It’s New Year’s Eve this weekend and with so many great events to choose from, the outfit has be spot on. While many people might have had their ‘look’ prepared for months, others may prefer to shop the post Christmas sales, or even see what the high street has to offer.
Similarly, changes in the way we shop have seen more people avoiding fast fashion retailers in favour of second-hand, vintage and charity shops. Hotukdeals revealed through research that since the start of the cost of living crisis, 63 percent of people are choosing to shop second-hand. Meanwhile, data from the Charity Retail Association found that sales at their 9,000 shops were up by around 10 per cent.
With this in mind, I decided to visit the charity shops of Withington and Didsbury to try and pick up a stellar outfit on a strict budget of £20.
Read more: The best New Year's Eve events in Manchester to celebrate in style
The once humble charity shop is now bursting with delights. Brand new ASOS shoes still in the box are on offer for £12.99, Kurt Geiger's galore, and one shop has had a delivery of more than 50 brand new Zara dresses - still with tags.
I started in Withington, heading to Copson Street for a poke through the racks at St. Vincent’s and Lighthouse charity shops. Age UK had pulled out all of the stops and had a full rack of glamorous dresses, tops, skirts and jumpsuits, glittering on their hangers.
The prices were fantastic, and the shoes on offer were a great selection of sparkle and metallic tones. One pair caught my eye, slip on heels with wonderful beading. However, they were too big.
After this, I headed to Oxfam on Wilmslow Road and found that, similar to Age UK, all of the shoes in these shops appeared to be a size 6. So despite finding an excellent pair of chunky red velvet boots - only £6.99, my search continued.
In Oxfam, a pair of Moschino heels sat on their box, priced at £9.99, again a size 6. However, I found a wonderful little gold purse for only £2.99 and across the street in Cancer Research a gold beaded choker had caught my eye, equally cheap at £2.50. Together, they made up the accessories of the look and gave me a starting place.
Further up Wilmslow Road, I headed to Didsbury. Mind offered a great selection of sophisticated pieces, from a tailored black mini dress to glitzy gold heels. Sadly, I still could not find ‘the one’, or one in my size.
I had almost lost hope as I headed towards Didsbury’s Oxfam, however, the window display of two sparkling festive dresses intrigued me. A dress made of giant yellow sequins with a feather trim. I headed inside and straight to the mannequin.
The dress was brand new, from Zara, originally priced at £109, now only £34.99. Impressed, but wary of my budget, I looked at the racks.
Suddenly, I was met with racks and racks of sparkle, velvet, leather and sequin: a haven for party dresses. Chatting to the staff, I was told that they had had boxes upon boxes of brand new Zara dresses. Some were slightly damaged but others were perfect.
Sticking to my budget, I found some wonderful options: a royal blue sequined mini dress, a chic black blazer dress and an emerald green shift dress, all costing between £6.99 and 9.99.
Sadly, the Oxfam didn’t have a fitting room and the dresses were ‘sold as seen’, with no option to return. I took a chance and chose a sophisticated blazer dress for £8.99.
The dress, the necklace and the bag had come to £14.93 and I needed shoes. It was obvious that I had to return to Age UK for the beaded beauties and almost ran back there for them, hoping no one had bought them while I’d been in Didsbury.
Luck was on my side, for only £5, and the outfit was complete for £19.93, just under budget.
Read next:
- Home Bargains shoppers running to order heated airer that costs 7p to run
- I saved £35 on a hotel room with booking loophole that takes seconds to check
- Shoppers can’t get enough of 'miracle in a tube’ cream that vanishes eye bags instantly
- Aldi stocking 'perfect' mulled wine gadget than costs 68p an hour to run
