This month's Magpie Monday is books! We managed to find Bill a huge bundle of books on marketplace for only £10 ... there are whole series for him to disappear into and some fun graphic novels about dragons, Ripley's Believe It Or Not and others we have never heard of!
Bills room is not big and most of his books are in the back of the built in cupboards, so for all these books we've had to find him a bookshelf that was small enough to fit ... and we've found this for £30! I am going to change the knobs and maybe give it a lick of paint, but we love the little drawers and he's also loving the extra surface space for his lego models!! (not got a picture of it all in place yet with books in, so here is the listing photo)
What pre-loved bargains and treasures have you found this month?
It's the Easter holidays and I couldn't be happier but I will admit that this clock change seems to have hit me like never before ... I am ready for a nap anytime!!
I haven't been out spending much this month so don't have a Magpie Monday from this month, but this is one we bought a year or so ago ... it is a really unusual piece of furniture which we both love. It was £25 from Marketplace and my dad gave it a bit of a fix up and polish and it is perfect for keeping blankets in in the sitting room. I have very snuggly boys who love cuddling up in them so it's just what I needed! Looking closely at it, we think it is put together from a larger piece. I love the carving and little draw!
What have you been buying this month, or what has been your biggest bargain?
Last Autumn we fitted a woodburner so of course I was on the look out for lovely baskets for wood and kindling. We did eventually get some lovely big chunky baskets that I love so much but in the search I found this sweet basket that I thought would be ok for kindling, but ended up being much too small. It had been used for wool and knitting and the handle is so smooth.
I have filled it with dried flowers that mum and I grew and it now sits happily on the coffee table and makes me happy every time I look at it!Oh and it was only £5 and I found it from Facebook Marketplace!What lovely thrifted and pre-loved bargains have you found this month? Please share below x
This months Magpie Monday is something I have been searching for for years and I am so thrilled to have found one!
I have been making lace since I was about 12 and love to find unusual and lovely bobbins and at last I have found one with my name one!! It is an old bone one and now I have the fun of finding the right beads to spangle it.
What thrifting pre-loved bargains have you found this month?
As well as my gorgeous cupboard, this month we have also found some lovely coffee tables on marketplace. We have been on the look out for a couple for the conservatory for a while and Steve found a pair of stacking ones that match our oak furniture that’s in there. We were only going to get one set for £40 but the lady offered both sets for £60 so we jumped at it and at last have a few places for our cuppas to go!!
What bargain secondhand finds have found this month?
A few days ago I shared a reel on Instagram that really made me laugh. Emily’s husband doesn’t buy her roses for Valentines Day, instead he takes her to a bin by the side of the road where someone has thrown away an old table … this kind of treasure is the perfect gift for her and she is so happy! I shared it because I am the same (don’t get me wrong I love flowers and would never say no to them) but I love finding unusual furniture … and I married a man who’s secret power is finding unusual thing! Literally half an hour after I shared this reel, he sent me a link to something he knew I would love! (Second photo!)
I inherited from my dad, not only a love of stationary but also a love of cupboards with little draws … and this cupboard had many little draws … it worked out well, it was listed in the town my parents live in and we were going there the next day … meant to be! I had to raid my puppy-savings-fund, but that’s ok… I have a couple of years before I need that and I had been looking for something to replace our ugly grey metal filing cabinet that I hated for ages!
Unfortunately getting it home, one of the little draw knobs broke off but it can be fixed. It needed a good clean as it had been kept in storage for a while and the draws were all a pretty tight fit. I washed it all down and got some marks off it, washed all the draws out and then today I have given it a good rubdown with liquid beeswax oil and it’s looking amazing! Steve’s sanded down a couple of the draws that were still sticking but most had loosened up now it wasn’t so cold and I love it so much!!
Unfortunately it’s not suitable for files, as there are 3 shelves in the bottom so too small for files … or my paper and card as the draws are not big enough for A4. But no worries … I have been looking for a cupboard for stock and this will do perfectly!! I now need to get the ugly old filing cabinate out of my work room as that’s where it going!
I also did a google image search as it looked like it had a top to it and guess what … it did! (Third photo) It’s a Dental Cupboard!! And the one I found has the secret cupboard too… jack thinks it’s amazing to have a a magic 3 draws that open up as a secret cupboard!!Do you have any interesting furniture? Do you love draws and secret compartments too?
