Leeds Jumble Sales - Do they still happen?

Your favourite days out round Leeds
Uno Hoo
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Joined: Fri 20 Jun, 2008 2:04 pm

Post by Uno Hoo »

I worked in Dewsbury 1991-97, and I think it was on Fridays that the market was taken over by second-hand goods stalls, mainly clothing and footwear. The latter in particular stank! I always assumed these stalls had superseded the neighbourhood jumble-sales.
The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, moves on; nor all thy Piety nor all thy Wit can call it back to cancel half a Line, nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.

String o' beads
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Post by String o' beads »

jim wrote: I think Geordie-exile is referring to your mention of the namesake of the weirdly bizarre Jalacy Hawkins jonleeds, and would like you to expand on the topic. Thanks jim!

HelenG
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Joined: Wed 22 Feb, 2012 12:13 pm

Post by HelenG »

When my kids were at school I was on the PTA and we organized a yearly jumble sale,what an eye opener! On opening the doors you had to get out of the way quick or get mown down. I think people pinched more than they bought,I watched one old lass stuffing all sorts into carrier bags then paid 5p for the underskirt over her arm,you can't really challenge shoplifters at a jumble sale! also the stuff people would buy amazed me,pre-owned underwear?? yuk! A rag man would come and collect what was left usually a big van load and give a us a couple of quid. I think in the end the opinion was it wasn't worth the hassle.

jonleeds
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Joined: Thu 31 Jan, 2008 4:59 pm

Post by jonleeds »

Ah, well it seems another former British institution has been consigned to history... I received a reply to an email I sent yesterday to St Giles church in Bramhope asking if there would be any forthcoming jumble sales and the reply more or less confirms what people have mentioned here - have a look:----- Original Message ----- From: Julie Tomkins To: [email protected]: Tony North Sent: Sunday, March 04, 2012 10:00 AMSubject: RE: St Giles Bramhope Contact: Jonathan ParrishThank you for your enquiry.I am sorry to tell you that we have no such plans to have any further jumble sales.I think with all the plastic bags at the door and the car book sales and the charity shops...they have become a little unfashionable.Best wishesJulie TomkinsSt Giles Church Hall Booking Secretary---------------------------------------------------------------------------------So it seems the legendary St Giles of Bramhope jumble sales wont be happening anymore. However I have found details of some jumble sales happening in the near future. I'll let you know how it goes. If anyone hears of any jumble sales occuring in their area then I'd be hugely grateful if you could pass on any information to me. You know I'd like to set up some kind of jumble sale directory website, that could grow into something really big... then again it might not...
Have your fun when you're alive - you won't get nothing when you die... have a good time all the time! - Chumbawumba!

And no matter how things end, you should always keep in touch with your friends - Dave Gedge

headingleylad
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Joined: Tue 18 Mar, 2008 10:04 am

Post by headingleylad »

I used to help with Scout Jumble Sales many years ago, I remember one lady taking off her coat to try on one that was for sale, within 30 seconds of taking off her coat it had been sold for 50p by one of our helpers.We used to have dealers in before the main sale, usually on the Friday Evening before a Saturday Afternoon sale, the dealer usually gave us 80% of our takings. For a couple of sales we tried not having a dealer in and we were only making 50% of our usual takings, it was found that Jumble Sale punters would not prepared to pay the same prices as dealers.The Scouts stopped having Jumble Sales when charity shops opened as all the best clothes and Bric a brack was been given to them. There was also a problem with electrical equipment when new regulations came law that you were not allowed to sell as seen, as before.We had a dealer in after the sale who took all the leftover clothes and books, but would not take bric a brack or shoesl, We were then lift with a task of getting rid of the rest to a council tip.John
Lived in Leeds all my life, Cookridge Headingley

Chrism
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Joined: Sun 20 Jan, 2008 8:26 am

Post by Chrism »

