Charity-Shopping, Reading and a Saturday Night Out

 So, without further ado, here's what treasures we've found this week!

A 1980s sheepskin flying jacket labelled Fabrique en France; A ridiculously kitsch denim jacket with appliqued biker bear on the back from 1980s label, Together! : A 1960s suede trench coat from the legendary gents outfitter, Lord John of Carnaby Street.

1990s rave-era Adidas; 1960s batik leisure shirt; English-made 1990s leather jacket; 1960s jungle print leisure shirt by Ringo.

1960s leather trimmed suede jacket; 1970s cotton midi skirt with original Gay Girl tags still attached; 1980s shirt printed with vintage motorcars & made in Canada; German tank regiment military jacket.

Lots of vinyl! 

Don't Leave Me This Way, a tune that never grows old! Back in 1986, when it was in the charts, me and a group of mates, would blag our way into the Saturday night student union disco at a rival college. Whenever the DJ played it a bloke called Jimmy would dragged me onto the dance floor and we'd go absolutely mad. Much as I liked his dancing, his looks did nothing for me but he ended up on the TV Show Blind Date where he eventually found the love of his life!  

 

I bought the 7" version of Baby D's Let Me Be Your Fantasy when it came out in 1996, the 12" is an upgrade.

I couldn't resist this vintage biscuit tin (pre-1962 as it's labelled Cadbury Brothers Limited). I briefly worked at Bourneville back in the 1980s. Most Midlanders avoid the brand since it was bought out by Kraft/Mondelez and even Charlie's withdrawn its Royal Warrant. It's perfect for my sewing supplies!

This fabulous Moroccan belt (£1.50) replaces the one I wore to death in the 2000s, the brass bangle (50p) adds to my repertoire of non-silver jewellery as does the 1960s gilt bracelet with Chinese charms (£4).

The belt got its first outing when I wore it down to the baths on Thursday morning for another cowgirl-inspired look. There was an issue with the PH level in the Brine pool when we got there so we swam in the Olympic-sized Gala baths instead. It's a few degrees colder, 3m longer and 4.3m deep (as opposed to 1.8m depth of our usual pool) and, unlike the Brine, its length swimming only so no dodging the width swimmers  - I absolutely loved it and, with no distractions, clocked up 50 lengths in just over half-an-hour. I'd happily use this pool all the time but I'd miss my swimming pals and Jon prefers the warmer water! 

On Friday night, after a day spent exploring Baddesley Clinton (see my last post HERE), we took a break from the atrocities of Charles Manson in Aquarius and watched The Nightingale, a gut-wrenching colonial rape-revenge drama which, although horrific probably only represents a fraction of what was endured whilst subduing the Australian Continent. 

Saturday was freezing cold and our faces were red raw after walking down to drop off our Vinted sales parcels at the Lidl lockers. I finished my fourth book of 2025, The Trial by Rob Rinder. The cover was reminiscent of Richard Osman's Thursday Murder Club series but Rinder's writing, although enjoyable and with a unexpected plot twist at the end, lacks Osman's wickedly astute character observations and laugh out loud humour.

I'll go to the foot of our stairs! A saying my Chester born & bred Grandma often used when expressing astonishment. I posed here when Liz was taking photos for potential paintings earlier in the week. This was Saturday's going out outfit. 

We met up with the gang in The Turtle's Head.

Jon with Adrian and Slash and me with my beautiful friends, Liz and Liz's sister, Ruth. 

After a couple of hours in the pub we walked around the corner to Laboni for an Indian feast, staggering out two and a half hours later with plans for a girls' day out very soon. What a fabulous night...thanks, gang! 

In bed with a mug of tea on Sunday morning I started on my next read, a book I'd spotted in the clearance bin outside the Acorns Hospice charity shop on my way back from swimming earlier in the week. The blurb on the cover had me intrigued....Milk Treading is in equal parts Watership Down, Animal Farm and The Big Sleep. A novel of class struggle, political intrigue and good old fashioned murder. And, oh yeah, all the characters are either cats or dogs. I've never read anything quite like it - I'm already halfway through it! 

It was another freezing day and I had to crack the ice on the bird bath before walking down to the lockers to deposit the Vinted sales I'd made whilst out galivanting the previous evening.

This vintage herringbone maxi dress was a £4 Vinted find, handmade by the seller's mother in 1971. She'd listed it as wool but I could tell by the photos it was Crimplene, perfect for an icy day. 

And talking of Vinted bargains...check this out! Described as a "Long Wool Dress, size 8, £5" this popped up in my Recommended For You feed and despite there being no other information I knew it was something special. I was thrilled to discover that my instincts were right, that ain't no long wool dress, that's a 100% Alpaca floor length cardigan, handcrafted in Bolivia and sold by Peruvian Connection. It would have originally retailed at around £600. I adore the zig-zag cuffs and hemline.

Founded by Annie Hurlbot, a female Anthropology Student at Yale, and her mother Betty, in 1976, Peruvian Connection is a high-end retailer of women's clothing and accessories, it supports traditional Andean crafts by providing well paying and consistent jobs to talented artisans. 

SOURCE

Be warned, their collab with legendary American designer Kaffe Fassett (HERE) may induce feelings of unbridled lust. Click on the link at your peril! 

Thanks for reading...see you very soon!