Charity Shop Treasure

Today I thought I'd share a couple of exciting charity shop finds from earlier this week! 

Almost every time I visit a charity shop, I leave, empty handed and scratching my head thinking "But where is all the good stuff?" I could never understand why so many people discovered such amazing one-off pieces, but all I ever found were smelly, moth eaten jumpers, and tops from Primark that were being sold for more than they were bought in the first place! (Yes, charity shop people, the label says 'atmosphere', I KNOW it's from Primark... you can't fool me.) Was there some secret room holding all the treasures, that one could only enter after uttering the magic password? I was convinced this was the case, until a freezing cold Tuesday earlier this week when I decided to have a browse in the St. Michael's Hospice charity shop, whilst my Mum did some food shopping. 

It took me a little while to get into the groove, and generally with charity shop shopping, I think you have to be in the right frame of mind. It's all about being open minded, and being willing to take the time to sift through all the junk! I hadn't even planned to go in, and didn't expect I'd find anything, so you can imagine my excitement when I came across these beauties!

Treasure numero uno, is this bad boy, a genuine Levis denim jacket!!!!! Calm down, calm down (I'm talking to myself here, not you). I couldn't believe it when I saw it! And it's in such good condition too! It's a little distressed, but just the right amount, and ughhh I just love it. Here's the sad part. It's actually a men's XL, which I don't mind, I actually really like the over sized... slightly masculine look. But then I thought of my younger brother, and how awesome this would look on him.... and how I could potentially give it to him for Christmas.. I wasn't sure if he'd actually like a denim jacket like this, as he's never had one before, and I'd never heard him mention one, only that he quite likes vintage looking things. So, I tried to (not so) subtly ask him what he thought of them... he knew straight away what I was asking, and I basically ruined the whole surprise! So in the end, I told him I'd bought this jacket for myself and thought of him - he tried it on, loved it, and that's the end of that.  Goodbye lovely Levis jacket! *sigh*

Saying that, it's not really *sigh*, because my brother IS gnna look cool in it, and I guess I can borrow it every now and then!

The next exciting purchase, treasure number two, was this little number! 

Obviously you can tell this was a very exciting day for me, and when ringing my friend to share the good news (who wasn't quite as excited as I'd have liked) I tried and failed to describe this coat as anything remotely desirable. Imagine that you were her, listening on the phone... "..and I found this really cool jacket, coat thing!", "uhuh, what's it like?" "well... it's corduroy and it's kind of beige, and it has a paisley print all over it". It sounds disgusting right?! There is no nice way of describing this jacket. But it's just so lovely! I love everything about it, from the print, to the oversized-ness, to the golden silky lining that pokes out when the sleeves are rolled up (which they will be because the arms are so long!). I don't know if I'm just being completely over the top, and ridiculous, and actually, it's disgusting. Maybe my judgement was clouded by the fact that it was so cheap (£7.50) or the high that I was on from my previous discovery. But I don't think it was. A couple of days have passed now, and I still love it! It would look completely at home if you found it amongst the many wonders at Urban Outfitters and probably at ten times the cost! 

So I'll let you in on a secret. The password to get into the magical room is to turn around three times, wink with both eyes at the person behind the counter and whisper "I am the chosen one". The magic door will open up, and all of the 'good stuff' will be there waiting for you. Trust me, it works! 

Hahaha, I jest. The moral of the story is, don't give up on charity shop shopping! You won't find something every time you go, but the trick is to keep going! Charity shops get new things coming in every day, so you never know what you might find. Today might be your lucky day! 

xxx