It Makes You Think

Just after Christmas Mum and I made use of the free Asda bus which picks up from the top of Mum's road and takes you directly to the local Asda superstore about 3 miles away.  It was ages since I'd last been to Asda and we had a jolly good time there, being especially pleasantly surprised by how cheap Asda is compared to Sainsburys.  What was particularly impressive was the range and prices of their children's clothes.  Anyone who reads this blog regularly will know that I pick up lots of clothes for DN on my travels round the local charity shops and car boot sales but I'm beginning to have second thoughts as some of the charity shop prices are as expensive as buying the items new in Asda.  On the day we went Mum bought DN two pairs of trousers and three long-sleeved tops for the princely sum of £9.  That was £2 each for the trousers, £2 each for two of the tops and £1 for the third top.  All the clothes are 100 per cent cotton, fit him beautifully and are really stylish.  When local charity shops are charging £1.50 - £2.00 for long-sleeve tops (most of them originally from Asda) you really have to think twice about buying second-hand.

I like to do my bit for being green and prefer to buy second-hand where at all possible, but with prices like those it seems stupid, to say the least, to not buy new.  My only reservation is where, and under what circumstances, the clothes were manufactured.  I didn't check where the new clothes had been made but I suspect it will have been somewhere 'iffy' like Bangladesh or Mauritius.  I don't like to think I'm encouraging this type of sweat-shop labour but, on the other hand, with prices like those it seems a no-brainer to buy something that is brand new as opposed to pre-worn.  I will continue to check out the childrens' clothes in any charity shop I'm in as I've had some lovely items for DN over the years.  He looks particularly nice in his 'new' winter coat which I got for him for £2 at the car boot last summer.  The lady I bought the coat from assured me it had never been worn, and I can well believe that as it was in beautiful condition with no name written on the name tag.  Also, some of the charity shops do have childrens' tops for 30p or 50p and I'm very happy to buy anything suitable at that sort of price, but £2 for a pre-worn bog-standard boy's top - no, I don't think so.  Not now I know I can buy new for the same price.

Armed with this new knoweldge my trip to the charity shops in Billericay resulted in pretty slim pickings this morning.  There were a couple of very nice how-to photography books which I've listed for re-sale on Amazon and this lovely piece of fabric from John Lewis.

It's 100 per cent cotton upholstery weight fabric and was only £1 for a 96" x 60" piece.  I nearly fell over when I realised I'd actually found a bona-fide bargain, and this was in one of the more 'upmarket' charity shops.  I feel a few new bags coming on.

Comments

[Claire]

I know what you mean about the prices that charity shops are selling things for. I work for a charity so I get really miffed when people in charity shops tell you stiffly that all their money goes to a good cause and look quite archly at you when you look at a price tag and don't buy something. However, Asda uses a lot of sweat shops in essentially 3rd world countries, so I do feel uncomfortable when I shop there. I had lunch with a friend yesterday who had done a lot of research on this and she boycotts pretty much anywhere apart from the Co-op and Waitrose as they are the most ethically sound. I think that it's about balancing what we do really as we have to be realistic. I would love to have the money to shop ethically for all the things I buy, but I know that realistically I can't afford to, so try to make a difference where I can - it's not as easy as foe example not wearing fur. I think the online craft community is doing a great deal to try and change things, which makes me feel a bit better!
By the way the fabric is pretty - would make a great A line skirt.

[nicolafraser]

wow,that is gorgeous fabric. What a bargain. I love it when things like that happen. I was thinking today, even if I became a millionaire, I'd still get a buzz out of finding a charity bargain!
Thanks for commenting on my blog x

[Gill]

I very rarely look at the clothes in charity shops now as I think they charge far too much for them, it makes my blood boil when I see a top from Primark priced at £3.99 which is more than Primark would have sold it for! They seem to have lost their way in my opinion and must lose so many sales due to over-pricing. I'm a big fan of Asda, I know we're told we shouldn't be buying cheap clothing but when you're on a tight budget you have to buy what you can afford. The fabric is lovely BTW, you'll make a fab bag with it I'm sure.
Speak soon
Gill x