Birds and op-shop bargains

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.
In Perth, today (Sunday) it was cool and we so we didn't do much.

Yesterday the weather was great with temperatures going up to 30C so we did some gardening and loaded up on our Vitamin D!

Our loquat tree was pruned (by my husband) to remove all the old fruit as to avoid fruit fly. The tree was almost depleted of fruit, and what was on the tree was already brown and dry - friends of ours love loquats and they had been here to pick fruit a couple of times as at home only my husband eats it. 

A couple of weeks ago we had a visit by these beautiful birds  part of the Parrot family - Rainbow Lorikeet. (Thanks to Gill for giving me the right name!)

They love to eat fruit and pick on the loquats on the higher branches, but of course they also make a big mess dropping fruit on the floor, leaving half eaten fruit on the tree...
They aren't scared of people either, as my husband tried shooing them away and they just ignored him and carried on eating! 
They're quite pretty though, aren't they? In Western Australia they are considered a pest as they were introduced into WA from other states and compete with local birds for food and nests.

Can you see the half eaten fruit?

During the week I sorted out the chest of drawers of the spare room and took a bag of clothes into the Salvation Army store (Salvos) in the neighbourhood. I couldn't help but have a peep around and of course walked out with more stuff.  It's all for a good cause anyway, so glad to help out!

The trays and letter holder have already been "transformed"!

A small basket (no use for it yet!), a letter holder and 2 trays - all from $3 to $5 each

An old Ikea wooden knife holder for $2  (now they sell them in bamboo for $18.99)

And this is what I did with the wooden tray - painted it white, handles in black and it now stands on my kitchen counter holding the oil and vinegar, the salt and pepper mill and my husband's piri-piri home-made concoctions.  (not a great photo, but was taken with my mobile at night)

Good bargains don't you think? Do you also buy at op-shops? Have you ever found a great item that you had to have?

Have a lovely week.

OP Shopping

Opportunity shops (Op-shops for short) or Thrift shops, are those shops that donate a portion of their profits to charity, and are mostly staffed by volunteers. Apart from helping the needy, they also help the environment by recycling items that would otherwise go to landfills.  

Their merchandise comes from public donations or from overstock or faulty items donated by commercial stores. 

(A Good Sammy's warehouse - photo from net)

Since their stock is donated, articles can be sold at low prices to those on a budget or the disadvantaged.

In Australia, op-shops are very popular among the young and old, and it seems to be quite fashionable to shop there for vintage clothing for example. Those clever with a sewing machine, can also refashion items of clothing to fit their body shape.
Most of these warehouses are actually quite modern, their clothing racks sorted by colour, etc. to give the shopper a boutique style shopping experience.

Every once in a while, when I decide to cut down on our far too many possessions, I take a couple of bags of clothing, bed linen, crockery, etc to the "Good Sammy's", a huge warehouse not too far from me.

The Samaritans also do a lot of charity work of course, as I mentioned in this post about the Salvation Army.

On one of these occasions I walked around and found a couple of Corning ware bowls.

If you are from my generation you will be familiar with this name, I remember getting a couple of bowls as a wedding present. Sadly they didn't last the long haul.

With prices ranging from $4 to $8, I bought the 2 or 3 they had there. Once in a while I pop around and see if there is another bowl on display and buy it. 

I know own about 12 of them, and I think I need to stop, otherwise I will become a hoarder of cooking ware. In fact I have donated some of my otherwise good bowls, as I didn't have the space to store the ones I was buying....

My favourites are these round deep bowls

On my last stop at The Good Sammy's I saw a beautiful pair of trousers with some embroidery on the window model. I was just on the lookout for bowls, but I couldn't help asking the saleslady what size the trousers were. I figured if they were too small or too big I might be able to turn them into a skirt. She told me there was no size on the label, but they cost $8. I bought them nonetheless and after washing, I tried them and they fit perfectly! They are 80% cotton, 20% linen,  made in Bali, so there were a good buy.

Detail of the embroidery on the trousers

Clothes sold at Op-shops are all in perfect condition and washed and pressed before being put on the racks. There are quite a few blogs around of people that just buy their clothes from op-shops. In fact during the month of August there was a op-shop Restyle challenge with some bloggers restyling an outfit daily. Those involved also took part in the Perth fashion parade, with other fashion designers. There are some crafty and inventive ladies out there...

I had once purchased a lovely black and cream lace dress in a fancy Op-shop in Fremantle. The dress was also on the window model and I asked if I could try it on. 

It fit perfectly, the price was $20, and it is a very fashionable and contemporary dress. I have only worn it on one occasion though, I might wear it again next New Year's eve.       

Black and cream lace dress

This week I went to a another neighbourhood and popped into the Salvos Stores on the lookout for a small bookshelf or similar piece to renovate, to enable me to store my shoes in the bedroom, as my wardrobe is far too small. 

There was a huge amount of furniture, but this little trunk caught my eye. When I opened the door I was so excited to see it was a shoe cubby. This would be ideal to be placed at the foot of our bed, a place to sit on when putting on our shoes in the morning and where my shoes could be hidden. How lucky was I? The price was $50, but the unit was in good condition and I reckoned the money was going towards a good cause...

Fluffy tries out his new perch

The inside of the shoe storage unit

You will have to wait and see how I'm going to renovate this little gem.

How do you like my op-shop purchases? Have you ever found something wonderful and quirky at Op-shops?