Finding Treasures: On-line and off-line

Whilst normally I do most of my shopping online, I always make an exception for car boot sales. I love the randomness of car boot sales – never knowing what potential treasure you're going to find. Being perpetually short on money, I also enjoy the cheapness.

I also appreciate the recycling element of car boot sales. I would have preferred a jumble sale, but I'm beginning to think these are relics from my childhood. Thatcher's Britain has taught us all we can make a buck, and people are far more willing to make money from their unwanted goods than give them to their local church hall.

Charity shops are the professionalised version of jumble sales, but they lack the excitement of rummaging car boot sales still provide. And the charity shops I prefer, are the ones who aren't quite organised, have large piles, and make the prices up on the spot depending on how much they like you.

Having long appreciated charity shops, this is the first year my four year old son has appreciated car boot sales. I give him pocket money, and he gazes in awe at the myriad of plastic crap he can choose from – plastic crap which I will inevitably trip over as it continually clutters our house.

I decided to give him pocket money to stop my controlling instincts kicking in when he asks if I'll buy him something. I have one rule – not to buy anything new as it defeats the object of the trip. Occasionally, I'll question his judgement, but if he is adamant, and he has enough money, I'll back down.

This is what happened with the first object of the day. A 50p plastic washing machine (pink of course. Only girls are intended to do the washing. Luckily, my son loves pink). I asked him whether he really wanted this plastic cube with a broken handle. But he insisted, and so it was bought.

Within five minutes, the door had fallen off, and the machine was consigned to being an inconvenient shape under my arm. Meanwhile, he amassed his better purchases, totalling eight miniature plastic pink ponies, one Tardis, and one pirate ship.

Back at home, the washing machine has been consigned to a corner. However, it has occurred to me that he may be role-playing, copying his mother. After all, my washing machine is sitting unused in the corner, as it stopped doing it’s duty a week ago.

But why would I want to hang out washing anyway when I've got new treasure to rearrange. The cat teapot and the 1940s Golden Syrup tins need to be homed. I need to decide which plants go in the big blue pots. Washing, in comparison, is boring, and maybe my son will eventually get round to his pretend washing, when he's finished playing with the pirate ship.

I enjoy our treasure hunting trips. We can both be materialistic whilst I'm pretending we're not. Rummaging through ending soon items on Ebay will never replace the joy of a large field of unexplored treasure on a sunny day. But now I have to find the best price for my new washing machine online. They don’t do new washing machines at the car boot sale. Not yet.

Sarah Maple used dealtime.co.uk and uk.shopping.com to find the best price for a washing machine.