When I was 18, I saw the pottery of my dreams ... my best friends mum had a set of the most beautiful Denby Gypsy pottery and I knew straight away it was what I wanted to collect. Back then though finding it was not easy, eBay didn’t come to the UK for another few years, so it was only if you happened to see some in a charity shop. My collection was slow growing, but I never wavered in my love for it. The thrill of finding a tea plate in a charity shop or car boot was amazing! As ebay got larger, I got more bits, but postage was often expensive When I was 18, I saw the pottery of my dreams ... my best friends mum had a set of the most beautiful Denby Gypsy pottery and I knew straight away it was what I wanted to collect. Back then though finding it was not easy, eBay didn’t come to the UK for another few years, so it was only if you happened to see some in a charity shop. My collection was slow growing, but I never wavered in my love for it. The thrill of finding a tea plate in a charity shop or mug at a car boot was amazing! As ebay got larger, I got more bits, but postage was often expensive so it was only if it was a really special piece.
Then about 4 years ago, Steve found a listing of a whole load of it for £50 on market place, it was a total bargain! We travelled about an hour away to get it, but it was a like a dream come true! I still collect the odd piece when I see it and still get a thrill when I find some! I don’t save it for best either, life is too short to have plates that are only used a few times a year, if it breaks, it breaks and I can have the fun of finding more!
The other thing I look out for is pink glass ... I have found some really lovely unusual bit ... a dressing table set, fruit bowl and large round platter, candle sticks and ice cream bowls.
What do you hunt for and collect? Where do you find your best bargains? Share below and we can be on the look out for you!
While we were on holiday last month, we went to the market/carboot that they hold on Sunday mornings and I was thrilled to find myself a couple of treasures!
I have a bit of a cross collection on my bedroom wall so was thrilled to find this ... it is so beautifully carved. It cost £5, which I thought wasn't bad for such a delicate piece.
Here it is with my other crosses ...
The other little treasure that I picked up was a wooden elephant! Ever since I was a small girl, I have loved elephants and collected them. When I was 21, one of my favourite presents was a box full of 21 elephants!! This lovely one is such a lovely colour and he just jumped out at me. It has been a long long time since I have bought an elephant, but I am really loving this fella!
He was only 50p!
What pre-loved bargains have you found this month?
If you have been following me for a while, you will know that I love Denby Gypsy pottery and have been slowly collecting bits over the years. Well my collection has just had a HUGE amount added to it!
Steve sold his van last month and is treating each of us to a present ... mine was a lovely lot of Denby Gypsy that he found on Facebook ... all for £50!
I must admit, I felt pretty overwhelmed especially when he didn't stop there and found me some mugs, serving dishes and bowls too ... I am now pretty set up and have had to have a good clear out of my crockery cupboard to make space for it. I have decided to not just save it for special occasions but to enjoy it every day! It would only come out at Christmas otherwise, and I do not have the space for that much crockery to only be used very occasionally.
It makes me happy every day now ... there are still bits we need and obvously when things get broken, I can have fun finding pieces to replace them!
What pre-loved bargains have you found this month?
I didn't manage to get much thrifting and treasure hunting done last month, but I did find a copy of this lovely book that I read in my teens and LOVED ... Let The Hurricane Roar by Rose Wilder Lane ... Laura Ingles Wilders daughter. It is only a thin book so a quick read, but have been looking out for a copy for ages so it feels like a real treasure find!
And the next is just a little plant pot for £1 ... nothing special but very sweet and I am always needing more plant pot!!
I feel like this Summer I am wanting to go on more treasure hunts ... how about you, what pre-loved bargains have you found this month?
Having spent a lot of my life in Cornwall, I fell in love with pottery at a young age and am always on the look for Cornish Pottery .... when I found some Christmas money in the back of my purse I decided I wanted to treat myself to something I haven't bought for a while so had a check out on eBay and saw this gorgeous set by John Vasey ... it is a beautiful jug ...
... and tiny vase ... so pretty ... I just love them!
They were £16 for the set, which is a little more than I would usually spend ... but hey, it was Christams money!!
What pre-loved bargains have you found this month?
For my birthday Steve bought me an old printers tray ... I have always loved them, as I am a big lover of storage and could there be anything more cute than a load of compartments?? It needs a bit of a clean up and a couple of the divider are broken but that just adds to its charm right!?
The small compartments fit a 5ml bottle of essential oil perfectly and the longer ones can squeeze a 15ml! ... 'cos every girls need more oils storage doesn't she ;)
I have seen these painted up white and they look so lovely, but thinking of my decor, the natural wood is probably best ... I want it in our bedroom but Steve doesn't want oils in the bedroom as well.
Then the other day Steve came back from his work shed with this beauty ... I think its for old work tools and is in really rough condition ... he said it was just ruining out there, getting damp ... so we are drying it off and I am hoping it can be done up and would be perfect for my work space!
The back and the draw bases may need replacing, but it has so much potential!
Have you found any bargains this month or bought any treasures?
I picked up this lovely vase from a charity shop at the beginning of April. It looks lovely with tall flowers in it! It was only £1.50 which I thought was a bargain!
