Those finds are still in the washing pile at the moment, waiting for me to take photos, so instead, here's our earlier purchases.
I love my books, and I'm trying to instill the same love of stories in Squeaky. We have story time every night before bed, and make good use of the library so neither of us gets too bored of the same stories all the time. But we always need more. I'm saving the tokens in the Daily Mirror at the moment for a load of free (well, p&p and buying the paper) Ladybird books. And mooching the British Heart Foundation shop last week, spending a total of £3, I came up trumps.
A pair of Ladybird story books, perfect length for bedtime stories, and as there's 5 or 6 stories in each, they're great for weekends away, as they take up so much less space than my previous staple, a hardback Dr Seuss book (also a charity shop find). And a couple of videos. 2 1/2 hours of Tom & Jerry, and half an hour of Tots TV. I loved Tots TV when it was on (I was a student. It was that, Sunset Beach & Supermarket Sweep), and I really like the bilingual aspect of it. It was made by Ragdoll, you know, the folk who made Rosie & Jim, Tellytubbies & In The Night Garden... amongst MANY others, and has the same addictive qualities, at least to my memory.
We're one of a dying breed in our house. We still have a working VCR. And as a result I'm making the most of the chance to pick up classic kids tv on video for very little cash. It's actually still illegal in the UK to copy things from one format to another, so I'm not in any way advocating transferring the videos to dvd or anything like that, though should the law change, I will be straight there. So don't copy your pre-recorded videos, please. This Has Been A Public Service Announcement!
I also mentioned a cautionary tale. I should know this really, but always check your finds before buying. A good shop will check things over & not put damaged items out for sale, but there's always something that slips through the net. I found a Maisy book in another of our charity shops last week. Looked in really good condition from the outside & I didn't think to look further as I was already running late. Handed over my pennies & went. Had a look at it later & found that all the "pull the tab" bits had been ripped out & the book was covered in biro scribble. :-( Never mind, it was only pennies & a good reminder to me that not everyone donates good stuff.
Came and join Magpie Monday.
Ahh thanks for sharing - you're braver than me doing the NCT nearly new sale! It's not for the faint-hearted is it?!
ReplyDeleteYou're so right about checking things before you buy. I've got DVDs home only to find the cases empty! x
Can't wait to see the clothes too once they're washed.
Love your bargains. My eldest Son used to love Tots TV and so did I :-) x
ReplyDeleteGreat bargains im also one for picking up old videos in charity shops as my parents have a video player so they're well stocked up for when my daughter sleeps over :)
ReplyDeleteOur charity shops are always full of video cassette format films and I have donated a fair few myself. As you say, hardly anybody has working VCRs these days so to be in the minority and take your pick from all the goodies on offer must be great.
ReplyDeleteYes, I'm with you on the Video's we buy them by the dozen at boot sales. My 6 yr old twins don't care whether they are video's or DVD's so long as they can watch them!
ReplyDeleteTotally agree with you about checking your books first, I have had a few that have had pages ripped out or scribble all over them. But like you say when its only pennies you pay its not so bad : ) xx
We used videos for ages and enjoyed how they fell in price as people found them tough to sell.
ReplyDeleteWhen donating to charity shops, I find it hard to work out what is worth donating and what not. For example, I do know some charities get a lot of money from rags (ie clothes not worth selling as clothes but fine for rags)
My charity shop spree this week is over at http://gigglingatitall.blogspot.com