charity shops

I am also a Charity shop worker of 11 years . I am constantly amazed by the fabulous stuff which comes in but also there is the odd bag of dirty stuff which should have gone in the bin . I have had used pot brushes , underwear, filthy towels to name a few . These go in the rubbish which we pay to have taken away . On the other hand we get designer clothes with the labels on , antiques , unopened household items and everything inbetween . I work in the back room sorting and pricing . We are floor to ceiling sometimes with donations which is wonderful but no time whatsoever to count jigsaws . I would only buy an unopened one as most people say they are complete .

hello. this is my first time on here. I just would like to add my two pennorth by saying that I volunteer in the local library, they have a free jigsaw swap, and the lady in charge puts them straight into the recycling bin if a customer says there is a piece missing. It is a very popular part of the library and the customers are very grateful for the service.

Welcome MaggieMay I hope you continue to post on GN we're a great bunch
I love the idea of jigsaw swap in the library. I will have to enquire at ours. Thanks for that.

In the charity shop I work in, we put a longish lovely dress out, it was lovely.

Later on in the day when straightening up the rails,
someone !! had the time and audacity to cut off the bottom half and leave the upper half on the coat hanger !! (wouldnt mind but it was around £3-00) to buy also we had a person come in last week, try on some shoes, must have kept them on and left his underneath the rack!!

Few weeks ago an elderly lady came in she did buy something, then moved to the stand where we have little bit of jewelry earings etc.. later on in the day we noticed the £10-00 tiara had gone missing, after searching through ctv we saw it was the little dear old lady!! so the next time she came in the manageress took her to one side (and very nicely said could I have a word with you)! the lady denied it but then when we said we had her on CTV.. she left but she did come back the week after and put £20 in the donation box (she didn't bring the tiara back though) and we haven't seen her since. We now have code words for anyone we think needs watching.

Stealing from a charity shop is about as low as you can get.
If he had shoes to leave behind then he wasn't desperate.

As for the old lady

Volunteering and shopping in charity shops changes your habits drastically. I never buy new clothes (apart from underwear of course), I totally ignore advertisements and if I need something specific I visit the local charity shops often, until I find it.
I don't think anyone would guess all my clothes were secondhand, I only buy good brands in perfect condition and get much satisfaction from finding great bargains.

I am always popping into our local charity shops and am constantly amazed at what people donate! my last bargain was a set of 6 china mugs for only £4. they were perfect and just what I needed to replace some of my older chipped one!

I never have much success in charity shops. I have got the occasional ornament which catches my eye.

My SIL helps out in one, and is always bringing home real bargains, as they get first "dibs" on new items coming in, of course she does pay.

Maybe the more affluent areas have better bargains. Also because I'm a larger than average size, that must restricty my choice.

I always buy the GC toys from there, and when they have outgrown them they get re-donated. The girls don't care if they have been used, they are just excited to have something new to play with!

A lot of charity shops in southend only put out one shoe ( that stumps the shop lifters )
Some of the shop lifters here don't bother to hide the goods, they just grab and run.

I think it is disgusting that people steal from charity shops. Some steal things that they then resell on FB or at car boots. I don't know how they could sink so low!

My local charity shop even open the door for me because they know that the goodies I bring are clean and of good quality, especially the books- often read once and then donated.

I gave them a few hand towels a couple of years ago and they were donated at just the right time. They had recently opened and were going out to buy cheap towels when I arrived at the right time.

I buy lots of books from Charity shops mostly novels usually pay about 50p very often they look unread. After I have read them they are given back to the Charity shop.

Our jewellery although only a few pounds or even pence each is kept in a locked glass case Seacliff I really don't think it has anything to do with affluent places my town is deemed a deprived area ( seaside town) we get amazing designer things in A few weeks ago a bag of baby designer goods I cannot tell you ...coats dresses shoes that must have cost the absolute earth never worn a very indulged baby who probably grew before she could use too many We have named handbags, shoes, designer prom dresses wedding dresses etc etc it amazes me beyond belief I really don't think there is such a thing as a deprived area as those who know their way around the benefits system are the ones that often indulged in the latest designs .... But that's another story don't get me on that one

In an affluent area the prices are higher. Paperbacks here are usually £1.25, the Oxfam bookshop charges £2 each.