This is something I don’t say lightly, so get ready. Op shops in Tasmania are old fashioned.
That’s right. They’re the op shops of yore. So while I know that most of you are probably like ‘bleh, I am nowhere near Tasmania and I heard it’s full of incest and weird miniature villages anyway’, heed my words – Tasmania, in a lot of ways, is like stepping into a time warp. Some of these ways are good. Some of these ways are…not so good. But when it comes to thrifting, this Olden Days-yness is definitely a plus.
The funny thing about Hobart (can’t really comment on Launceston, as I went there once and the only thing open was a Dominos and people kept offering to drag race with us…please tell me I was there on a bad day) is that there are excellent, well stocked op shops in the city centre. Admittedly. this is partially because the concept of ’suburbs’ doesnt’ really exist in Tasmania. In Hobart there’s just ‘Hobart’, ‘North Hobart’ and ‘South Hobart’ and if you cross the bridge you’re on something known as the Eastern Shore, which is a few suburbs very close to the city (by Melbourne standards), which ‘Hobart’ people tend to think of as being Way Over There.
Anyway, the two St Vinnies in the city centre (one in North Hobart, the other on Argyle St in the CBD) and the Lifeline megastore (also on Argyle St, and they don’t call it a megastore, but it is one) are all well-stocked with retro/vintage goods, as well as reasonably priced contemporary garb; you can be just about guaranteed of at least one good find. Even the ’expensive’ pieces aren’t all that expensive, partially because there are so many of them, and partially because the total commercialisation of op shops hasn’t quite hit Tasmania. Young people seem to be a bit snobby about op shopping in Tasmania, too – once when I was making conversation and said something along the lines of ’sheesh, you guys have awesome op shops here’, my ebullience was met with pitying glances and ‘oh…you shop in op shops? Are you dirt poor? Would you like directions to a soup kitchen?’ (slight exaggeration). Perhaps this ‘tude is one of the reasons that there’s so much great stuff.
In other news, the only not-so-great op shop in central Hobart is the Salvation Army store in the main mall. It’s one of those stores that gets plundered regularly and seems to sell as much in the way of new bulk cleaning products and shoelaces as it does secondhand goods. The Salvos in Bellerive is a much better bet - I highly recommend checking out the china cabinet there.
OK, I have been saving the best for last. The op shop that you don’t want to miss if you’re in Hobart is the Uniting Church (i THINK it’s the uniting church, this has been driving me mental, it’s definitely a church one) just between South Hobart and the city. It’s awesome – cluttered, deserted and ridiculously cheap. I bought a 1950s black crepe dress there for $4 (it did have a small patch near the zip, but Who Cares). Moreover, there’s a second shop owned by the same charity a few doors down, which sells books and bric-a-brac, and is AMAZING. The amount of reasonably priced collectables I saw in this shop is second to none – there was Staffordshire and Royal Winton china, decent glass, figurines (non Copperart, woo hoo), and books up the wahzoo - and Iwas the only person in there (other than The Beau). Be there, as Dipper would say. I have attempted to find the details in the phone book/on google to no avail, but Hobart is small, so i have Every Faith you’ll find it.
Finally, a note – there are ops in the outer suburbs of Hobart, especially in Glenorchy, where there are about half a dozen in a single (long ) street. But, while such shops are always worth a gander, they’re nothing special (and the mormon shop is really bad and weirded me out and smelled vaguely disconcerting, just saying). Also, the more ‘country’ ones (in Deloraine or Huonville, for example) are great, but expect people to spot you as a city slicker from miles of and jibe you gently accordingly. It’s a price I’m willing to pay.
So, in short, don’t expect to come home from the land under the land downunder with various treasured antiques that will make your fortune Indiana Jones-style, but expect a much higher median quality of op shop in the Apple Isle. That and great pinot. And what’s not to love about such a winning combination?
Any other Tasmania lovers out there? Even without the op shops, the Taste of Tasmania fest was enough to win yours truly over…