Yesterday we had a family trip to the Antiques fair at the showground at Builth Wells. Its a huge 2 day event. We have been a few time before and often see Bargain Hunt filming there!
I saw this sweet frame on one of the first stalls we stopped at. It's not old, but I really like the dark green and am a sucker for little frames! It cost me £8, so not necessarily a bargain, by I'm looking forward to finding the perfect photo for it :)
For the last year or so I have been looking for the perfect chunky ring ... don't ask me why ... I have just wanted one. I used to wear lots of rings, but since getting engaged, I have only really worn my engagement/wedding ring. I spotted this chunky silver ring with green stone on one of the last stalls. It had £10 on it but the man let me have it for £8. I LOVE it ... it's the perfect shade of soft green.
Have you found any bargains this month or bought any treasures?
The lampshade in our dining area broke ages ago .... like a year ago!! And we have just had a bulb hanging there since. I had seen a lovely one in B&Q that I wanted but it was out of stock and when I looked online it seemed to have been discontinued :( I had done a few searches online and whenever I was in B&Q would have a look and see if there was anything else I like, but nothing as much as the one that I had seen before. Then a few weeks ago I found it, on eBay for only £2!!! ........ but I missed the end of the auction ... luckily they re-listed it, £2 or make an offer. I offered £5 ... they came back with a counter offer of £8 ... now as I knew that it had been listed once already and not sold I decided that I was in with a chance to win it cheaper ... so I bid instead ... £5 as my max bid and guess what, I won it for £2!!! There was £10 postage and packing, but still a total bargain of £12 for the light I loved!!
When it arrived they hadn't included the bar that attaches it to the ceiling, luckily Steve managed to adapt the one we had up there with a longer screw to fit, but they did include the bulbs which was lovely of them!
When I first got it out of the box I was slightly concerned it was too big and would hang too low as our ceilings are not very high, but its fine!
I love it and am so pleased I managed to find one the same style I wanted even if its a slightly bigger version of it.
So you may have seen a few weeks ago I joined Slimming World. I always had lots of lovely fruit to eat as Steve loves his fruit. I am more of a vegetable girl, but I have been trying to up my fruit intake and found that we needed another fruit bowl, so I managed to find this lovely pink glass one on eBay for £2.99. It is in perfect condition and goes so well with my other pink glass that I have been collecting over the years.
Have you found any bargains this month or bought any treasures?
Billy has a farm set and we have been collecting lovely animals for him ... but a farm can always grow and when we saw this for £10 on Facebook we couldn't resist getting it!
There were some animals with it, but I passed them on to Steve's mum so she would have some when he goes over to visit, but the buildings are lovely and such a bargain at £10!
In August we had a new boiler fitted ... an outside boiler giving us more space in the kitchen ... eventually we want to get a bigger fridge/freezer and we need to re-do the floor where the boiler was. Losing the boiler in the kitchen meant that we lost some work surface too ... I suddenly seemed to have none! So we decided we needed a little cupboard we could use like a pantry but also free up some work surface ... Steve found this on eBay and I won it for £36!!
I REALLY LOVE IT!!
Inside there are 2 shelves and the round disk on the front is like an air vent so perfect for food!
Please ignore where it is in the kitchen ... it will eventually be moved, but we have some work to do before then!!
... and this beautiful mirror was given to me by a friend who found it in a charity shop for £5!
I stuck it up on the wall for the photo, but think I want it in the hall, but need to alter the back it so its up-right not sideways.
Have you found any bargains this month or bought any treasures?
These arrived this morning! Just in time for an Magpie Monday post!!!
A little more Denby Gypsy for my collection!
Salt, pepper and a little mustard pot. Perfect condition and all for £4.99 on eBay :) I love them!!!
Have you found any bargains this month or found any treasures?
Steve came home the other week with the back of the van full of lovely garden toys for Billy! The lady he had been working for that day had given them to him. She had them for their grandchildren, and they are in amazing condition! Our lawn now looks like a children's play area!
Billy LOVES them, especially the rocking horse!
Have you found any bargains this month or been given any treasures? x
One of my favorite presents for Christmas was a couple of beautiful goblets that match the pottery I collect ...
and last month I won on eBay these two beauties ... a large goblet and little lidded bowl ... for £1.00 and £1.50!! There was a little combined p&p but they were still a great bargain! And my goblet collection is growing, which is good as I only have 2 very small wine glasses :)
Have you found any bargains this month or been given any treasures? x
I was thrilled to find a couple of Denby Gypsy bits in Oxfam last month. £6.99 for the pair . . . I had been really tempted to get the jug off eBay so it was great to see it sitting there waiting for me!
have you found any bargains this month? x
