Golly that G&T hit the spot. And off the back of a far better day, allow me to recant some of the fabulous bargains I purchased at the weekend.

My friend Sarah from Newcastle came to visit Friday til Sunday, and seeing as she is a confirmed secondhand shopper as I am, we hit the shops on Saturday. We began at that cute little second hand furniture shop around the corner. As luck would have it it was leaving weekend for the students, so the place was rammed with new stock! I finally got a full height bookshelf (so now my shoes AND my books are safe and sound!) for a lot less than I was planning on paying at Ikea (last resort – I’d given up on finding one pre-loved!). But that was not all, oh no. I also got a good sized mirror (as you can see in a couple of the posts below) and some DELIGHTFUL drawers – little pink ones with gold knobs. Honestly, they’re just gorgeous!

The chap at the furniture shop was not due to deliver til 2pm, so we decided to kill the time in the town centre charity shops. The first threw my way some fabulous vintage 90s high-waist yellow denim hotpants and a Topshop tartan pencil skirt. A good start! I was then lucky enough to pick up a few books I had on my “wanted” list (Oxfam books here is amazing – recent titles in as-new condition for £2.99 each) and one I didn’t – an illustrated guide to Sixpenny Wonderfuls, Chatto’s paper-dust-jacketed hardback books, designed as a cheaper replacement for the traditional leather-bound hardback editions. The pictures are wonderful, and I’m looking forward to really getting to grips with the history of the modern paperback book.

Finally, I had been searching for a jug in which to mix up summer Pimms. The ones I loved had pastel butterflies on and were Laura Ashley stock at Laura Ashley prices (ouch!), so you imagine my delight when Sarah spotted these beautiful parrot-painted alternatives. Same colour scheme, but at a fraction of the price – £3.50 for four tumblers and the jug. Perfect!

I did splash out a little in Laura Ashley though. Their wine glasses are usually twice as much as I would pay for such dispensable objects – glasses get broken far too regularly to spend too much on, and who can enjoy a glass of wine with friends while constantly worrying about their friends breaking their glasses? So, at half price I fet little more inclined to treat myself. I bought two, very bulbous in shape and etched with pretty swirly designs. I’ll let you know how long they last… though as a rule I’m better at breaking bones than glasses…