A housing charity has revealed some of the weird and wonderful donations it has received over the years.

Its haul includes a sack of severed dolls heads and a parcel containing one woman's engagement ring, wedding album a divorce certificate and a bag of dirty underwear.

Other donations include a mummified cat, 40 life-sized plastic pigeons, a china doll with a lock of human hair glued under its clothes, a full dominatrix outfit with one previous owner and loose teeth with the roots still attached.

A pair of freshly honed Samurai swords were recently donated to the charity's shop in Paisley, with the manager phoning police to collect the items as part of a knife amnesty.

The Dundee branch received a caravan, while a full bag of dirty underwear - around 30 pairs - was donated in Glasgow.

A tailcoat with a ticket to the original 1973 production of Rocky Horror pinned to the inside was donated in Edinburgh.

Other strange items include a pair of used dentures, complete with an open tube of Fixodent gel.

Alison Watson, deputy director of Shelter Scotland, said: "Our supporters have donated some wonderful items over the years that have raised funds for our vital work.

"There are times however when we open the donations sacks and are left flabbergasted by what we find. My personal favourite was the china doll as it had obviously been someone's treasured possession before it was donated to us, as was the mummified cat.

"We welcome all donations - within reason - and some of the more interesting items are certainly conversation starters with our customers. We're sometimes pleasantly surprised by what some people actually buy.

"Whatever the donation, every penny we raise through our shops goes towards our fight to end homelessness and ensure that everyone in Scotland has a safe, secure and affordable place to call home."

She added: "While some of the weird and wonderful donations might raise a laugh, Scotland's housing crisis is no laughing matter.

"Today in Scotland 150,000 households are on waiting lists for a home and over 35,000 people made homelessness applications in the last year alone.

"We are counting on the public to support us so that we can carry on with our vital work.

"It costs just £10 for one of our expert advisers to help a family or individual at risk of losing their home - we can raise that money by selling an unwanted dress or pair of shoes, but sadly not a mummified cat which did not sell."

Scottish comedian Kevin Bridges also donated the suit he wore to his first gig at the SECC, complete with handwritten notes and one-liners hidden in the inside jacket pocket.