RSPCA op shop, Burwood East

This op-shop is sick. It suffers from chronic overcrowding. It's a mountain of vintage with clothes squashed onto racks on tangled coat hangers making browsing exhausting.

It really is a terrible disease because the RSPCA opshop in Burwood is very good. There are some unique pieces here, a completely inventive selection and different than what you’d expect from a suburban op-shop at the back of a shopping complex.

However the volume of clothes is just overwhelming and some of the good knitted pieces and lovely cream white shirts have been damaged and dirtied in the clutter. It’s junkyard brilliance, but makes for frustrating shopping.

The left side of the narrow shop stretches to the far back wall. It’s lined with kitsch porcelain pieces, like pots shaped like swans and tiny soldier pepper and saltshakers. There are big baskets filled with an impressive selection of linen, lacy table clothes, chequered tea towels, bed sheets and floral doona covers. There are books, old VHS tapes and noisy children’s toys and clothes as well.

There as been some sort of process to the organisation of clothes. Blacks, cream and white tops are sorted together and there is a lovely collection of heavy woollen jumpers and jackets hanging from a rack on the second level.

I loved a French-made navy body suit that was constructed from this silky corduroy material and given shape by teardrop shoulder pads. There was a velvet black top, cropped at the waist and several beautifully made cream shirts. The selection of cream and white shirts deserves extra attention, as they really were lovely. Some had little rows of pearls laced through the collar and down the front, others were button down with lacy collars and there was one lovely loose midriff shirt with long sleeves.

There were some interesting knitted pieces too, heavy cream pieces interwoven with green yarn, cardigans, multi-coloured knitted vests and white jumpers with pearls and gold thread embroidered through-out.

A big selection of jeans was balanced by a reasonable collection of wide slack pants and pencil skirts. It was not quite Dynasty power dressing, but there were some nice, understated jackets from the 80s. I loved a couple of woven ones with faux fur lining and a houndshooth jacket in black and white.

Amidst the mess there were some glimpses of unwearable brilliance, big taffeta formal dressed from the 1980s with hewn in waists, puffy skirts and embroidered and shoulder-padded collars.

FINAL WORD: Ultimately the collection is bloated and hard to sort through despite some unique finds. The shop is overwhelmed with donations; there were a couple of volunteers putting excess stock into bins while I was there. Go, but be patient, good finds are only a little extra muscle power away.

where is it? Shop 9 & 10, 2-8 Burwood Hwy, Burwood East
how do i get there? The no.75 tram to the corner of Middleborough and Burwood Hwy. It's at the back of the shopping centre opposite the RSPCA animal shelter.
will i have to wait for a change room? there are 2, though one is used to store excess stock.
whats on the stereo? no music
i'm hungry? Brumbies is next door, also a greasy fish and chip place and a cafe with a $7 egg and bacon sandwich and coffee special

MS Shop, Glen Waverley

MS Shop in Kingsway, Glen Waverley is a quirky suburban treasure. It has this great Sunday market feel with homemade orange jam and a pink basket of lemons for sale at the front counter.

The range of items in this op-shop is a little daunting, but it is worth persisting. There is some nice stuff here, and you'd be surprised at some of the one-off pieces you pull out off the racks. I'll start with the clothes. The shop has this rich aroma of old fabric, and someone has obviously taken the time carefully colour/fabric code all the dresses under blacks, darks, bright solid colours, lace whites, sheer and misc. patterns. There are some plain fitted dresses that could be easily shortened and accessorised, a fitted two-toned dress with box sleeves and a purple dress with an embroidered collar. I also spotted a cute cobalt blue jacket and a bright, patterned jacket with bat-wing sleeves in the jacket/jumper rack.

If buying second-hand lingere is your thing then the op-shop has an ok selection. It has a few everyday plain and patterned bras and this pair of disturbingly large lacy granny panties for $5. The clothes are so tightly packed together it makes browsing difficult, they also were a little crumpled and ever so slightly damp to touch. Pick of the day went to this awesome, floor-length lace dress (which was most likely once a wedding dress) that could be shortened and taken in to make something really nice ($20!!.)

The mens range was good, there were some nice sports jackets and suit pants and a few shirts that would be good for casual/workwear. Stand-out pieces in the mens section were a couple of leather jackets with leather patterns/featuring on the shoulders. The cuts were good and the leather felt nice and looked in good condition.

The shoe selection was average, though most of the shoes appeared very well-loved. Though from what I saw, everything on the shelf was half price. The sportswear for men and women was impressive as well - apart from the usual tracksuit sets, netball skirts etc - I discovered a full set of golf clubs and a golf bag hidden behind a rack of womens dresses. There is an impressive selection of ties near the change-rooms at the back of the shop - no wacky patterns, just your standard diamonds on royal blues etc. Disturbingly I also found a blazer from my high school, seriously those things should be burnt immediately after year twelve ends.

This shop was so cluttered it was charming. General bric-a-brac only partially describes it. lets start a list:

lamp shades, paintings, glasswear, sauces and cups, plates, brief cases, travel bags, linen, table cloths, silverwear, placemats, vases, cooking utensils, cutlery, wicker bastkets, jars, baking tins, jars, boxes of rusty metal clasps (5 for $1), sporting equipment, records, playing cards, jewelery, electrical cords. I have found a box of old pc mouses.

If you were wanting to fit out a share house this place is definately worth a visit. Glasses (from shot, wine, tumblers, long glasses) range from about 50c to $2. The display of items reminds me of grandma's cupboard - haphazardly stacked and full of kitsch designs. There is a good range of second hand books, though everything is a little all over the place. Your average Maeve Binchy will set you back about $1-$2.

Browsing can be a little hazardous, a lot of the stuff is packed into boxes on the floor and I was petrified of falling down and bringing down the glass wear/plates down with me. It would have been absolutely spectacular if it had happened though! Most of the clothes are on circular racks in the center of the shop (which is pretty deep) and as long as you keep you elbows in you're ok. It was not really all the easy to access handbags and other accessories as most of them were kept locked in the glass counter and in a shelve behind the counter. This was a bit disappointing, as you should always get a hands-on sense of the bag you're buying and its a little hard to touch, smell it and check for quality as you should under the eyes of the sales assistant.

The service was friendly, I was listening in on a conversation between two of the volunteers at the front counter as I browsed menswear. One of them has a daughter who is just about to get married to a Russian with a good job in IT. Maybe if you pop in pass on my congratulations.

In terms of prices - dresses and jackets range from about $5-$20. Mens pants from about $15 and jackets from $20-$30. Prices for plates and tea-cup sets were the most diverse - between $1 - $15 for a pretty little pink teacup with daisies on it. Across the board items in the shop are very moderately priced. The window display was also nice, if a little bit of a second-hand jungle.


where is it? 96 Kingsway, Glen Waverley
how do i get there? Catch the Glen Waverley train to Glen Waverley station
will i have to wait for a change room? 2 changerooms
whats on the stereo? Gold FM (Elvis, the Kinks, Bob Marley
i'm hungry? you can't go past Bob's Kitchen a couple of doors up from the op-shop. Cheap dumplings and fast service, its a local staple. Alternatively if you're not up for Chinese food a new place called Cafe Moretti as opened up on the corner. It's Italian, moderately priced and has the best selection of cakes.
can I get a park? theoretically yes, there is plenty, but sometimes (especially on weekends) it can be a little tricky. Park behind Kingsway (opposite the train station) or you can try the multi-level car park opposite the Glen Waverley

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