Hampshire budget shopper shares secret hacks for charity shop Christmas gifting
Thrifting expert Paula Rigby, 47, has years of experience in finding the best bargains in charity shops and shares tips including why you should spend time browsing the window display before entering the shop.
Paula, 47, from Lockerley, is a keen charity shop thrifter who has an encyclopaedic knowledge of shopping on a budget for a good cause.
Often finding herself in need of a range of household items, clothing and toys for nieces and nephews, she can be regularly found bargain hunting in Totton, Eastleigh, Southampton and Shirley.
As 61% of us will browse charity shops for Christmas gifts this year, Paula shares her top tips for finding hidden treasures that can offer something unique without breaking the bank.
"With Christmas coming and budgets tight with the cost of living, it helps to shop in charity shops, which I enjoy doing at this time of year when money is tight and I've got lots of presents that I want to buy" said Paula.
“My top tips for charity shop thrifting are:
- Firstly, always keep an eye out for things that are brand new or still with the labels on or that you can't find in the High Street shops.
- Secondly, if you’re not sure if you’re getting a bargain, take a photo of the pre-loved item and use Google image search to find it online - it will tell you how much the item retails for or where it's on sale and how much it is- then you really do know how much of a bargain you’re getting
- Another top tip with charity shopping is thinking ahead for anything that comes up at school with the kids, such as World Book Day or Christmas Jumper Day. I always look in charity shops for things like that because chances are the kids had never going to wear it ever again so sometimes you can find something for a fraction of the price for these events.
- Always look in the window first. Sometimes charity shops put the most attractive items on the most eye-catching items in the window so rather than just walking in the door check out the window first see what bargains are there before you even walk in.
- The cost of Christmas gifting and thrifting can rack up at this time of year, and it can be helpful to spread the cost, even when spending carefully in charity shops. Now, for the first time, I can do this thanks to the charity-owned ethical lender Fair for You's Shopping Card loan partnership with The Charity Shop Gift Card. You can spread the cost of shopping in thousands of charity shops across the UK - whether you're shopping for yourself or buying Charity Shop Gift Cards for friends who love a bargain while supporting good causes. (But remember you need to plan ahead to benefit as you'll need to apply to Fair for You to receive a prepaid card loaded up to the amount you need (up to £350). The Shopping Card can also be spent at many other retailers including Dunelm and Argos."
“I’ve bought a pre-loved bargain for my sister this for Christmas this year as she wanted a Wrendale kitchen set – she loves the range but it retails at quite a high price - I had a kitchen set in my Amazon shopping basket waiting for payday to check out and buy for Christmas this year. Then when I was charity shopping the other day with my partner I found in one of the charity shop for £5 brand new with a label on so I was thrilled I got that for her exactly the same as the one which would have cost me £30.
“I definitely will be buying pre-loved Christmas gifts this year, I always do every year especially with young nieces and nephews when it comes to toys. You don't know how long they're going to play with a toy, whether it's going to be discarded or whether they're going to want it next year.
“I always look for pre-loved gifts for Christmas time and birthdays and just generally throughout the year."