Shopping

Mick you are right certain charities were named and shamed in our local gazette for spending more money on admin, wages etc. It's not hard to find out about this.
All those who see primark clothes for higher prices than in the shop COMPLAIN TO THE HEAD OFFICE not the shop - they dont make the decisions generally on what to price as they have a minimum price to sell at even when they don't agree with it. If something is say worth £2.00 because it sells in Primark for £5.00 many shops are told to rag it rather than sell too cheap even though this is rediculous as they are losing money, throwing away donations that people would buy (especially the poorer people) and only the rag men win at 5p per item or less.
DO YOU WANT A CHEAP BARGAIN
Traid has a sale at the end of each month starting at £4 then £3 then £2 until the last weekend usually a sunday when everything is £1.00 (coats and jackets are a little more. This is the day that it gets packed BECAUSE THE POORER PEOPLE SHOP THEN and unfortunately a few greedy traders who literally try to buy up half the shop at a time. GO EARLY

Zara and Michael - British Heart Foundation in Wandsworth High Street and Trinity in Garrat Lane (10 minute walk from Wandsworth Arndale) both sell furniture - everything from beds to sofa beds to chairs. Wednesdays and middle of week seem to be best days to go - you seem to have a lot of landlords filling their sacks up with the good furniture but you may get lucky. Dining tables and chairs are slower to sell as not everyone has a dining room - good hunting!!

The first charity shops - In the nineteenth century, Salvation Army shops sold second-hand clothing to the urban poor. During the Second World War, other charities started to run shops as a way of raising money for the war effort and relieving hardship. It was after the conflict had ended that the first modern-style charity shops appeared, selling mainly donated goods to raise as much money as possible for the parent charity. The first such shop was set up by Oxfam in 1947-8 in Oxford, to raise funds to relieve famine in Nazi-occupied Greece. The charity’s name in fact originated as a contraction of ‘Oxford Committee for Famine Relief’.

Sorry, can't agree with your assessment of the Dalston Oxfam. Full of dirty old rags with the originals selling for not much more up the road in Peacocks is what I've found.

Why are most of these shops selling designer stuff, I want cheap and tacky charity shop stuff, not desinger rubbish.

Can anyone recommend some good charity shops in Surrey.
I am an avid reader and always on the lookout for books. Some of the charity shops are now charging high prices for books, especially Oxfam and British Heart Foundation.

I'm going to London in October and planning on starting a search for a dress to get married in. Any tips on the best charity shops for this type of search would be great. Have heard of barnardos so far. coming from overseas so areas also good to know.

I volunteered (unpaid) in a charity shop last year, while I was on Maternity leave, I was struggling to make ends meet and thus although there were loads of beautiful items at great prices, I couldn't justify shopping. I really loved doing that job, if I could get free child care I'd gladly do it again! Selling an item which you have lovingly displayed is a real buzz! My top charity shop is Oxfam Chiswick High Rd. Staff fantastic prices very reasonable and plenty of top labels. They also have new Fairtrade labels such as People Tree.

Hello we are going to London for the day early Nov it is a Sat. We are wanting to visit the charity shops. I have been told that there are loads but in one particular area there a lot together. Could anyone give me any info on this. We will be arriving London Kings Cross. Any help would be appreciated thanks

I strongly recommend the Spitalfields Crypt Trust shop on Commercial Street. The books there are priced at 50p and there are some excellent tiles among them.

13/8/09 Hi i have just read information on your site. i'm thinking about taking my 18 year old to london and she loves op shopping here in Australia. i know she would love a day or two hitting the op shops in your city. Is there anyone out there that has info on the (not to expensive ) thrifty shops that we could cover in one or two days. Love to hear.
TIME OUT This is a Fantastic site congradulations.
Christine

I agree with those who say charity shopping is all about messy, jumbled up, dusty environments where when you find something exquisite it truly is, as it's at the bottom of an old basket or at the end of a rail priced at the same as everything else. I visited many of the charity shops recommended by Mary Portas today and to be frank, I was disappointed. Yes, there may be designer there, but don't you know it! And the fact that they are charging £25 for H&M items that were probably less than that new is just disgraceful. I'll stick with my pre-Mary Portas Orpington charity shops thanks. I don't want a wannabe high street shop...I want something different.

I am visiting a friend in London this coming week and would welcome suggestions as to where we can find second-hand (charity shop) classical music CDs and videos - we know about the Oxfam Bookshop in Marylebone High Street.

NOOOOOO! One of these, and I am soooo not saying which one is the absolute best! Got a 100% Cashmere Pringle Cardigan for £12!!! Oh my Lord. Uh-Mazin.
Will defo go and check out the other ones though. Although not the ones on Ken High Street they are incredibly over priced.
If you like cheap books, antique & new, make a trip to the Book Barn in Somerset (not the one in Bristol). Oh my GOODNESS is is AMAZING. 3 million books apparently and you can just walk about gazing at them all... Excellent day out, just try not to buy everything!

South Kensington and Kensington has the best charity shops - though last week I attended a clothes swap at the Dermalogica store just off Kensington Church Street - I walked away with an Alexander McQueen pencil skirt given by a fellow swapper!! I really enjoyed this swap because the items were great quality!

Im going to the next one on Thursday 9th and whats more all clothes left over go to stock up the Queen Elizabeths Foundations charity shops so i dont feel like im taking my clothes away from the charity shop!
When: Thursday 9th July @ 6pm
Where: Dermalogica store, Lancer square, Kensington Church Street W8 4EH
Book by calling 0800 345 7546 or just come along with clothes ready to swap!