Another Carboot Haul

I didn't sleep well at all Saturday night. In fact I haven't slept well for weeks, so it was with a heavy heart that I hauled myself out of bed in a bad mood Sunday morning. I didn't want to go to the Carboot sale but David forced me. I was monosyllabic in the car on the way there. I was pleased that I went in the end because the sun came out, there were plenty of stalls and I came home with a real mixed bag of bargains.

Here's what I bought:

A pair of black suede Footglove ballet flats which have been worn just once for £2. From the same stall I bought a Versace parfum backpack that is new and unused for £5 and a Yardley English Daisy perfume gift set for £4. Not a bad haul for just £11.

Two Filofaxes for £1 each. One is leather with the 2017 diary sections included inside. The zipper tag has come astray but for £1 I'm not going to complain. I'll get David to "fettle" it and find another tag for it to fit to the zipper pull. This currently costs £80 in John Lewis which is where it had originally been bought from.

Six magazines for 20p each which are all dated this year from April onwards.

Three Marks & Spencer toiletry gift sets for £1 each.

Two designer glasses cases. The GUESS one was 50p complete with cleaning cloth. The Tiffany&Co one was £2. I may use this to store my Tiffany&Co bracelet that David bought for me in the New York store two years ago.

Eight scalloped and embroidered Christmas napkins for £1. I have plenty of white napkins but in my mind you can ever have enough and they seem to get hammered at Christmas. I've used some on Christmas Day and had to wash them overnight for using on Boxing Day. I love white and silver for my dining table as I think it looks simple but smart.

A James Martin handheld blender, complete with all attachments for just £1. From the same lady I bought this fabulous huge soup tureen for £1 and this medium sized white bowl, which is handy as a mixing bowl or for fruit for just 50p.

Four Le Creuset ramekins in blue for just £2. I have for of these already but usually cater for up to 7/8 people so have not had enough of these to serve soufflés in before now. These can be extortionately expensive at up to £9 for each ramekin so I'm pleased with this buy. My sister bought me the other four as a gift. She'll be delighted when I finally serve her a starter in one. I love that they are blue as they match my Le Creuset pans.

An Ann Harvey black skirt for 75p and a Marks & Spencer tunic from the same lady for also 75p.

A Marks & Spencer navy blue linen shirt for my dad for £3 and a Peter Storm waterproof jacket for just £2. A couple of stocking fillers for him to add to some shop bought gifts. I've pretty much finished my Christmas shopping now. I hate all that last minute rushing around paying over the odds for gifts brought out just for Christmas.

My usual selection of DVDs which range from a 16 disc boxed set of Sherlock Holmes played by the late Jeremy Brett for £3 to BBC Torchwood and a mixture of films at 10p each. The criminal minds box sets were £1 each.

From the 10p DVD lady I bought this cute sealed pot of L'Occitane Hydra Vita Gel for 40p. This is an 8ml pot and the standard 50ml pot is £32. I worked out that my 40p pot should have cost £5.12..... I know I'm sad to have worked out the cost.

How did you do with your Carboot haul this weekend?

Sunday's Carboot Sale Buys

The sun was shining so brightly the other Sunday that the Carboot was busier than usual for this time of year. I bought quite a few things for myself and family and here are my purchases:

Two pairs of designer glasses frames. One pair of Gucci frames that I just love as they are just so "me". They came with their case and cleaning cloth. The second pair are dark purple and are Hugo Boss. These also came with their case but without a cleaning cloth. They were £5 each.

I found one couple who had a fabulous stall and I bought a few items from them. A jar of home made pickled onions in a kilner jar for £1.50 and some home made lemon curd for £1.

Two great diaries for 2017 at a fraction of their original price. I bought the large one for my dad who keeps just about everything in his diary by the phone in his house. This was £2 instead of £9.99. I bought a smaller one for me to keep in my handbag for £1. This should have been £3.99. They were both originally from Oxfam.

A lovely pug mug for £1.50 which will be put away for a gift for my niece for her birthday on November 3rd. I was given a smallish wicker hamper basket and I am going to fill this with some foodie treats for her including some hot chocolate and marshmallows. I thought I would put this mug in the hamper too. She recently started at York university so I hope a foodie hamper will be appreciated along with the usual toiletries etc

A Bomb Cosmetics bath blaster called Pink Lady for 50p. These are usually £2.99 each and I love them for a great long warm soak in the bath... Bliss.

