Books: Eco Extravaganza by Natalie

An Inconvinient Truth - Al Gore

The book that provided the basis for one of the most influential envionmental films of recent times is every bit as eye opening. Full of imagery documenting man's impact upon the natural environment, this is a must buy book for anyone even remotely curious about the environment. Get this iconic book for £3.99.

World Changing: A User's Guide for the 21st Century

With a foreword by Al Gore and consisting of the work of many enviromentalists, this is the go to action guide for modern times. With sections on cities, community, business, politics and the planet, this book covers everything you could possibly want to know from direct action and network politics through to social entrepreneurship and microfinance. This beautifully presented book is only £9.99.

50 Ways to be a Greener Shopper - Sian Berry

Written by one of the Green Party's key spokespeople, this well researched guide to ethical purchasing is handy for anyone seeking to reduce the impact they have upon the planet in all aspects of lifewhether this be in relation to food and cosmetics shopping or wedding planning and baby care. Make your consumption patterns greener by investing in this 100% recycled book for £2.99.

New In: Vintage homeware by Emma

Hi there, just wanted to show you some of the retro goodies that have been donated including this amazing Quality Street tin from the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977 and these lovely red cups and saucers stamped Made in England and I'd guess from around the same decade. The tin is yours for £7.99 and a set of six cups and saucers £6.99.

Spotlight on: Cards from Africa by Emma

Today, while unpacking the delivery, I found out our "Cards from Africa" range are handmade by young people in Rwanda who lost their parents to conflict and disease. What's really lovely is that every card is signed by the people who made it (see photo). Such a nice touch! And the art they make helps them provide education, health, food and shelter for their brothers and sisters.

Fashion: Manager's pick of the week

Today, I was delighted to discover a scarf in our huge box of donated jewellery by accessories queen Lulu Guinness. It's colourful and printed with the words "I love you" over and over - and it's silk! It has the Lulu Guinness signature and a little charm attached. It's yours for a snip at £19.99. Hooray. What a find!

Homeware: Vintage Book Cover Collection

 

Pop into the shop to pick up some of our limited edition pictures. We've chosen our favourite vintage book covers and framed them. We also have a selection of black and white scenes from New Wave French films Alphaville and Jules et Jim. They are £5.99 each or £9.99 for a pair and perfect for retro fans or book lovers alike.

Events: Oxfam Pride window

Chris took time out from boosting sales on the till and doing Fairtrade food promotions to dress the shop windows. He created two rainbow-themed displays - one for men and one for women - to celebrate Manchester's Gay Pride this weekend. He pegged clothes on washing lines and designed a brilliant poster with the slogan: hang homophobia out to dry. He was joined by lovely new volunteer Sofie for the photos.

Fashion: Danke Madchen

Lisa and Elizabeth bade farewell to Manchester with an Oxfam fashion shoot. They're heading home to Germany after three weeks of sorting, steaming and pricing in the shop. We've enjoyed having them here. Danke und auf wiedersehn!

Manchester Art Gallery shoot: Lisa wears yellow silk dress £9.99 Miss Selfridge, black dress £4.99, black high heels £6.99, black fascinator £9.99. Elizabeth wears white top £4.99, blue Lux blazer £5.99, jean shorts £4.99, wedges £3.99, jewellery from £2.99.

Whitworth Art Gallery shoot: Lisa wears a denim jacket £9.99, skirt  £6.99, blue suede stiletto heel boots £9.99, bangles from £2.99. Elizabeth wears red skirt £3.99 H&M, black top £3.99, Mango blazer £6.99, black leather boots £14.99, jewellery from £2.99.


Photographer: Shen Lu
Sylists: Elizabeth and Lisa.

Books: Stand-up Special by Natalie

 The Comedy Store - William Cook

Providing a springboard into the limelight for many stand-up comedians, The Comedy Store remains a popular and influential venue 32 years after first opening in 1979. This book documents the origins of the club in an informative yet highly interesting and humorous manner with annecdotal insights from some of the very individuals that owe their fame to the venue including the legendary Eddie Izzard, Bill Bailey and Hugh Dennis. Pick up this book in store for a mere £4.99.

