If you work in a charity shop….

[Olliesocks]

What’s the best or weirdest post-Christmas donation you’ve had?

We're just giving this thread a bump for the OP.

I used to work in a charity shop. The weirdest post Christmas “donation” was a bin bag full of rubbish because there had been a delay to bin day. It had used nappies in it. “Best” is subjective, Christmas related: a huge 4ft Santa sold for £30 within an hour.

I went for an interview in a charity shop a few years ago and they told me they received a lot broken toys, odd shoes, soiled underwear and even used Sanpro still attached to underwear ☹️ Seems people use charity shops like a bin at times

A beautiful slinky dress with a dirty pair of knickers stuck to the inside by the sticky strip of an obviously used sanitary towel.

Though I doubt that was what you were thinking of.

Oh, I removed the knickers and sanitary towel, we had the dress cleaned and sent it to our shop in a more affluent area. It sold quickly for quite a bit of money.

Or a stuffed monkey toy with half its face missing!?!?!

I used to work in a sorting warehouse. The saddest ones seemed to be clearouts after someone died.

A fake leg
False teeth x3
One shoe
A bag with two dead mice in it
Paint covered clothes
A bike that was missing a wheel
And a bloke who demanded £50 for his adult bike

@purbal you'd like to think that was a mistake and the actual charity donation bag got thrown in the bin instead of knowingly handing in a rubbish bag?!

used to volunteer one day a week....worst find was a lovely pair of dungarees...posh label etc...looked inside....full of diarhea....vile...and the usual soiled underwear....disgusting.

Those saying about bags of rubbish etc, I'd like to think it was a mistake. If we have a big clear out, we bag stuff for the charity shop and have bags for the local tip too. We go to the charity shop first so I'm wondering if maybe people do the same and accidentally donate bags of rubbish too?!

@JoMumsnet

We're just giving this thread a bump for the OP.

Oh wow! Thank you @JoMumsnet

These are gross. People are gross. I was thinking more along the lines of the posters jogging cushion from her MIL. Do you get any of the Facebook tat?

@StarfishDish

Those saying about bags of rubbish etc, I'd like to think it was a mistake. If we have a big clear out, we bag stuff for the charity shop and have bags for the local tip too. We go to the charity shop first so I'm wondering if maybe people do the same and accidentally donate bags of rubbish too?!

As a volunteer in a charity shop I would be surprised if 20% of people who donate 'accidentally' gave us their rubbish by mistake.

That's the amount of stuff that we have to put straight in the bin.

I volunteer for a baby bank - the donations we get are really questionable too.

I always love the stories where people have bought costume jewellery that turned out to be real diamonds!

Facebook tat would be normal, I think. We'd just price it and put it on a shelf. Someone will buy it.

I worked as a cover manager for two years for a local charity.

Best, diamonds sewn into a suit lining.
Worst an urn (another shop, not mine).

I have volunteered in a charity shop for about 5 and a half years. So many memorable donations, and not just at Christmas.

A folder with old travel tickets, itineraries, hotel receipts etc and also with about 50 envelopes of assorted foreign currency - took them to the bank and got about £550.

A Victorian copper jelly mold which looked very grotty and sold for £175 at auction.

Loads and loads of gold/silver jewellery which always sells well. (even single earrings and broken pieces which sell for scrap)

My theory is that the best stuff comes in plain black bin bags. So often I'll rip open a bin bag of clothes and it'll be full of Hobbs, Reiss, Phase Eight, Cos, Karen Millen or Boden. The fancy designer carrier bags generally have the Primark and H&M.

In terms of awful donations... yes to the people who just tip all their junk into a bag and let us deal with it. We do not want dolls with their heads missing, empty DVD boxes, your "Gucci" handbag bought for 3 euros in Greece or chipped mugs. Thank you. We do see our fair share of fairly minging pillows or stained clothes but those just go straight into the rag bag for recycling. I've never found sanpro (used or otherwise) or nappies.

But please please please anyone planning a post-Christmas clearout just ask yourself "Would I pay money for this?" if the answer is probably not, then bin it.

I accidentally gave the charity shop a bag of kids underpants destined for the nursery as spares (in our area we wash and donate them for children who have accidents) it wasn't intended 😅

I once asked DH to drop off a couple of bags at the charity shop after a clear out, and later worked out he'd also taken my rubbish bag. It was full of old knickers, socks with holes and bits of broken hangers. It was years ago, and I still feel guilty and embarrassed. Sorry charity shop people!

Charity retail manager here! My first ever day with a charity, whilst training, I opened a bag full of used sex toys! Anal beads, vibrators, hand cuffs, lingerie etc nothing has ever beaten that! Best donations include a complete vintage Denby dinner service, and a donation from a local shop that was a pile of brand new lakeland leather jackets.
I bloody love my job!

Knickers with sanpro attached & bed sheets with brown stains