Recession buying !
March 29, 2009
By Danielle Mac Innes
With the latest economic figures even more depressing than the last, we need something to cheer us up! Gone are the days of exuberant spending and careless management of our hard earned cash on frivolous and unnecessary ‘must have’ items. Here are a few of my favourite bargains to cheer up those of us who need to tighten our belts in the coming months!
Oxfam Home – Oxfam.org
Most of us associate Oxfam with old clothes being dumped out by our grannies and next door neighbours, however, in recent years Oxfam have really upped their game and have re- branded with a trendier look and feel and a variety of departments dedicated to the likes of vintage clothing, books, garden, bridal wear and they now even have a dedicated and quite often impressive OxfamHome section! You won’t always find something but if you persevere, you can be really lucky and pick up great finds for next to nothing. Almost certainly you’ll need to add your own love and affection by re-vamping, re-upholstering or re-painting but you’ll end up with a unique piece for your effects and at a fraction of the cost! The gray painted sideboard (see gallery) came from Oxfam Home in Dublin and was a snip at €95! I then had it painted in Farrow and Ball Pavilion Grey to smarten it up, I think it looks great!
Ikea – ikea.com
With the imminent opening of Ikea in Dublin in July 09 people have been watching with anticipation at the sprawling hulk of a building that has sprung up beside Dublin’s notorious Ballymun Flats. They (Ikea) couldn’t have timed it better…. What healthier marketing for them than the ever worsening recession!? What it means is that you can now hop in your car and fly up the M50 to gain access to never ending cheap treats for the home which in these times is for a lot of people, a welcome addition. On the downside, it means you won’t get away with your Ikea finds as easily anymore as people will be quick to recognise an Ikea ‘piece’… that said it’s still a great spot to find really ‘affordable’ homewares and furniture… you just have to choose carefully!
Take this metal locker style cabinet for £58.63 ( see gallery). It comes in white, silver or red! I love it!
Take also the Melltrop dining table. It comes in 3 different sizes starting at £21.53. A friend of mine recently moved to a rented house with a teeny tiny kitchen. They were faced with a dilemma for the table as their own one wouldn’t fit and as the house is a temporary home they didn’t want to splash out on an expensive table to fit such a small space – they opted for this one in the 75mm x 75mm which seats 4 (at a push) – it looks great though and is a true recession winner at only £21.53!
Another great bargain from Ikea is the Kulla range of lamps. They come in white, black and red and you can go for the table or floor version. The great thing about these lamps is that the price is great (they start at 39.05 for the table version) and once in situ they don’t look for a minute like they came from IKea!
Auction Houses
Try auction houses for bargain finds, like Herman Wilkinson in Rathmines and Buckleys Galleries in Sandycove. They’re auction houses that clear their stock every week. They flog a mix of antiques, garage finds and junk! It’s a great place to trawl through and again you won’t find something everytime you go there, you have to be lucky but just remember to keep your eyes and mind open and you can pick up great bargains and end up with a great one off piece at a fraction of a price.
So for those of us who have had our belts tightened, it’s not the end of getting those “must have” items, its more a case of adapting what those items are, becoming more thrifty and having imagination for those unloved garage finds!
Buckleys Galleries, 28 Sandycove Road, Sandycove, Co. Dublin. Tel: 01 2805408
Herman Wilkinson, 161 Lower Rathmines Road, Dublin 6. Tel: 01 4972245 hermanwilkinson.ie
To see more of danielles work log on to www.fuseinteriors.ie/
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