Billy - Pamela Stephenson

Comedian and winner of  the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003, Billy Connolly has undoubtedly led a life with a story worth telling. Billy has come a long way from his modest roots working on a Glaswegian shipyard and, through the words of his wife, this book tells the tale of the man who became an internationally successful comedian and star of the hit film the Man Who Sued God. This hugely entertaining biography can be yours for only £2.99.

My Sh*t Life So Far - Frankie Boyle

This best selling autobiography by the ex-star of Mock the Week, Frankie Boyle, is full of the acid-tongued wit and crude observations that make this man so popular. Being a "tremendous liar" by his own admission, this in not a serious book in any regard but this simply adds to the charm making it a thoroughly enjoyable read and reminiscent of his live performances that are loved by many. Have a chuckle for less than the price of a pint at £2.49.

Fashion: Louisa's final fashion shoot starring....Louisa!



Model and stylist: Louisa, 
Photographer: Shen Lu, 
Clothes, accessories, props: Oxfam.



Before she left Oxfam to head

home across the channel,

our French intern, Louisa,

raided the rails for a mix of chic,

rock chick and retro and nipped

out the back for a quick photo call. 



"It's all about the accessories," she said.

"I love bangles."

Merci Louisa, Bon voyage et 
bonne chance dans l'avenir!

 

Books: Not the Booker Prize

Judge of the Manchester Oxfam short story competition and Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) lecturer Nicholas Royle has made it on to The Guardian's Not The Booker Prize longlist with Regicide (Solaris).

Other North West writers on the list include Jenn Ashworth with Cold Light (Sceptre) and Richard by Ben Myers (Picador).

East Africa Appeal

More than 10 million people in East Africa are facing desperate food shortages following the worst drought in 60 years. Rains have failed for successive seasons, and families across Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya are struggling to find anything to eat or drink. Hundreds of thousands of livestock have already died. Food prices have rocketed. For more information watch You Tube video Photographer Rankin in Kenya Visit our shop to help or donate via the Oxfam website Donations to East Africa

Fashion: i`m leaving...

Today is my last day in my wonderful Oxfam shop in Oxford Road, so I`m gonna stop writing my fashion posts and the two German girls, Elizabeth and Lisa are gonna to do some instead, and of course all the Oxford Road shop volunteers are gonna post about music, books or fashion. I`m sure it`s gonna be great.
I`ve spent the most perfect 3 months working in this shop, it was not just about working but also having a great human experience. I would like to thank Emma, our manager, for that and for all the work that she does, as she says "it`s brilliant", and thanks to everyone for all the good moments, I will not forget England, I will not forget you.

Oh and don`t forget: charity is fashion! 

Louisa 
x

Fashion: come to my garden party by Louisa

The theme today is the garden party: what could you wear to be simple and elegant but have a touch of summer on you?

The man is wearing a perfect black jacket, which is a Crombie one, online you can have it for £300, but we are selling it only for £39.99 and it's in very good condition. To match with his girlfriend we added a Zara shirt (£6.99) and the little detail of the short cutaway collar add a original touch to this classy look.

The girl wears a silk top, very colourful, perfect for the summer (£8.99), in addition to her black high waisted skirt (£6.99). It wouldn`t be perfect without the violet belt with gold details (£4.99). Today, I can propose another choice for this girl`s outfit and this is a coup-de-coeur as we say in French ( it means heart flash ), this is a simple black and white Zara dress, simple, elegant and perfect for the night after the garden party !

Books: Four for All by Vashti.

Antipope - Robert Rankin

This is Robert Rankin’s first novel, and the first of the now-famous Brentford trilogy.  Anarchic and irreverent, it charts the shenanigans of Jim Pooley and John Omally as they battle the evil Antipope.  If that isn’t charming enough, the fact that Rankin described the genre as “far-fetched fiction” in the hope that he’d get his own shelf in WHSmith certainly is.

    This little gem is also a rare first edition.  At the time of writing (or “going to press”, as we industry types call it) we could only find three others on abebooks.  We’ve undercut all of them with our price of £70.00.