The thing with jumble sales and charity shops is that a lot of peeps think that it's just pottery and paintings etc etc that will make them a bit of cash. I found some records, in a local charity shop, that have got me a fair old wedge on ebay. Also a couple of CD's, one I bought for £3 and sold it on ebay for £68. I also spotted a cardboard box, in a charity shop, with 25 copies of the same video in it. I noted the name of the video as I had never heard of the movie, went home and did some checking on it. I found out that it was a 'cult' video never released on DVD and I could find no torrents or downloads of it anywhere. Checked on Amazon and there was one 'used' copy for sale at £12. All the video's in the box were new, still sealed. They were selling for 50p each so I bought the lot and put them on Amazon at £15 each and they sold like hot-cakes.
Sit thissen dahn an' tell us abaht it.

keyholekate
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Joined: Sat 08 Nov, 2008 7:25 pm

Post by keyholekate »

Seems there are jumble sales still.Saw today a poster that said "Jumble sale - Saturday 10th March @ Miners welfare club Garforth 10.00 am.

Tasa
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Joined: Mon 08 Oct, 2007 11:11 am

Post by Tasa »

As a teenager in the 1970s I spent many a Saturday afternoon browsing church hall jumble sales. I still have one item which I bought for 3p in 1971 (yes, just after decimalisation so at 7d probably cost me half a week's pocket money!) at St Margaret's Church in Cardigan Road (now known as Left Bank Leeds) - a small hardbacked road atlas of Great Britain, 3 miles to the inch. It isn't dated but is pre-motorway (and pre-Beeching so it has all the old railway lines and stations marked), and it sparked my interest in maps which has lasted throughout my adult life.When I think about how many churches have closed (or are on their way out) in my own area alone, or have sold off their halls as development land, it goes some way to explain why the jumble sales died out as well.    

jonleeds
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Joined: Thu 31 Jan, 2008 4:59 pm

Post by jonleeds »

I could write a book on the amount of bargain I've picked up at jumble sales over the years. When Ebay started in the late 90's I was the first 'dealer' in the Leeds jumble sale crew to start selling my jumble finds directly on the internet. I had some really great items that I sold all over the world. One item I still have is a small abstract bronze sculpture that I bought for 30 pence from a jumble sale at Bardsey. Its only about 14" high and its in the style of a Henry Moore or Barbara Hepworth maquette, which is like a scale model of a much larger sculpture. Who knows, it could be worth £1000's!At a Salvation Army jumble sale in Headingley I got an original 1938 hardback copy of 'Mein Kampf' for 20p, that sold on ebay for £70. Other great items I've had include a lot of vintage toys / games / old computers. I picked up an early Action Man spaceman figure and space capsule that I got £150 for. Another time I picked up like a robotic arm for £5 that sold for over £200!And thats just the tip of the iceberg. I used to go to the jumble sales on a Saturday, load up the car with tons of stuff to sell on the next day at the boot sale. Any particularly special bits and pieces I'd post on Ebay and see what they fetched a week later. I regularly made over £300 per week just doing this.Mind you I had to go to a lot of jumble sales and some of them would be absolutely rubbish. But then the good ones would be really good.So its a shame the jumble sale scene is passing into memory. It seems to be something a lot of us can remember from our past and its sad that they might disappear altogether. I'm hoping to still visit some jumble sales over the next few weeks if I can get to them.
Have your fun when you're alive - you won't get nothing when you die... have a good time all the time! - Chumbawumba!

And no matter how things end, you should always keep in touch with your friends - Dave Gedge

book
Posts: 525
Joined: Fri 12 Aug, 2011 7:04 pm

Post by book »

Are they still advertised as jumble sales? Or are they now mixed in with fairs and fete. There is one on Saturday at Wrenthorpe but it's advertised as a Spring Fete. But it says it has jigsaws, books and bric a brac as well as cakes for sale in aid of Wakefield Hospice.
Is it me or has Leeds gone mad

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