Back in my day....

You hear a lot of people saying “oh back in my day we didn’t have new clothes we had to “make do and mend” and we didn’t have charity shops, look at this Edith it’s hardly been worn its lovely” I used to roll my eyes, this has changed.

Since visiting Eden Camp Museum in Malton I spent a good few hours there and learnt a copious amount about how back during World War 2 people lived and feared for their lives and more importantly how they survived. After this experience, I have a new found respect and interest that maybe I didn’t have before and it proves that its ignorance why many people maybe don’t respect the past.

Whilst walking around I kept noticing items that sometimes pass through our hands at the charity shop, jugs, singer sewing machines, hats, tools, old wooden toys, medicine bottles etc all the sorts of things your Mums, Dads Granddads and Grandmas would have used and played with and maybe kept after the war as a “souvenir” and it amazed me how much history and rarity can pass through the paths of charity shops. I was definitely surprised and a little annoyed we hadn’t kept hold of these artefacts. We are becoming more savvy and learning more about these almost other worldly goods as we should, we have a duty to Autism Plus to make sure these are sold at the correct and fair values as people who donate the items want as much for them as possible or else they wouldn’t donate to charity.

I saw medicine bottles for ailments such as “purifying the blood” & “boils and spots” and “feeling under the weather” imagine a bottle for curing under the weather! Brilliant! Just imagine if people could buy these now. I have included a photo I took of some of the bottles in the museum...

If you look in the photo of the bottles you will notice a Boots product, Boots back in 1940! I think it might be a lung purifier or something to do with having bronchitis I will definitely keep a look out for this in the future! I just hope they have cleaned it first! I must reiterate most of the bottles we have donated into our shop have been emptied and cleaned. (we always wash items before they go out for sale regardless)
Anyway to end this long blog nicely here are some photos of some of my favourite donations today:

A nice ethnic patchwork rug. I’ve seen one very similar in a store called “Collard Manson” , we are very modern aren’t we :)

Also featured is a nice floral cream jug, saucer and sandwich plate beautiful for afternoon tea on the veranda.