Saturday 25 July 2009

Car Boot Chic


So where was I at 5.50am yesterday morning?
Unpacking a car in the middle of a field 10 miles from home.
And why?
"Because you promised," said my 9-year-old son.
And somewhere in the deepest depths of winter I recall saying that I would take my son to a car boot sale so he could raise some cash.
"When the weather is better," I promised.
So here we were accompanied by my 12-year-old daughter who didn't want to miss out on an opportunity to raise a bit of extra cash too.
The pair of them had spent the past two days "helping" Grandad clear the loft!
I decided to take along some of the clothes from my workthatwardrobe charity sale and some books that I had read.
I had only ever been to one car boot sale before - and that was as a buyer.
Our pitch was next to a lovely old lady who helped us sort ourselves out.
She told me that since her husband died she did a car boot sale every weekend and the money she makes keeps the car on the road.
I had no idea what to wear.
Although it was dry it was still quite cold at 5.30am when we left home so I opted for jeans, s carf and a hoodie with my Isabella Oliver vest underneath.
We had made most of our sales by 10am and met lots of lovely characters.
My children loved bartering and playing shop.
Although the credit crunch means not much made more than £2.00.
By 12pm I was ready to go but we were surprised by my husband who turned up on his bike and helped us pack up.
After taking out the pitch fee of £9.00 my children had made £20 each and I had made £38 - which will go towards the charity I am supporting.
If you haven't tried a car boot sale I urge you to give it a go.
It was great fun and made me appreciate my lie-in so much more this morning!

11 comments:

  1. I've done the Australian equivalent a couple of times. We tend to have garage sales here!

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  2. Hi there-well done indeed, I adore boot sales, but buying rather than selling,LOL!!

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  3. You're such a good Mom! And it taught the kids how to earn some money.

    It's 5:30am here and I'm heading out to watch a friend compete in a triathlon...wish I was in bed too LOL!

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  4. so glad you all had fun! :)

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  5. Jane! Is that you?? I think it is. I love your new blog...need to check it all out!

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  6. Hi Jane,

    Just try www.insideoutstyleblog.com there is something wrong in the coding in the header at the moment that I'm trying to fix!

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  7. I remember car boot sales well - it usually rained!! thanks for your comment on my blog - however I have to say that I am in awe of you because you can hula hoop! I bought one after seeing you with one on your previous blog - and help! I can't do it!! How can it be??!! I live in hoop, I mean hope, that practise makes perfect!

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  8. i love the sleeveless top and waistcoat look. i'm totally going to have to hop on this trendy bandwagon STAT. !

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  9. Fortunately you got a sunny day for your car boot! I'm thinking of doing one as well, but I'm sure from now on there will always be rainy Saturday mornings! C'est l'Angleterre! Ciao. A.

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  10. Sounds to me like your car boot takings were actually pretty healthy; the one time my family tried it we had dismal results... I expect practice makes perfect!
    You look great for 5:50.

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