Are you an op shopper? If so, what is it about op shops that draw you in? These stores are usually overflowing with all kinds of paraphernalia. Stocked full from floor to ceiling there’s sure to be an abundance of stuff to send a spark of interest and keep it zapping like a live wire as you fossick through. What was someone’s one time treasure has become their trash; and now this trash will eventually become someone else’s new treasure.
Op shopping is something you either love to do & can’t resist or you loathe it and avoid it. I wonder how many non-op shoppers have had a change of heart? I don’t have any ‘statistics’ to go by but I’m sure that when most people take their first or second look at an op shop they’re surprised. Even the most adamant of shoppers of new, modern & fashionable trends is sure to become hooked – all it takes is the glimmer of one tiny little trinket or trifle to catch the corner of your eye & lead you to that incredible ‘bargain’ item you just have to have.
Yes, I’ve seen it happen in the op shop – people walking through from the car park just to go to the cafe, their pace getting slower as they glimpse something of interest. Not looking for anything? But they DO find something… or it finds ythem! Can’t go past it- Got to have it. And so begins a new relationship between op shop & shopper. That walk through from the car park to the cafe becomes a daily or weekly ritual.
New items, old items, used or renewed, modern or fashionable, collectors’ delights, antique, vintage, retro, trinkets & frills, cute & sweet, fanciful costumes and classical clothes – it’s all there to be found.
A bargain find – I needed a jewellery box & this one is in fabulous condition & looks great on my dresser too; two watches – both in working order of course, and batteries included (I no longer need to keep checking my mobile phone for the time); plus a set of 5 silver bangles (I love bangles & bracelets) – I handed over a $20 bill & received more than enough change for a cappuccino. Now, I’m not the one who walked from the car park to the cafe – I was hooked years ago – but I have seen it happen.
Have you found any great op shop bargains lately? Please share them with me, I’d love to hear your story.