Yo-ho, yo-ho, it's charity shopping for me!

Before we get all piratical here (and I didn't start it, folks - see the comments on the last post for the culprits!), I just want to tell you that I bought a new card reader today and can now show you the photo I took of my parents' garden in yesterday's Edinburgh morning sunlight. My mother has strived to get the garden looking like this for 15 years, and she is really appreciating it now.

Thus it was that, yesterday afternoon, I set off down Leith Walk, clutching my Edinburgh charity shops map and searching for treasure.

I REALLY want to show this photo to the guy from a Stockbrdge charity shop who'd said to me the day before: 'Buttons? You want John Lewis, love. You won't find buttons in a charity shop.'
Ha!

In a funny little shop in aid of a local support charity, mainly selling furniture, I sorted through what remained of a donated button box. Quite a lot of the buttons had already sold, apparently, but I found more MOP than I've ever seen in one box before, I think. I paid quite a lot, but it's worth quite a lot. The charity was fantastic - the women in the shop were clearly working daily with the families they support, which really impressed me. I don't want to get bargains off people like that.

I bought this paste cluster and the tatted mat in the same shop.

This little cutie from the 1920s came from another furniture charity shop further down the road! I think the boys will adopt him.

Next to him on the shelf were these two under-valued cups from the 1930s - the one on the left is hand painted.

This purse is modern but has a beautifully vintage feel.And to complete the set I got a teapot for my garden party, plus the pretty blouse everything is resting on.This wonderful bucket of roses and lavender arrived for my mum yesterday morning (when we were taking photos in the garden, actually). It's from my uncles and aunts on my father's side - they are so thoughtful!

Tomorrow I'll be off to church in the morning (there's a BIG difference between French Baptist and Church of Scotland!) I'll report back to my mum for lunch and then one of the uncle and aunt combos mentioned above will be popping in, as they're on a touring holiday of Scotland! I should find time to photograph and chronicle my other Edinburgh treasure hunts at some point tomorrow, though, so more to come...