The art of the op shop find
Patience, repetition and a ruthless eye — the op shop rewards a method. Here is one that works.
Op shopping is fishing: the water matters more than the technique, but technique still matters. Small-town shops near retirement areas hold the best crockery and wool; city shops turn over faster but get picked over daily. Either way, the find goes to whoever shows up most often.
The method
Go regularly, go early, and check the same three sections every time so you can spot what’s new at a glance. Handle everything — the good wool and the good china announce themselves to the hand before the eye. And buy the thing you hesitate on; it will be gone tomorrow and you will think about it for years.
Buy the thing you hesitate on; it will be gone tomorrow and you will think about it for years.
The hunt starts with knowing where the shops are.
Find op shops