Help support Bedford's charity shops and spark some joy!

Marie Curie Charity Shop - Bedford High Street

In the words of clutter clearing queen Marie Kondo in her book "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up"

Does this spark joy? If it does, keep it. If not let it go.

Let it go, let it go... is what we've been trying to do over the last couple of weekends when the weather has been meh! A deep dive into my wardrobe revealed about 5 pairs of jeans that didn't fit, tops that I'd hardly ever worn and shoes that we're an impulse buy for a Christmas party last year, that I knew were taking up up room, blocking the arrival of something new.

Some things were we're easy to put into the charity pile, other things felt much more difficult. Could I lose a few pounds and fit into the jeans again? In the end I went with Marie's advice and leaned into the "Does it spark joy?" mantra and hoped that someone else would love them more and my chosen charity would benefit.

Cancer has been up-front and centre in our family this year and I wanted to chose a charity that my donations would help provide expert hospice care, support over the phone for people needing end of life care.

Marie Curie Charity Shop on Bedford High Street was my go to. If you're a tax payer, they will give you a Gift Aid card with a barcode on it, this enables the charity to make your donation worth 25% more. Every so often they will send you a personal letter showing how much your donations made for the charity.

If you're thinking of having a clutter clearing day or a wardrobe re-set, Bedford has a great number of charity shops that would welcome your donations, some like British Heart Foundation on Silver Street will come and pick up your donations. IMPAKT preloved will collect your furniture donations to prevent them needlessly going into landfill.

So once you've made some space.... choosing to shop pre-loved can be a great way to update your look on a budget or why not add a new piece of furniture to a room to make it work better for your lifestyle.

Sue Ryder Retro and Vintage on Harpur Street is a dream for those who like to wear vintage clothes. From shoes, to scarves, costume jewellery, dresses and coats there's something to inspire and excite every vintage fashion aficionado. Oxfam Books and Music will take LP's CD's and books of all kinds.

So whilst the weather is cold and the days are short, why not have a sort out and see if you can spark some joy this January!

Marie Curie Charity Shop

• 75 High Street, Bedford, MK40 1NE

• Telephone: 01234266506

• Open 7 days

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