Charity shopping might be more popular than ever but it’s certainly nothing new. Many of us will have accompanied our mums on regular trips to the charity shops when we were younger and for our Mother’s Day blog we celebrate those thrifty mums amongst us. Starting off with our co-founders Lottie and Sarah whose mums are committed charity shoppers and inspired a love of preloved…
Lottie
I have my mum to thank for my love affair with charity shops. Her eye for detail and ability to sniff out a bargain is nothing short of impressive.
As a teenager in the noughties it wasn’t ‘cool’ to shop in charity shops but it was my mum who encouraged me not to care what people think. She now volunteers in a charity shop and (as my personal shopper) I can expect a call after her Monday shift to give me a run down of the goodies she’s picked out.
It was actually my mum who forwarded me the ad for my first job in charity retail so I really do have her to thank.
As a new mum myself, my one year old is already very familiar with her local charity shops and I can’t wait to see how secondhand fashion progresses for her generation.
Sarah
My siblings and I have worn secondhand clothes for as long as I can remember – I’ve always said I love nothing more than a bag of jumble! I’d say I come from a long line of thrifters; from my great-granny who was of the Make-do-and-Mend generation of WW2, my nan who is endlessly thrifty and stylish and my mum who always manages to find beautiful quality items for all the family and has a l real knack for picking up secondhand cashmere! Going round the charity shops is our idea of a fun day out and searching out those gems is so much more satisfying than just buying new and off the peg. Preloved outfits are worn with pride, garments are altered and furniture is upcycled – it’s definitely a way of life. So when I first had the idea of The Charity Shop Gift Card, my mum is the first one I told and has been my biggest advocate and cheerleader from day one. Thank you mum!
When we asked our thrifting community on Instagram to share stories of their charity shopping mums, we were inundated! Here are some of our favourites…
@beckysbazaar
My mum is the literal THRIFT QUEEN!???we are always going on charity shop trips together and plan mum & daughter trips away based on how many charity shops are there? she spends hours researching new locations and writes long lists of charity shops so we’re never stuck on where to go, we also film lots of challenges together where she finds me outfits from charity shops and she always slays??
@amylorenzx
My mums best charity shop purchase is a gorgeous blue velvet cocktail dress that she wore for my 21st birthday. She purchased it @havenshospicesshops for only £2 and it’s stunning. She got compliments all day ?
Amy’s dress was £12 in Cancer Research and her Mum’s dress was the above mentioned £2 dress from Haven’s Hospice
@charityshoppassion
Here’s a pic of my lovely 87 year old Mum and charity shop partner showing off her thrifted white messenger bag
@thismumsavesmoney
My mum rarely bought herself new clothing. She mainly only bought her clothes from charity shops. This is where my thrifting joy must of started! I remember being so excited to get home from school when I was in primary school to see if she had bought me any treasures. She once came home with a spectrum computer and a whole case of games she’s bought from the charity shop. We still have it to this day!
@adventures_of_frank_and_fearne
My mum definitely brought me up charity shopping. We always had second hand items from the charity shop. And it’s the highlight of my week going into my local Save The Children to find a bargain or two. I’m currently filling my new caravan with all items from the charity shop. There really are some hidden gems to be found. My mum would love this gift card ?
@katieshearn_
My teenage daughter has fond memories of my mum picking her up from primary school on a Tuesday and taking her into a local charity shop where she could choose a toy; it was usually something for her doll and she would always get newborn baby clothes for it ? Even now my mum picks up goodies for us, just the other day she got us some brand new make up from her local charity shop ❤️
@mrsd_preloved_finds
My Mum loves a charity shop, so did her Mum, and they are some of my favourite memories all of us having a cheeky rummage together. She loves to tell people that when I was a teenager I would stand outside Oxfam in our local town because it was too uncool to be seen going inside ??♀️ how times change ?
@siftthruthethrift
My mum and I go on lots of days out to charity shops. It’s how we’ve bonded in the last few years and love finding little gifts for each other. She’s the best person to shop with ?
@safiyyahgareeboo
[My mum] moved to London aged 20 and her home country, Mauritius didn’t have anything like what we do here in the UK. As early as I can remember she was shopping in them and we used to visit the local ones whenever her mum, my Nani, would visit. I used to love getting great quality items for a bargain and my mum was really good at finding gems. I can credit her for instilling a love of charity shops in all three of us kids from a young age and certainly before they were as cool as they are now!…My mum Ameenah represents so much about what I love about charity shops, creativity, supporting good causes and treating yourself and others!
