Blog | Op Shops Near Me

How to Op Shop in Perth

How to Shop…Op in Perth! Written by Kelly Wayne Photo Credit: Kelly Wayne, You Got That At An Op Shop?! This is the first installment of a two part series about Op Shops in Perth by Kelly Wayne from You Got That At An Op Shop?! Op shopping in Perth and across Australia is having an amazing resurgence of late. Why, just recently the winner of the Fashions on the Field at the 2012 Melbourne Cup was wearing an op shopped number! And who hasn’t found themselves humming Macklemore’s latest tune, “Thrift Shop” at some stage? It seems second hand shopping is no longer just for those in need of cheap, affordable clothing & furniture and it’s no longer something to be embarrassed about. And being an avid op shopper in Perth, I’m here to tell you why. Today we’re all about quick fixes, upgrades, new versions, current trends and, in order to keep up with the “latest”, a lot of yesterday’s stuff gets thrown on the rubbish heap. However we’re starting to…

Seven secrets to successful op shopping

Once considered the domain of grannies searching for a crocheted hankie, op shops have become a haven for hipsters, fashionistas, avid recyclers and bargain hunters, including Prime Minister Tony Abbott, as revealed by his wife on the weekend. Mrs Abbott was launching National Op Shop Week, and to celebrate we asked some of Australia's most passionate op-shop bloggers for their top tips for finding treasure, and their best ever buys. 1. Spend time searching Can't be bothered flicking through the crammed racks in your local op shop? Then it's unlikely you're going to walk away with luxury designer goods for less than $50, like Laura Timberlake, editor of Melbourne-based second-hand fashion blog A Little Boutique Near Home Stamina separates those who leave their local op shop disappointed after a quick peek, to those who can rattle off a list of their best buys quicker than family birthdays. "Make sure that you look through the stores thorou…

The best op shops in Sydney

The best op shops in Sydney according to timeout You can find a link to the full article below

Stay stylish and save money by shopping second hand

By Nicola Dowse and Olivia Gee Secondhand doesn’t have to mean second best. But with more than 100 op shops in Sydney alone, how do you know where to bag the best bargains? Here’s our pick of the best pre-loved shopping Sydney has to offer, whether it be in the fashion department or if you're seeking out a living room's worth of furniture and knick knacks. Photograph: Mitchell Moore 1. Red Cross Op Shop Broadway Shopping Op shops Glebe It can be hard for a new kid on the op shop block to shine, but that definitely isn’t a problem for the new Red Cross joint on Broadway. As with many slick city op shops, colour coded racks of clothes lead the proceedings, with everything from a cute Dotti crop for $7 to a dedicated…

How to find treasures in op shops and garage sales

Can you still find anything in op shops that is worth more than what you paid for them? Or at garage sales, or trash and treasure markets? It often seems that even people who dump the contents of their back shed on a tarp know the exact value of everything. James Cockington with a vintage magazine he has collected.CREDIT:SYLVIA LIBER

You can blame this on online auction sites and smart phone apps that give you an estimated value, usually optimistic, at the click of a button. "But this is what it's going for on eBay," the sellers will tell you.

There are still bargains to be found, just fewer than there used to be. For example, the $4 op shop cup that sold for more than $75,000 at a Sotheby's Australia auction in April 2013. The astute vendor spotted this on the shelf in a Sydney opportunity shop and…

Trash or treasure: Do you know the difference?

A tsunami of unusable donations is overwhelming Australian charity shops. Can a clever social marketing campaign change donor behaviours and solve the problem?

William Holmes Donations

A tsunami of unusable donations is overwhelming Australian charity shops. Can a clever social marketing campaign change donor behaviours and solve the problem?

William Holmes When it comes to charity stores and bins, would you consider yourself a champion donor? Unlike the garden variety donor - who takes items to charity stores that may be of no use to anyone else - the champion donor considers what it is they're donating. They judge whether the item is in appropriate condition, and check all the parts are present and working. While the champion donor is not contributing to the 60,000 tonnes of unusable product that overwhelms many of Australia's 2,500 charity shops each year, the same c…

Op shopping: A beginner’s guide

In the past couple of years op shopping has experienced a huge boom in popularity. Unfortunately I’m a little behind the times and haven’t quite caught up on the craze, so I’ve enlisted the help of Anthony – my little brother and op-shopper extraordinaire – to give me the lowdown. So, first things first: What is an op shop?

Vinnies Op Shop

An op (short for opportunity) shop is a store run by a charitable organisation where goods are sold to raise money for their cause. In Australia, op shops are often run by associations such as the Salvation Army (Salvos), St Vincent De Paul (Vinnies) or Lifeline who use the proceeds to assist people who are doing it a little tough. Goods sold in store are generally second-hand items donated by people in the local community and are sold for a fraction of the price you could expect to pay in retail stores.

Books,…