There is nothing better that bagging yourself a bargain and one of the best places to grab a great deal is at your local charity shop. We decided to set ourselves a challenge and head out to our local charity shops with £10 to see just what we would be able to find. Our aim was to either be filled with happiness or find things good for our mental health. So, here it is our £10 Charity Shop Challenge…
We visited quite a few shops for our challenge, some of them seemed to be quite sparse. We persevered and managed to find some fantastic items, keeping within our budget.
Happy by Fearne Cotton
We’ve heard a lot about this book, but never had occasion to read it, so finding this in one of the Charity Shops was brilliant.
The book is broken down into bite sized chapters, just one or two pages long and is full of exercises to do and sections to fill out. It is in great condition, pages, spine and cover all in tact, the only damage is a couple of corners on the front cover are a touch curled, but it is barely noticeable.
With a bright, eye catching cover and a lot of buzz around even today, this was a steal at just £1, something to help you focus on the positive in your life and feel more happy!
The Trickster by Muriel Gray
This was an exciting find on a personal level as this book is one that I have read before, it was bought for me many years ago and I can remember just how incredible I thought it was at the time.
A fantastic way to escape and give your brain a break from reality, reading can be incredibly immersive and relaxing. An absolute bargain at only £1.
The Cupcake
Who isn’t enticed by a beautiful cover that has a cake on the front? This baking book is packed with delicious looking cupcake recipes including the ’99’ Cupcakes, reminiscent of those iconic ice creams from our childhood!
With a multitude of recipes, tips, tricks and simple detailed information, this seems to be more than a cook book and we can not wait to try out some of the recipes. Eating yummy food, even the less healthier options, can be a mood booster all on its own, just the thought of trying out the ’99’ Cupcakes has cheered us up, even the book says ‘Life’s better with a cupcake’!
A great discovery at £1.
Mindful Eating by Rachel Bartholomew and Mandy Pearson
he last of our book finds, is this apparent little gem that is a more obvious option for our challenge given that the book focuses on eating better and meditations. Both of these things are great for helping you find a more positive way to nourish the body and the mind.
The book is filled with enticing recipes long with an abundance of information on how to be more mindful when eating. Whilst we haven’t had the opportunity to delve deeper into the pages just yet, and we will (watch this space), on the face of it, this looks to be a surprising find and again only cost us £1.
Incense and Holder
Filled with excitement, this incense holder not only matched the colour scheme of the space where we like to relax and unwind, but the incense sticks smelled incredible in the shop and were donned ‘Candy Floss’. Honestly, the smell alone was enough to seal this purchase, they are mouth watering, with a gentle sweet aroma reminiscent of the seaside treat we all know and love.
Unfortunately, the anticipation of having a room filled with a comforting and enjoyable scent, something that is great for helping your mind to unwind and feel more relaxed, was short lived. Once lit, the incense sticks had a mundane, generic incense smell that was as far from candy floss as you could get.
However, the holder is beautiful and for £1 was not too much of a disappointment, the sticks are standing in a little glass jar and smell much better than when lit.
Shaving Brush Plant
Plants are amazing therapy and we are big believers at The Wonderment that surrounding yourself with plants and nature can have massive benefits for your mental health.
This little plant was for sale in one of the charity shops, he was in need of a drink, but besides that was in great condition and now has pride of place among the plethora of greenery here at the magazine.
We were so happy with this purchase, you can never have too many plants and the Shaving Brush Plant is super easy to care for, just needing some water so the soil doesn’t dry out. A bargain at just £1.50
Hippy Bag
By far the most exciting find was this brand new, colourful bag that had echoes of the 60s and 70s. Anything that you adore will give you happy vibes and help improve your confidence a bit.
The colours, design and condition were all immaculate. The bag is bigger than you normally get with ones of a similar design that barely fit your purse inside, this one being larger would hold much more.
This bag makes us super happy, boosting our joy factor and filling us with excitement to use it once the weather improves somewhat! The best bargain without a doubt at £3.50.
We had so much fun with the £10 challenge, not only did we grab ourselves a bunch of brilliant buys and helped out with some worthwhile causes, but we got to spend the day with each other, laughing and enjoying ourselves, getting excited for finds, amazed at what people donate and generally just having a great day out. We spent exactly £10!
If you are looking for a way to do some good and feel happy then why not try our £10 charity shop challenge – a positive, mindful activity that combines the joy of shopping with the satisfaction of donating to charity. You never know what you might find!
Check out our other sections Lifestyle, Wellness, Self-Care and Children, as well as our Pinterest for other ideas and challenges that will get you feeling a sense of wonder, improving your outlook or maybe just putting a smile on your face!
