Charity Shop Finds

While waiting to move in a couple weeks ago, Nathan and I spent a day with the car doing some charity shop (thrift store) shopping.  We spent the entire day scouring tiny little spaces in three different cities (Gateshead, Newcastle, and Durham).  These weren't like the mega-sized Salvation Army store on Rosedale Hwy.  They were small little storefronts supporting charities like cancer research, arthritis, cerebral palsy, etc.  

While window shopping in Gateshead, a rough looking crowd walked by and one of the guys pinched Nathan's bum to get a laugh from his friends.  Nathan gave him a "DUDE!" look and muttered, "Better me than you, Sweetie."  Later, he asked me, "Do you think he did that because of my glasses?  Do they look gay?!"  I'm chuckling as I type.  He's still not 100% comfortable with them on, although it helps that our new friend Sam has a pair almost identical to his.

First things first!  What else would you expect from the Parkers but more books?  Nathan found the complete set of Churchill's books on WWI (among other things), and I found some cookbooks (among other things).  I discovered that I also had to buy a kitchen scale to get the right measurements (in grams instead of cups, etc.).  Luckily, I also brought my measuring cups and spoons to go with my Fix It and Forget It slow cooker cook book from home.  You'll also note the Life on Earth book by the same author who narrated the BBC series Planet Earth, David Attenborough.

Nathan also bought some shoes ("These feel like they belong to me!"), three pairs of jeans, and a fleece which smelled like smoke - not the campfire kind, the cigarette kind.  It took two washings to get it out.

Now, each one of my finds gets its own picture. :)  This comfy sweater is from Marks&Spencer.  Hannah Simms told me it was a good store before we got here, but I hadn't been in one at that point.  I think it will be my new housecoat.

An oatmeal sweater (called a jumper here).  It's really high quality from what I can tell, and it had the original price tag still on it.

 This dress was so cute!  It was kind of a splurge, costing about $6. :)  I love the ric-rac at the bottom and the detailing on the bodice as well.  You can click on any one of these pictures to see them in a larger size, by the way.

 I was wearing this little number in my last post...

 under this sweater.  I love the gold buttons on the flowy pockets.

 Banana Republic... what what!

 For work, a sweater vest.  I liked the mother-of-pearl buttons on the side.

And now, for the greatest find of all - this darling coat!  It gets two pictures because it's so darn awesome.  It's a little big, but I anticipate wearing a lot of layers under this baby come winter.  The best part it, it cost less than $6!

We had a fun time shopping (minus the bum pinching incident).  One of the challenges was trying to figure out what sizes we are in this new country.  It turns out I am anywhere between an 8 (the cream dress) and a 14 (the green coat), but my shoe size is only a 4 (a 7 in the States).  It just goes to show that your size is truly just a number - any amount of different numbers in any given country.