Saturday sale buys (gasp)

Well a happy Saturday to all, and a mini pat on the back to me for managing to only leave a week between blogging rather than more than a month! Work is still nuts, but at least another two exams have passed, and there is only one to go, this coming week. I am still relishing this, well frankly, piss poor weather, and the chance to (not) wear all my gorgeous new summer clothes. Ever the optimist, I purchased the most gorgeous maxi dress in Budapest last week, but of course back here its too feckin' cold to wear the blasted thing. One to save for the holiday perhaps, or to dive upon if we should miraculously get another sunny day this year.

One good thing (playing hard and fast with the word 'good') about the lack of remotely warm weather is the fact that the summer sales have started earlier this year. Sales and I do not normally mix, and I have been quite vocal about this in the past. Hell, usually I avoid sales like the plague, and the zombie-like women that frequent the shops at this time of year (no offence if you like sales, I just mean hordes of women on a mission, me not remotely interested in sales and being pushed out the way by over zealous females). I have become better at sales shopping over the past few years though, but in a selective fashion (high end department and high street only), and use the opportunity to stock up on good quality basics. A good example of this is the Isabella Oliver perfect extra long tee that normally sells for £49.00. At sale time, these can be purchased in an array of colours for £34.30 which I think is pretty good knowing the quality and longevity of the tee.

So, back to today. I spent a lovely day in London with friends, afternoon tea at the Sanderson and a little shopping on Regent's street. I managed to rugby tackle my way into the eye-watering busy Cos and have a quick rifle through the sales shelves. I love Cos. Love love love. Gorgeous quality basics, well made and cut, heaven. A couple of purchases later, happy days.

Some great basics: white longer length top, reduced to £17.50 (from £25), and draped black linen cardigan, £34.50 (reduced from £69)

Afternoon tea and cocktails! So so yum, complete recommend this afternoon tea..

And last but not least today, a lovely little surprise waiting for me on arrival home, my subscription gift from Easy Living magazine:

Multi fix oil and multi purpose balm.

Pretty pleased, this is a brand I have not tried before, and both products retail for just over £20 (the subscription itself was only £12 for the year, amazing). Scarily, the multi purpose balm is targeted at 'lips, nipples and dry skin' Nipples?? Thought about this for a while and wondered if I was missing a trick, then realised it was probably for breast feeding women. Either that or I really did miss that class at school. Until next time XX

End of year purchases : )

Hello dolls, how is everyone today? Hope everyone is still on holiday, and if you have gone back to work, it's nice and relaxed for a bit!

I met up with the girls last night, one friend back from working in Moscow and one friend down from Manchester, it was lovely to catch up with all the goss. I stayed over my at my best friends house last night and today we headed off to Lakeside for a day of shopping. We got there around half 11 and it was surprisingly easy to get to and park, no traffic to speak of. The shopping centre itself wasn't too busy, and only got busy later in the day just before we left.

I'm pleased to say I came away with a few bargains! As I hate sales shopping so much and rummaging through dis-organised displays, we stuck to the few shops that we know do sales well, and keep on top of the mess. This was only a few shops, and then we stuck to the full price merchandise in the less organised shops. Below is a little selection of some of my fave purchases : )

Jimmi Jams pjs from Boots - it infuriates and delights me simultaneously that  Boots put their entire Christmas stock in the sale just after Christmas! I always have a good look and stock up on anything I might need for the year such as shower gels, bath bubbles, face cream etc, as well as all my Christmas cards, wrapping and tags for next year! I picked up these pjs because I loved the cute slogan and bunny print, and thought they were good value at £14.

Close up of the pjs, and my own cheeky bunny making an appearance in the picture!

Aaah love : ) I have wanted a comfy pair of black wedge boots (although they look grey in the pic!) for ages  and saw these today in Debenhams. I was shocked they had a size 5 as being a common size, they often sell out quickly. These boots are by Faith and originally cost £60. They were reduced to £30 : )

Another style of boot I have been keeping an eye out for recently is the Chelsea boot. These  boots fit the bill perfectly and look a bit vintage I think. They are by Red Herring and were reduced by 70% - £60 to £18! Both boots are leather which is an added bonus : )

Rubbish picture, these jeans from Zara are really nice- skinny, navy blue colour with gold zip detail to the ankle.  They were only reduced by six pound but were still a good bargain at £19.99.

