Charity Shop & Poundshop Finds

[GNC]

This week, I managed to pick up a first edition Harry Potter hardback for the princely sum of £3.50.

OK, before you all rush in to call me out for telling fibs, it wasn't The Philosopher's Stone (it was The Half-blood Prince, as it happens), but who knows - it still might be worth something one day!

You're right, there must be only a billion left in the world.

 

[Peripart]

You're right, there must be only a billion left in the world.

Great! A limited edition!

 

[gordonrutter]

This week, I managed to pick up a first edition Harry Potter hardback for the princely sum of £3.50.

OK, before you all rush in to call me out for telling fibs, it wasn't The Philosopher's Stone (it was The Half-blood Prince, as it happens), but who knows - it still might be worth something one day!

Yeah, it’s probably worth about £3.40

 

[Peripart]

Yeah, it’s probably worth about £3.40

Well, that's just rude

 

[Dinobot]

Yeah, it’s probably worth about £3.40

Well, that's just rude

Yeah, it's worth 34 pence!

 

[Peripart]

Not surprising that this thread's been dormant for a while, given that shops are shut, but just before the latest lockdown, I did manage to snap up something vaguely interesting (IMO) and even a little odd (also IMO!).

Non-philatelists among you may or may not be aware of the the existence of First Day Covers - these are envelopes with new stamps, and postmarked on the first day of issue of the stamps (hence "First Day"). Mostly, the envelopes themselves are specially produced to match the stamps, and the postmark itself may be unique. The stamps and envelopes often as not commemorate some special occasion or notable day. As you can imagine, there's a bit of a collectors market around these things, although most of my collection of British FDCs of the late 70s and early 80s is fairly standard stuff, and unlikely to be worth a lot. I like them, though!

Anyway, to the point. I spotted this item in a local charity shop in October:

A bit of fun, as you can see, commemorating Her Maj's 60th wedding anniversary, with not only a matching envelope and $2 (Grenadan) stamp, but also a coin inset into the cover. Postmark and coin are both dated 2007, which you'd expect. So far, so West Indian, but if we look closely at the other side of the coin (the obverse, for all you numismatists out there), this is the slightly odd bit:

This coin purports to originate from South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. I know that such coins exist, albeit only as curiosities for collectors, since the total population of that territory is no more than a few dozen researchers at any one time, and there is nowhere on those islands to actually spend money. The really odd bit, to me, though, is that a £2 coin from a British Overseas Territory is matched here with a $2 stamp from a Caribbean state.

So, I just thought I'd throw it out there, to share my strange find with you. For the princely sum of £5, I have the first addition to my FDC collection in about 35 years!

 

[Mythopoeika]

I have a small collection of first day covers, which I had hoped would be worth something... but I think they probably aren't worth much, given the fact that fewer people are collecting such things these days.

 

[gordonrutter]

Not surprising that this thread's been dormant for a while, given that shops are shut, but just before the latest lockdown, I did manage to snap up something vaguely interesting (IMO) and even a little odd (also IMO!).

Non-philatelists among you may or may not be aware of the the existence of First Day Covers - these are envelopes with new stamps, and postmarked on the first day of issue of the stamps (hence "First Day"). Mostly, the envelopes themselves are specially produced to match the stamps, and the postmark itself may be unique. The stamps and envelopes often as not commemorate some special occasion or notable day. As you can imagine, there's a bit of a collectors market around these things, although most of my collection of British FDCs of the late 70s and early 80s is fairly standard stuff, and unlikely to be worth a lot. I like them, though!

Anyway, to the point. I spotted this item in a local charity shop in October:

View attachment 31978

A bit of fun, as you can see, commemorating Her Maj's 60th wedding anniversary, with not only a matching envelope and $2 (Grenadan) stamp, but also a coin inset into the cover. Postmark and coin are both dated 2007, which you'd expect. So far, so West Indian, but if we look closely at the other side of the coin (the obverse, for all you numismatists out there), this is the slightly odd bit:

View attachment 31979

This coin purports to originate from South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. I know that such coins exist, albeit only as curiosities for collectors, since the total population of that territory is no more than a few dozen researchers at any one time, and there is nowhere on those islands to actually spend money. The really odd bit, to me, though, is that a £2 coin from a British Overseas Territory is matched here with a $2 stamp from a Caribbean state.

So, I just thought I'd throw it out there, to share my strange find with you. For the princely sum of £5, I have the first addition to my FDC collection in about 35 years!

Is it possible that the original version featured the appropriate Grenada coin and perhaps over time stuffed in drawer and the coin fell out and mixed with other coins. Owner dies and family clearing out and just pick a random coin and shove it in place?

 

[Peripart]

Is it possible that the original version featured the appropriate Grenada coin and perhaps over time stuffed in drawer and the coin fell out and mixed with other coins. Owner dies and family clearing out and just pick a random coin and shove it in place?

