Road I witnessed a "customer" berating the store manager over the price of some shoes.  He claimed he could buy the "same" shoes cheaper at Rivers.  The manager explained the different brand and quality of the shoes but he was really obnoxious and "threatened" to go to the media.  I felt quite disturbed by his threatening manner as he kept pushing the woman back into a corner by his attitude.  As a response I walked over and stood beside her to show my support and he eventually left.  She did explain to him that he did not have to shop there, that she needed to pay overheads etc, that proceeds go to helping needy people.  Some people are just full of rubbish.  The staff at all the op shops I call at are invariably cheerful and helpful.

Surely we can all be civil to one another.   Now I will climb down from my soap box.

this week at the oppie

Today I stopped in at the Vinnie's in Ascot Vale and scored some nice warm throw rugs for next winter (I am thinking positively that Melbourne will have no more cold days until next winter) This winter we didn't use our electric blanket at all and tried to minimise the use of our heater and reduced our electricity bill considerably so am planning on doing the same next winter. The crocheted one was $8 and the 'Warrnambool' Tartan woollen one was $7

Last Saturday I purchased this cute Japanese 'Maruhon Ware' dish for $3, a cribbage game for $1 and  a beautiful book about gold for $5 at the Christ Church oppie in Brunswick. The book was part of an exhibition that was on in Canberra about 10 years ago. 

 I also went to the St. John's oppie in Brunswick West and bought this 'Review' brand top for $4 and some lululemon pants for $2. By looking at the tags, both seem to be in near new condition! I also found some cute cream leather gloves for $2. Sorry about the upside down shot :o(

Op shopping is the best!!! :o)

This week's bargains.

I was in the south eastern surburbs last week on another mission, but couldn't resist dropping into the RSPCA opshop while I was in the area, and found these goodies. Three metres of Liberty Of London fabric - $5.


Sweet little vintage embroidered 'tea time' tray cloth $4.

Unusual vintage embroidered tea cosy with Assisi style stitching $8.

Unopened (sealed) box of artist pastels $10.

Bag of sewing threads in colours I needed, but didn't want to pay $10 a reel for - this lot for $5!

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Then on Friday at the BSL in Eltham, I found some fantastic lengths of fabric, a book, a brooch and some nice clothes.

I haven't photographed the clothes as they don't look anything on a hanger, but once I tried them on, they fit so well I figured they were made for me!  A two piece suit (jacket and skirt) and a skivvy which just happend to match the suit. 

This length of Batik just shrieked at me - I love it!   $5.

 Long length of lovely material with berries and grapes.  $8

 Vivid pink and orange pattern fabric. $4.50

 Beautiful old cameo brooch which I have used to embellish a patchwork wall hanging. $10.

 The MOTH and I are great fans of The Two Ronnies, so I am looking forward to reading this book. $1.

An assortment of STUFF

Sigh, working full-time really puts a crimp on one's op shopping life. The past two weekends I braved the weekend crowds (hey, more than 3 people in one op shop feels like a crowd to me!), and visited some old stomping grounds.

At the Salvos in Doncaster East I found a chunky wooden bracelet for $3....

....and this cute pair of wooden earrings for $1, though I'll probably re-purpose the apples into something else....

...and lastly this lightweight cotton shirt for $6. The colours grabbed me and reeled me in.

At the Animal Aid shop in Blackburn South, all clothes were half price, so this Max Mara tunic/dress thingy ended up being $2....

...and this tunic $1.50.

And lastly, a few doors down at the Mission op shop in Blackburn South I bought a winter woolly knitted hat for $2 (modelled by Froggy).

aquascutum

I occasionally read on US blogs (for instance) that someone has picked up  a pair of 1970s Christian Dior boots at the thrift store and think, 'hmm, I'm not sure that a pair of Christian Dior boots even existed in Australia in the 1970s', let alone that they might be my size. But, people have brought luxury goods to Australia, either when they migrated here or home from a holiday, and sometimes those things end up at the op shop. And sometimes they're in my size!


I bought this beautiful woollen coat from the Salvation Army in St Kilda. The lines are just wonderful, the quality amazing, the fit is great!

And I love the buttons.

Do you have a luxury find to boast about?