Magpie Monday - St Patrick's Day theme

It's Monday, it's 14.08 and it's .....? No, not Crackerjack but my weekly dose of Magpie Monday where we praise all things bargain-hunting.

This week, I have worked hard on putting this together so hope you like my themed Magpie Monday all based on the fact that this week we celebrate St Patrick's Day.

Firstly, here is a globe sourced from Netmums for a fiver. It is a lamp as well and I just like my children and myself to have a sense of the world around them. Notice how tiny Ireland is in world terms and also what a great influence it has culturally in other ways.

Then there are books by Irish authors such as

Deirdre Purcell - Children of Eve
Marian Keyes - The Charming Man

and also Gloria Hunniford's wonderful book on facing life after loss "Always with you". I have always felt very interested in Gloria and Caron Keating's story as Caron's was the first death I heard about after the birth of my own lovely daughter. So it may sound daft or morbid, but I feel a connection. That way of thinking, in itself, may be the Irish in me.

Clothing wise, I don't have specific Irish items but I do have items in orange, green and white like the Irish flag.

I have a great orange Timberland fleece for my eldest son that was given to me by a friend of my brother's. He worked at a private school and I went through a period of getting loads and loads of bags full of clothing for the children with lovely labels like Mini Boden, Monsoon and the like. He also has a fair few khaki items acquired in the same way if khaki counts as green.

When going through my daughter's vast wardrobe, I had to be really mercenary or this post would be enormous. So anything that was any colour except orange, green or white was ruled out. I found a few green T-shirts acquired in big bundles of clothing from Netmums, a green shrug, a white shrug, a white T-shirt and some funky white shorts. Labels included supermarkets brands such as George and also Next.

For myself, my best bargain was a white dress with a patent black belt from Marks and Spencer. It was brand new with the labels on and marked up at almost £50 but I got it for a fiver from the RSPCA shop. It is one of those classic dresses - very Jackie O or Michelle O depending on your era.

My real orange find was a silky vibrant bedspread which I got from a very local charity shop for just £2. This is my style in case you want to know. I love bright colours with that rich feel to them.

At the weekend, my charity shop was very much curtailed. I don't drive and my husband was going on a jolly with work. We negotiated that I could have a little trip to the charity shop first thing in the morning before he set off. I told him it was essential because of Magpie Monday which made him give me a blank look.

My daughter got into the spirit of things and bought a green turtle. She has a thing about tortoises and turtles.

I was determined to find something Irish-related but could find not a thing. At the last minute as I was leaving, I found a little spoon for £1 which was giftware from Ireland in silver plate. That fitted the bill and I bought it specifically for this post.

I have enjoyed doing a themed Magpie Monday. Maybe we could sometimes have a challenge based on seasonal events, colours or whatever? If people are up for this idea, I am going to use Comic Relief as inspiration for next week's Magpie Monday and highlight charity shop finds that make me laugh. That and try to inject some much neglected orange into my wardrobe.

Look at other blogs with Magpie Monday bargain finds!