It's not completely impossible, but I think not. The coin is absolutely pristine, appears to be sealed inside its bubble-within-the-envelope, and commemorates the same anniversary as the rest of the "set". Also, the image on the coin, stamp and envelope are pretty much identical. It's a large coin (40mm), so an extremely lucky find if it's there by chance.

 

[gordonrutter]

It's not completely impossible, but I think not. The coin is absolutely pristine, appears to be sealed inside its bubble-within-the-envelope, and commemorates the same anniversary as the rest of the "set". It's a large coin (40mm), so an extremely lucky find if it's there by chance.

I’m changing my mind it seems there were a range of these all using the same coin but different FDC’s and locations so for example there is this version from Sierra Leonne
https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/1534610821...99&pmt=0&noa=1&pg=2386202&algv=DefaultOrganic

 

[gordonrutter]

I’m changing my mind it seems there were a range of these all using the same coin but different FDC’s and locations so for example there is this version from Sierra Leonne
https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/153461082199?rt=nc&_trkparms=aid=1110006&algo=HOMESPLICE.SIM&ao=2&asc=20160908110712&meid=128522ce2ed544f7b31fc36163324b19&pid=100677&rk=5&rkt=30&mehot=none&sd=153458908619&itm=153461082199&pmt=0&noa=1&pg=2386202&algv=DefaultOrganic

 

[maximus otter]

Score!

The memsahib & I have loved the first three series of The Bridge. It's a Swedish/Danish police procedural noir, the title deriving from the fact that in Series 1, a victim's body is found exactly in the centre of the Øresund Bridge connecting Sweden to Denmark. Assigned to investigate are Saga Norén (Sofia Helin; Swedish) and Martin Rohde (Kim Bodnia; Danish).

They're a complicated pair, as Saga is "on the spectrum", and has the interpersonal skills of gravel; while Martin is a serial shagger with a crumbling private life. It's compelling viewing, despite plots that follow something of a template: "Lovely Guardian readers are murdered by evil Telegraph readers."

Series 4 hasn't been available on UK telly free of charge, so imagine my delight when I picked up 3 DVDs - Series 1&2; Series 3 and Series 4 - for a total of £7!

That's the dark days of January and February sorted.

maximus otter

 

[Souleater]

Im a regular in a lot of charity shops and buy a lot of designer clothes, as i have mentioned on another thread, including armani and boss suits, designer jeans, shirts coats and hand bags which i sell on, ive bought designer watches and jewellery but my favourite item i bought in the summer for the princely sum of £3 was this whitefriers amathyst vase

 

[Souleater]

Just looking at that photo i just posted and is it just me or does it look like my vase is floating lol

 

[Frideswide]

this whitefriers amathyst vase

Looked at the picture before I read your post - said that it had to be Whitefriars. Nice. Very nice, very very nice!!!!!!

 

[hunck]

Im a regular in a lot of charity shops and buy a lot of designer clothes, as i have mentioned on another thread, including armani and boss suits, designer jeans, shirts coats and hand bags which i sell on, ive bought designer watches and jewellery but my favourite item i bought in the summer for the princely sum of £3 was this whitefriers amathyst vase
View attachment 33781

Where in the country is this? Round here you'd never find stuff like that.

A friend recently found a small watercolour in a rural Northants village charity shop by a lesser known English painter whose name I can't remember but which she reckoned could be worth a few hundred quid. Not that she's going to sell it as it's a nice little harbour scene, but it seems to me those are the sort of locations you have to go to to find some quality stuff. Somewhere well-heeled enough to just give stuff away when they get tired of it.

 

[Souleater]

Where in the country is this? Round here you'd never find stuff like that.

A friend recently found a small watercolour in a rural Northants village charity shop by a lesser known English painter whose name I can't remember but which she reckoned could be worth a few hundred quid. Not that she's going to sell it as it's a nice little harbour scene, but it seems to me those are the sort of locations you have to go to to find some quality stuff. Somewhere well-heeled enough to just give stuff away when they get tired of it.

Hampshire

 

[Kondoru]

I think the big charity shop find these days would be one open.

 

[Peripart]

Maybe we should have a "best historical charity shop find" competition to while away the weeks until they open again.

 

[cycleboy2]

Maybe we should have a "best historical charity shop find" competition to while away the weeks until they open again.

My best find is a first edition of Tracy Chevalier's Girl with a Pearl Earring. I was about to car boot it but I always check my books in case I've picked up a rarity. Sure enough, my copy has the spelling Girl with a Pearl Earing on the dust jacket; most of those copies were pulped so it's pretty rare as a result. I've since got it signed by the author without a dedication.

My most recent good purchase is a first edition of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo for a fiver, in decent if not great condition.

 

[Tigerhawk]

Im a regular in a lot of charity shops and buy a lot of designer clothes, as i have mentioned on another thread, including armani and boss suits, designer jeans, shirts coats and hand bags which i sell on, ive bought designer watches and jewellery but my favourite item i bought in the summer for the princely sum of £3 was this whitefriers amathyst vase
View attachment 33781

It looks like one of the Orbs from Star Trek Deep Space Nine...