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have done two. The difference between UK and French carboot sales is that sellers do not have their cars parked behind them and their stalls in France. Instead, they have to park somewhere else and carry their wares over to the place which has been selected for the vide grenier, which is often the town square. If it is raining on the day, the event is cancelled and stallholders get their money back.
FREE FOR ALL I believe that the old English adage on thrift, ‘eat it up, wear it out, mend it, make it do or go without’ was very much the same for the parents of people of my generation; many if not most French people of my age still do not like waste. The French don’t hesitate
to put an item they no longer need next to the council bins dotted around the town, for other people to take. We’ve seen countless things given away free in this particular way, such as a roll of brand-
new material (now in my cupboard), discarded small items of furniture, a bike, and also clothes (even when there are charity containers for secondhand clothes in carparks of some supermarkets). When my husband and I put
a box with crockery and cutlery that we no longer wanted by the town’s dustbins, they were gone within an hour. We were baffled, however, when our old washing machine put there one evening, to be collected by the town council on a certain day, was gone within two hours. Not an item you just carry with you! We once watched from our
window a couple stop and pick up a donated men’s coat. They took their time to look at it carefully, before the man tried it on and then walked away in full view of anyone in the street (or at the window). Surprisingly to us, some
people also leave fruit or vegetables – surplus from their gardens, I imagine. Once there was half a bag of dog food, and another time someone
The brocante market at Cours Saleya in Nice
a few other secondhand items are also sometimes available in a friperie. A friperie market stall with all items of secondhand clothing at one same price is not uncommon.
DÉPÔT-VENTE (M) As a shop or online, dépôts- ventes sell secondhand and indeed new items that are no longer needed or wanted (such as a light fitting I received as a gift from a supermarket a few months ago). The new items are obviously sold cheaper than in the original shops.
MAGASIN DE SECONDE MAIN (M) A ‘magasin de seconde main’ or ‘magasin de deuxième main’ refers to a secondhand shop.
VIDE GRENIER (M) This is a carboot sale (literal translation: clearing out of the loft). I have seen a few and I
“Many French people prefer to give something away rather than throw it away”
A ‘friperie’ sells secondhand clothing and other items
left half a dozen small pots of homemade jam. It is clear that many French
people prefer to give something usable away rather than throw it away. This has nothing at all to do with charity. For example, we live in ‘a delightful small town on the Côte d’Azur’ (a description used by an English daily newspaper), with many lovely properties used as holiday homes, and our experience is that everything donated in this manner goes quite quickly to new homes. ■
Monique Jackman has written several French language books, including the Better French series, which you can find on Amazon and other bookshops
Lille Braderie takes place every September and completely takes over the city FRENCH PROPERTY NEWS: July/August 2023 69
© MONIQUE JACKMAN
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