A large Cath Kidston tube of body lotion for £4 which will be a Christmas stocking filler and from the same lady a dual tube set of Boots No.7 protect & protect serum for day and for night.

I also bought a bottle of gorgeous smelling liquid soap for in our kitchen. We go through gallons of the stuff each year. I have worried that we both have the makings of OCD with compulsive hand washing but I think we just manage to both get dirty hands through gardening, housework or doing DIY and end up constantly cleaning our hands. The scent of this liquid soap is orange blossom with coriander and smells heavenly.

I bought a couple of pairs of Footglove sandals in size 7.5 (I'm a size 8) as they were both like new and just £1 a pair. I thought I could possibly get away with wearing them as they are opened toe and I could be bothered trying them on. Bad move. When I got home a tried them my toes are right to the end and will probably dangle over the end with wear. I'll see if my sister wants them (she is a size 7 so maybe too big) and if they are no good for her either I will try to sell them on eBay. I think given the time of year I will have to wait until next year to sell them as people are looking at boots with the run up to winter. More "stuff" in my house when the idea is to be getting rid of things!

I bought quite a few Slimming World items from two different stall holders. The magazines were 30p and 50p and the pack was £1.50. We are both being careful about what we eat at the moment to try to keep a healthy diet. I have been buying lots of fruit, vegetables and salads to fill up on. I thought I would get some recipes and tips from these.

Bizarrely after thinking of eating less food I then bought two cookery books. Nigellisima for £1 and the River Cafe Cook Book - Green (vegetarian) for just 30p. I will try to increase our vegetable and fish consumption and cut down on meat.

Car booting Again

So earlier this week I posted about buying a Molton Brown cracker and getting some freebies with it via an offer with Good Housekerping magazine. The cracker cost £20 and I got a £10 body wash free plus a couple of other things. Well today the first stall I stop at on the Cheshire Carboot sale has an identical Molton Brown cracker on the table. It cost me £1. That is why I buy items from Carboot sales.

It was sunny and so busy and I bought quite a few things today. Many just bits and pieces but still some good items. Here is what I bought.

A large 100ml new bottle of Clinique Aromatics in White perfume for £20. This usually cost £80 so a great £60 savings. The lady selling this had quite a few Clinique perfumes and makeup so I guessed worked for them. This perfume smells so fresh and light. Lovely for next summer.

A bottle of Philosophy Amazing Grace shampoo, bath & shower gel for £1. This is usually around the £18 mark. 

Space NK eyeshadow brush priced at £18 for £1. Nails inc nail varnish in a grey pearlised shade called Covent Garden Ballet for 50p. A Leighton Denny nail varnish in a deep plum called Saturn Seduction for 30p.

Two packs of Wax Lyrical jelly belly tea lights in Toasted Marshmallow for £1.50 each. These usually cost between £4 - £5.50 a pack so another bargain. They smell good enough to eat and I love warm toasty smelling candles in the evening as we head towards winter.

A lovely wrapped gift pack containing a full sized tub of Soap & Glory righteous body butter for £1. These are generally £8.

A very chic new silk scarf for £2 which came complete with tags and labels. I think this will be used as a gift for someone.

Another Bomb Cosmetics bath bombs for £1 in bombjamin button scent. This came in a lovely floral gift box with tissue paper. These are usually £2.99 and I love them.

10 sample sets from Estée Lauder etc for £1. I picked out nearly all facial serums as these are great for putting in my weekend away toiletry bags.

A PRADA crossover black bag for just £2. I guess this has come free with some perfume or aftershave. I bought this for David to take with him to New York as it is lightweight but just a great size for sightseeing. I haven't been able to take a photo as he has whisked it away into his man cave.

A pair of worn once black boots from River Island. These were £10 and the lady said she had paid £40 for them but decided to sell them as she just has too much stuff. I like these boots but when I got them home I realised they are not made from leather but synthetic. They are lovely boots, look great on and are comfortable but I struggle with synthetic material so I guess I will be selling these on. I'll see if my sister wants to buy them from me first.

A gorgeous metal light up sign that spells LOVE for my niece for just £1.50. I thought this would look good propped up on her desk in her halls of residence room at uni.

A huge selection of DVDs and new, sealed DVD boxed sets. The boxed sets cost £2 and the single ones were 3 for £1.

I also bought some naughty food from one stall. Large box of Thorntons chocolates for £2 (still in date) and 6 packs of limited edition m&ms for £2. These will be stocking fillers.