Tales from Shakespeare - Charles and Mary Lamb

While this book looks archaic, it is actually a collection of Shakespeare’s plays made accessible to children of the time.  It was written by Charles and Mary Lamb, the former being a famous critic and essayist.  Ironically, though, the book’s huge success was due mainly to his sister Mary, who rewrote all the comedies.  Her name didn’t even appear on the title page for several editions.

    Our edition is dated 1877.  Its red leather, gilt decorations and heavy, firm feel make it an immensely pleasing and tactile object.  As always we aim to undercut internet sellers with our price of £100.00.

The Shipping News - Annie Proulx

Proulx’s sparing, bleak style is as utterly compelling as her visions of the minutiae of human existence set against the raw indifference of the world.  The Shipping News won the Pulitzer prize and was made into a film starring Kevin Spacey.  That Proulx’s main source of inspiration was The Ashley Book of Knots, which she found at a garage sale for a quarter, is a lovely example of the recycling of literature and its wonder – something we’re very aware of here at Oxfam.  This healthy dose of inspiration will set you back a modest £2.49.

Summer Living - The Big Chill

The cover of this book sports the words “Big Chill… summer living… every day a festival…”  Not only that, it’s endorsed by none other than local icon and immortal king of the good-life, Mr Scruff.  The riot of colour on the pages, the smart tips for getting the most out of your festival experiences, the coverage of every single festival in Europe – they hardly need mentioning after that, do they?  This guide to your summer festivals would have set you back £14.99 new.  Here, you’ll get it for a cool £4.99.

Books: Ladies and gentleman, may I introduce the book team...?

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a charity shop in possession of a book section, must be in want of an endless supply of Dan Browns.

Well, actually, no...

I'm Vashti, and I'm a member of the Oxfam book team at Whitworth Park.  If that makes you think of bespattered Marks and Spencers microwave cookbooks or Mills and Boons in various states of decay or the beforementioned Dan Browns, then hopefully we'll surprise you.  Oxfam's book team are passionate about books and we strive to get something a bit exciting and unusual on our (well organised) shelves.  We even have some rare antiquarian books in store.  Take a look at our selection of books on this blog.  It's diverse, exciting, and every one is worth a browse in person - a far cry from the usual dusty suspects.

Reader, read on!

Fashion: my oxfam closet by Louisa

We had so many clothes that we decided to do a closet with only Oxfam things. we will not put all the prices just on a few things, and if you want to discover more, then come into our shop ;)

girlie gold bag (£5.99, nine west) // flower coloured skirt (£5.99) // short dark blue jacket (£6.99)

blue sparkling top (£4.99) // summer hat (£4.99) // flower and black vintage bag (£6.99)

Fashion: vintage 40`s by Louisa

It`s well known, fashion is cyclical and every trend is coming back again. For this winter it seems that the 40`s look is the one which is coming back. Of course we already love the red lips, the pencil skirts, the very long gloves etc... but for this winter the aim is to be even more classy. We tried to let you see our Oxfam version of this trend.

The focus in this outfit is the gorgeous 40`s inspired turquoise dress (£6.99), simple and you don`t need more. The color is really trendy too for this winter. We decided to break this total blue look by choosing dark red shoes (£7.99) and a little purse (£2.99). Of course you have to match your lipstick and your polish nail with the bag and the shoes.

We also chose a bunch of accessories in this little brown and very cute suitcase (£9.99), and a lot of scarf and necklaces which start at £1.99.

Fashion: THE summer shoes by Louisa

Ok, I can admit it, I really love the new brown shoes that we have, why? Because these are the perfect summer shoes: comfy but with heels, classy but perfect with jeans too, and most of all brown! (yeah we all have thousands of brown bags and obviously we need to find the shoes to match). So, the shoes are from Next (£6.99) :

To give an idea of what you could wear them with, I made two outfits, really simple with jeans and, in fact, just changing the top. The jean is a simple skinny one (£5.99) and the bag is quite big because we are girls and we have a lot of stuff in our bag ( £3.99).

OK, I know, a lot of people are thinking the mariniere top is over but what can I say? I`m french and I love it ! (£5.99)

To be honest, I really wanted to have an outfit with this top. I love the color, I love the shape, and I think it can match with everything. Oh, and may i add that it`s 100% silk and just £7.99.