A SAVVY shopper has revealed the five best gifts to look out for in charity shops if you want to really impress this festive season.
So if you’ve still got Christmas presents that you still to buy, you’ll need to pay attention.
Monica Marriott-Mills, 29, recently took to social media to share her top tips for shopping second-hand this festive season.
She revealed the items that’ll get you the most bang for your buck, including the things that’ll make perfect stocking fillers.
Sharing her advice online, Monica posted a clip with the caption ‘Five charity shop Christmas gift ideas and how to spot them.’
As she showed her followers around her local charity shop, she said: “Hi, my name is Monica and over 90% of what I own is secondhand.
“This Christmas, I’m buying over 50% of my Christmas gifts secondhand from charity shops and online.
“So in today’s video, I’m going to share five gift ideas that are really easy to spot in charity shops and make beautiful gifts.”
Firstly, Monica recommended getting jewellery from charity shops, as she advised: “First up, and it has to be jewellery. Who doesn’t love a beautiful piece of jewellery for Christmas? Because I certainly do.
“I found so many amazing vintage pieces, gold plated jewellery, Sterling silver.
“You’d be amazed at what you can find, so always check out the cabinets in charity shops.
“Keep an eye out for anything that looks like a jewellery gift box.
“And be prepared to do a little bit of TLC. Perhaps it’ll need a polish or a little repair, maybe you’ll need to sanitise it.
“You can literally save thousands by shopping this way and you can still find incredible gifts.
“You may just surprise yourself.”
Not only this, but Monica also advised looking out for bags too, as she added: “Next up, it’s got to be leather goods and bags. I find leather to be quite easy to spot.
“It’s got a very distinctive look and smell and it’s often labelled with a genuine leather label inside.
“If perhaps the person you’re buying for doesn’t like leather, it’s always good to look out for really unique bags or branded bags.”
Not only does Monica recommend keeping an eye out for bags, but she also told shoppers to look for homeware items too.
She explained: “Next up, it’s got to be homeware. Anything cutesy and vintage. Here we had a full set of antique espresso cups. I just love these.
“Often charity shops have entire areas dedicated to homeware, bric a brac, so they’re kind of doing the hard work for you.
“All you need to do is make sure that you give the item a good clean and it’s all down to how you package it.
“You can literally make something from a charity shop look like it’s from a really high end boutique in the Cotswolds if you know how to package it up and present it in a really nice way.
“We have literally furnished our entire house with pieces from charity shops. Don’t underestimate the power of what people will donate.”
Monica also expressed that charity shops will often have a variety of items brand new, as she suggested: “Next up and that’s to look out for items that are new in their box or have been donated by a retail partner.
“Lots of charity shops now have partnerships with other retailers and they’ll receive donations that have never been used or opened.
“So you can literally find items at 75% off the original price, new with their tags.
“Alternatively, there are Just lots of items that have been donated and have never been used, and they’re often all grouped together in one space.
“Charity shops are becoming very, very good at the way that they merchandise their items, making it much easier for you as the buyer to navigate the shop.
“This is often a great place to find little bits for stocking fillers, so keep an eye out for that.”
The final things that you’ll find in charity shops for good prices, according to Monica, are clothes.
She concluded: “And finally, probably what charity shops are most known for, and that’s their clothing, more specifically, branded clothing.
“This is where you can get the best bargains in my opinion. It’s always best to have a couple of brands in mind so you’re hyper vigilant of those brands.
“But also just to keep an eye out for high quality items, kids’ clothes, specific materials such as cashmere, such as cotton and leather.
“There’s absolutely nothing wrong with gifting secondhand clothing. You get so much more for your money, so the recipient of your gift actually gets better presents anyway.
“All you need to do is make sure that they’ve been given a wash, a dry clean, or a steam, package them up nicely and they’ll just look amazing.
“I hope you found these tips useful. Second hand shopping really is the best way to get the most out of your money, to do your part for the environment and to support charities.”
The TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @themonicaway, has clearly left many open-mouthed, as it has quickly amassed 26,900 views.
One person said: “Fantastic tips thanks!”
Another added: “I admire you, you’re so confident and elegant, love your clips.”
Whilst a third asked: “Where are these charity shops? We have nothing like them.”
To this, Monica replied: “On this occasion, Ipswich but I charity shop all over the UK.”
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