21 September 2015

Gumtree!

I am addicted to gumtree.  It's almost embarrassing.  It's a website where you can post up just about anything for sale in your local area.  Like the want-ads.  Or Craigslist.  It's amazing the stuff you can find on gumtree.

For example, my favorite gumtree find has got to be the beautiful arts and crafts wardrobe I bought for a song for F's bedroom. The most recent thing I actually bought from gumtree was a baby bathtub and bathseat for T.  The weirdest things I've picked up on gumtree were old bricks and bags of sand (for the path out in the backyard.)  I've sold miscellaneous furniture, usually instead of taking them to the dump or charity shop.  I wish Simon would let me sell his dusty cross-trainer.  Currently, I'm looking for a kingsized bedframe, a reclining sofa (or a chesterfield sofa...can't decide!), fireside wing chairs, a starfish lomond harp (ha!), a sideboard-type-cupboard-thing for the bathroom upstairs, a steinway grand piano (hey, I can dream, right?).....

I like the fact that you can look and not be in a hurry to buy the first thing that comes up.  You can wait and buy the right thing at the right price in the right location.  Good things come to those who wait.  And people with an imagination.  And you never know what you will find - it's like charity shop shopping (Goodwill, translated for my American readers...) without having to go anywhere!  (Though I have to add, charity shops in the States have generally been far better than the ones over here - here they are becoming more and more a 'niche' market, and charity shop people have started marking up their prices accordingly.  I can almost go to Sainsburys and certainly to ASDA and get brand new clothes for the same price or less.  So you have to look for quality/rarity at charity shops to make it worthwhile.)

My friend G reminded me of gumtree regarding kid's play clothes.  She got a huge bundle for S last week and was telling me about it.  I told her I'd been hitting the malls and grocery stores trying to supplement F's wardrobe as she has just shot up over the summer.  As addicted as I am to gumtree, I was ashamed I hadn't thought of it first.  I was going to go to Primark in town tomorrow morning (while F is in nursery), but instead now, I am going to go and look at a bundle of 4-5yo girls' clothes I found on gumtree.  I've bought 2nd hand clothes off the site once before and some of F's favorite outfits came from that transaction!  Seeing as F has practically ruined 3 sets of trousers last week alone (at nursery, having accidents) and the fact she's growing so fast, I don't want to spend a lot on her 'autumn wardrobe refresh!'

In addition to potentially finding absolute bargains, I really like using the site because I feel I am helping out normal people, rather than bankrolling some massive corporation.  If those things were just to end up in a landfill somewhere when someone threw them out, it's a win-win-win situation.  Better for them (they can exchange their unwanted goods for cash), for me (I get stuff I want cheaper) and for the environment (less waste in the landfill!)

Hail gumtree!  Let's hear it from the gumtree addicts!