To miss charity shops

[Titterofwit]

Just that .
I miss being able to just go to a shop for no reason and mooch about picking things up and putting them down. Sometimes buying things I dont need and then donating them again several months later.
Having an hour just touring round the local ones and checking out the books and DVD shelves for something new. Trying on shoes - trying on shoes!
I never spent much money but I often spent a few quid each week on little things . A couple of books, a top, a decorative bowl. I wonder how the charities are doing now .My pattern must be repeated in the 100s of thousands over the county.

I really miss charity shops.

Yanbu OP, I miss them too. I've stopped buying clothes and things pretty much altogether. I miss being able to take all my odds, bobs and things there when I'm done with them. And I miss the library too....

Won't be too long OP! (If there are any left by the time they reopen!!).

Me too! One of the things I miss the most.
I loved a good mooch and used to buy a few things, especially for the kids.

I was saying this today
Also miss shops like card factory etc I liked having a wander round the charity chops though

I miss them so much too!
I used to go to Fara Kids and buy things for my DD, specially books and toys...looking forward to going back! I hope it can be in March!

Yanbu. I have a pile of stuff to donate. I love a mooch round a charity shop.

Yessss! Absolutely miss them... my DS is whizzing through clothes at a rate of knots (he's 3(. I want to buy bundles of kids clothes for pennies because I can't afford all the new stuff for the length of time he actually wears it.

Also I have HUGE amounts of good quality stuff to donate and I can't.

I have been torturing myself watching Youtube videos of people who trawl Thrift shops in America. Those places are treasure troves and I would so love to send an hour or so in one of them.
Selfishly I had forgotten just how much stuff there is for children in them . Clothes,toys books -all for a price thats affordable for most. I used to get lots for DD when she was small. I really couldnt have managed without them. When she started school the local Mind shop had a rail of the school uniform logo'd tops and fleeces which saved me and many another parent pounds(and stress) .

Me too. My little boy is suddenly into minecraft. Usually I visit charity shops weekly and look out for stuff related to his latest interest - clothes, books etc. Not this time round. Ebay is too expensive once you add postage.

Charity shopping was my social activity with my mum and I also found it really calming, just looking at stuff without really needing anything.

On the other hand its helping my massive problem with filling my house with random STUFF!

Agree - I love a charity shop mooch. I’ve found some really lovely things over the years (and a few weird and wonderful things too!).

I used to go to Fara Kids and buy things for my DD

I used to love Fara kids when I lived in London!

I REALLY miss them! I miss travel.

Oh gosh yes! I walked through town tonight with the dog and a mournful gaze through the windows of some. I don't really miss any other shops but I definitely a mooch round the chazzers on a Saturday afternoon.

I'm a volunteer and I really miss them too.

I miss my colleagues, the chat, the coffee and homemade cake. One of the ladies I volunteer with is a real ceramics expert and she's taught me so much. I miss opening a bag and finding quirky retro stuff which we can sell for ££££. I miss going in once a week and making a beeline for the craft section to see what wonders have come in since the last time I was in. I miss our regular customers who want a wee chat.

Charities as a whole are REALLY struggling. Shops have been closed more than they were open last year. We closed on Christmas Eve with a shop full of unsold Christmas stock, no idea when we're going to get back. After we opened up in July after the first lockdown, the rules were so strict about shop capacity, and quarantining donations, and asking donors to make an appointment that donations fell off a cliff. We will open back up in March/April(?) with no summer stock to put on the shelves. Usually in January we're deluged with Christmas decorations and other items which we store until November, not this year.

So even when we do open, please don't assume things will be as they were. We have had a year of no/few/less donations and it's going to take a while to get back up to speed.

Fingers crossed it's not too long.

God me too. Going for a wander round the charity shops in town was (is) so therapeutic for me. It gave me headspace and was genuinely (sad as it is) gave me a lot of joy. I'm missing it greatly.

I'm also expecting a baby and loath buying things new when I know there's brilliant, perfectly good stuff out there waiting to be found. But god knows how long this will go on for.

Yes I can't wait to get back in and have a rummage!

Yes! I've got piles of stuff to donate plus I miss browsing for books and little toys for DD. There's one nearby that just has a space at the back just for kids stuff and I could easily spend a good half hour having a rummage through.

Can't wait to have a good nosey. I have used charity shops for so many years.

@Titterofwit do you watch crazy lamp lady? I just discovered her. She made $800 dollars profit on items she bought in thrift stores in one of her videos

Charities as a whole are REALLY struggling. Shops have been closed more than they were open last year. We closed on Christmas Eve with a shop full of unsold Christmas stock, no idea when we're going to get back. After we opened up in July after the first lockdown, the rules were so strict about shop capacity, and quarantining donations, and asking donors to make an appointment that donations fell off a cliff. We will open back up in March/April(?) with no summer stock to put on the shelves. Usually in January we're deluged with Christmas decorations and other items which we store until November, not this year.

We were the exact opposite, we're a large store and just got inundated with donations, we could accept 3 bags per customer and had 3 pens worth full by 1pm (we were opening at 10am and had people queuing outside). The annoying thing is that some of it was rubbish and we were probably turning away good stuff because of it.

Missing them here too.

I have a little online shop that is stocked almost completely from charity shops.
I always have between 150 and 250 items listed. Currently I have 35, as everything has sold.

I so miss charity shops
50% of my clothing is normally from them plus quirky gifts for others
I also buy stuff n sell on eBay if I find a real bargain
When I declutter I donate
Mainly I just miss a mooch

I desperately miss charity shops

Pottering about picking up the odd gem, spending ages hunting through books, stopping for a coffee here and there....it feels like a lifetime ago.

If you have Facebook why not join the groups charity shop shit and charity shop not so shit. Members are sharing finds from before lockdown

Another poster who is missing them, and car boot sales (although not as common at this time of year)

I miss being able to buy resources and games for the children I work with, and nosing through the books. I have about 4 books left on my TBR pile, and the price of buying books new is putting me off reading them. 😢

I miss them, particularly as a place to buy birthday and Christmas cards, and to donate books to.