When you live in a city that gives you little change from a ten pound note after a sandwich and a daily paper and it’s fast approaching that time of the month when your bank balance has a few less zero’s then you thought, you need to pass the weekends somehow and cheaply. Having just reviewed Cheap Date’s Guide to Style and with my friend Emma and I, both going through a cash-poor, time-rich period, we just gandered around my high street and in the Animal Aid charity shop, we struck lucky.
This isn’t supposed to illustrate ‘Charity Shop Score of the Century’ or anything but rather, what a typical Saturday morning, out and about on my boring local high street can yield. Without fail, on the third week of every month, I thrift to replace weekly shopping in ‘proper’shops (kudos to those that thrift day and night, 365 days a week but alas shiny lights and pretty stores lure me in when I have the cash to flash…) because fashion hunting doesn’t necessarily have to stop even if you’re pinching the pennies.
So my Saturday, very mundane, routinely, every-third-week-of-the-month charity shop outing got me a Kenneth Cole leather mini pouch which I intend to adorn with mini chains and for Emma, a pair of Charles Jourdan red/pink, suede/leather shoes. Tenner for the bag, fiver for the shoes – standard London charity shop prices so next month, we plan on venturing outside the M25 to get even thriftier.


Very au courant color combo on the shoes! Love it!
oh how i love thrifting… cambridge has one street with about 10 charity shops, and then we have the almost warehouse sized salvation army shop on mill road… be still my beating, thrifty heart ;-D ur post has reminded me i’m supposed to be going on a mammoth charity shop raid tomoro – yay!!!
oh and i love both the bag and the shoes!
xxxc
I saw your fashion profile at flypaper.bluefly.com so cute! Love your site.
Cassiopeia: If I was still at uni, I’d so take the trip up to Cambridge (I had friends up there for uni) just for that street you described!
My friend and I charity shop EVERY Saturday (I work in the city centre and can’t face it weekends too so I stick to my on area) and I reckon if you score something amazing damn right you should be shouting CHARITY SHOP SCORE OF THE CENTURY to anyone who’ll listen!!! Especially as they are mostly full of old tat, so coming up with a gem is a good feeling! Although I must admit, I do feel icky about wearing second hand shoes.
great shoes… i find that thrift shops have great finds, and they play a vital role in my wardrobe. there’s one or two that i stop in on a regular basis. like one that always has cheap ferragamo’s… which are great for the city where you have to walk all the time.
Wow, that pouch looks a lot like a mens bag that I saw at H&M 2 days ago! Like it!
Ouu the Jet Stream collection from Kenneth Cole. I have the “medium” sized one from that collection and a HUGE greyish green one. well done!
(Is London that pricey? Wow, that’s about $20 US for a sandwich and paper – a ton even for NYC!)
awsome shoes and awsome bag!
>_< the living cost in london is crazy!
Oh… LOVE the bag! It’s so nice… Beautiful shoes!
I wanted to get myself a mini pouch too.. Hmm.. Btw, amazing blog! 🙂
love the shoes!
i’ve been to london so many times, never heard of those charity-shops though. so, next time you gonna send me a list, susie, will you? 😉
i just love vintage shoes, regrettably women’s feet have been so small back then, that doesn’t really correspond with my size-8-feet. I)
Here is the link to a charity shop locator for the UK, but remember hands off the south coast, it’s mine!
http://ccgi.charityshops.plus.com/locator.php
anyone dropping by cambridge should definitely check burleigh street out – i had an amazingly successful trip where i spent an entire week’s budget without spending more than a fiver on anything – and i’ve worn quite a few of the pieces already with compliments every time! ah how i love charity shops! susie, if you’re ever down this way again come shopping with me! 😀 – tho i have to admit looking forward to being back in london next week for some serious market, vintage and boutique trawling with mother and old friends… sigh…
back to work (doh!)
xxxc