We treated ourselves to a weekend away visiting my sister on the Isle of Wight. We didn’t need beach towels but the cold weather didn’t stop us enjoying the trip and the children had an amazing time with their cousins. There was a boat trip, long pub lunches, face painting for the toddler, and some rare child-free hours for me to go charity shopping which was really lovely and much appreciated. Staying in a hotel is never easy with two young children. Our routine goes out of the window and mealtimes and bedtimes slip. The children did go to bed…
-
-
We all have them. Those items that make our heart beat just a little bit faster when we see them on a shelf in a charity shop. We’re currently in Devon which for me is charity shop heaven. Although we’re only here for a weekend, over the summer we went glamping for a week (which made me long for electricity and hot running water!). We visit my father in law so I have a few old favourites where I know I’m likely to pick up some special items. I like to refer to it as the charity shop triangle –…
-
Ok, I’ll admit I’m addicted to vintage Fisher-Price. The products are just so nostalgic and such great quality that my children enjoy playing with them as much as I did. I always see vintage Fisher-Price in charity shops and they are not too expensive to collect. In fact I spotted an original Fisher-Price telephone in a shop in Pinner yesterday but thought I might get told off if I brought another one home! Anyway, I wanted to showcase some of the toys I’ve bought recently so please join me on a little nostalgic trip back to my childhood. The Fisher-Price…
-
I have a new hunting ground, Westbury in Wiltshire, where my mother has recently moved. We’re currently visiting and I was able to visit some of the charity shops. The first charity shop was an Age UK where the toddler spotted a Tomy Thomas & Friends Post Office Loader. He has a Big Loader at home which he loves so we bought this too on the premise we keep it at Nanny’s house. When we got it home we realised it was complete but missing the instructions and balls! Hhhmmm. However, it was easy to put together from the picture on…
-
I’m not quite sure what made me buy these. I have a thing for souvenirs of London and thought they were kind of kitsch. There was a set of four on a shelf, featuring a view of Leicester Square, Soho Square, Sloane Square and Berkeley Square. I’m a proud Londoner and knew I wanted the Leicester Square and Soho Square tins. Pre-children I had a pretty good social life and loved going out in the West End. Charity shop guilt kicked in though. How could I leave two tins on the shelf when they were clearly part of a set?…
-
I don’t need to tell regular readers that my son is a huge Thomas the Tank Engine fan. I spotted a vintage Thomas duvet cover in a charity shop and snapped it up for a couple of pounds. When I got it home I wasn’t sure how to use it – re-size it as a toddler duvet, a bean bag cover or cushion cover. Instead I thought it would make two fun fitted sheets. The ones we’ve been using have been plain blue and these would be a little different. It was quite simple to make. I unpicked the duvet…
-
Yesterday we took the toddler to Bekonscot Model Village and Railway, the world’s oldest, original model village. It has a model train so we knew the toddler would love it, and he did. It was a little hot for me but he ran round, pointing out the little houses and people and shouting “TRAIN!” every time one of the model trains went past. Beaconsfield charity shops The model village is in Beaconsfield which has been labelled Britain’s richest town so I knew the charity shops would be worth a look. I only managed two because I spent too much but…
-
Luckily for us we get to spend a lot of time on the Isle of Wight. If you’ve never heard of it, it’s a small island off the South Coast of England. It’s where I grew up and where my family live. It’s also the best stomping ground for charity shops, especially Ryde, where my mum and sister happen to live. I always make sure to spare an hour or so to walk down the beautiful High Street into Union Street and down to the beach and there are plenty of charity and antique shops to keep you busy along…
-
We’ve lived in Wood Green in north London for the last 6 years but have only visited the handful of charity shops a couple of times. However, last week we popped into Oxfam and were rewarded with a haul! First up were two new-to-us Thomas the Tank Engine DVDs. There was no way the toddler could not have these so we snapped them up. As I was paying I noticed a big bag of Brio by the counter. The toddler just loves his trains and already has a good Brio collection so we bought this too! You can never have…