If you are looking to follow in the footsteps of Cairns couple and The Block champions Tess and Luke and undertake some renovations, a stop at the Buy Back Shop this weekend could help cut the budget.

Bringing an end to Council’s official Recycling Week activities, bring the family down tomorrow (Saturday 16 November) to the Buy Back Shop and grab yourself a bargain as part of Cairns Buy It Back Day activities.

Renovators could find a range of pre-loved building materials, along with vintage and decorative pieces, indoor and outdoor furnishing, and even tools.

With a treasure trove of pre-loved items available, on any given day visitors could score themselves a used barbecue, second-hand trailer or even a boat.

Along with the bargains on offer, this Saturday from 9am-1pm there are a host of free community activities planned including a sausage sizzle; face painting; jumping castle; and live upcycling and waste reuse demonstrations from Queensland Men’s Shed, Boomerang Bags, Junk Weavers, PCYC, Permaculture Cairns, Bungalow Community Gardens and Clifton Artshack.

Mayor Bob Manning said the Buy Back Shop played an important part in diverting waste from landfill by giving discarded items new life and promoting re-use.

“Many items come to the waste transfer station as rubbish, even though they are still usable,” Cr Manning said.

“Suitable items are separated and displayed at the Buy Back Shop, where they are offered back to the community at a small charge, which helps fund the ongoing operation of the shop.

“Significantly, last financial year almost 900 tonnes of discarded good were diverted from landfill by the Buy Back Shop.

Cairns Buy It Back Day comes at the end of two weeks of Council-led recycling events, which included “recycle right” stalls at shopping centres, community waste and resource recovery tours, and the renaming of Waste Street to Recovery Way.

The Buy Back Shop is at the corner Ray Jones Drive and Lyons Street, Portsmith. For more information call 1300 69 22 47 or visit www.cairns.qld.gov.au