Pretty pleased with my purchases, especially the boots, they should see me through a few winters to come and will work with so many outfits. In terms of good sale shops, I found Zara the best, with the majority of stock being in the sale. Unfortunately a couple of items I wanted were not in my size so I shall have to be eagle-eyed and visit a few more Zara branches to see if I can get hold of them.

Has anyone else had any successful sale purchases recently? XOXO

December haul

Hello Christmas elves how are you all? I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas and received everything they asked Santa for! I was (as usual) thoroughly spoilt by hubby, I had sooo many pressies, too many to list, but they included Pandora charms, Philosophy products (one of my favourite brands), perfume, CDs and DVDs, Stila products and plenty of Lush of course! I was treated before Christmas as well to my Pandora bracelet and charms, which hubby purchased at Berlin Schoenefeld airport.

 In addition, hubby and I decided to treat ourselves to a couple of new bits after Christmas, and today made purchase one... an iPad 2! We were never  sucked into the marketing hype surrounding this product for a long time, but decided recently that it would be a good idea to have an extra computer in our lounge so we can chill together and still use a computer if needed. I have to say it is very cool, we went for the white coloured one as this is Apple's signature colour. Couple purchase number two will be a new LED TV which is long overdue! I was all for buying one today but hubby wants to research so we get the best possible quality. I am not fussed, as long as it looks good and is uber thin, I am happy!

Today's post is about a couple of purchases I made before Christmas that I wanted to share. I went to Bluewater on the 22nd December to buy hubby his last few pressies but couldn't resist buying some new bits for myself too. At this point, Mango had already put the entire shop in the sale so I treated myself to a few new pieces that will work very hard, suitable for both work and play.

New Mango dress, this was originally £44.90 and was reduced to £29.90. I love the classic style and colour and the way the dots get smaller and closer together down the dress. It also has a really cute rope belt tie waist with tassel detail. I wore this dress with my brown brogue style heels from Office and my Mulberry.

Mango skirt, £24.90 reduced to £14.90. I like the floral print and think this will work will in Spring and Winter alike. I plan to wear this with tights, flat boots and a jumper tucked in.

I have been searching for a soft casual grey jumper for a while and found the perfect one in  Topshop. This jumper was £36 and not in the sale, but so gorgeous : ) I actually lost this jumper, I think because I was carrying a million bags and didn't feel the bag drop. I checked with customer services today though and someone had handed it in! So pleased! : )

Black shift style dress £44.90 reduced to £29.90. I really like the on-trend leather details on the arms, pockets and neckline, and as the dress is so classic, it will last a good few years.

I am glad that I managed to make a few sales purchases because I am not anticipating finding many more. As I have previously blogged, I am not a fan of sales, and never seem to find anything worthy of a second glance. Today for instance, when hubby was in the Apple shop looking at the iPad, I had a quick look in Urban Outfitters and was massively unimpressed with what I found. So much of the clothing looked old and tired, and I know I would never pay full price for it so its not worth buying it just because its cheap. I think I have concluded that I am just not a sales person, bar perhaps towels, boxers for hubby, plates, boring essentials etc, sales are just not worth it for me. I know some people have to wait for sales, especially in the current economic climate, but luckily, I don't need to, so I think I will avoid them altogether! (Having said this, I still need to shop so will not be able to avoid the stupidly busy shopping centres while all these sales are going on! : (

Has anyone else had any luck with the sales? Or found any amazing bargains? XOXO

No sale

Sale. One little word that can stop you in your tracks and make your heart beat just a little bit faster. I have to admit, this tiny word, displayed large as life in a shop window, has this effect on me too. But all too often, the feeling fades as quickly as it arrived and I am left feeling disappointed. Over the years. I have come to conclude that I am simply not a sales person. So why do I still get this fluttery, excited feeling when sale time rolls around come summer and Boxing day??

I can only conclude that I feel this way because there is always a chance that there might be an amazing bargain to be had. And the stubborn part of my personality refuses to give in! I have to admit though, I very rarely find anything in the sale worthy of a second glance. All too often, the sale stock is the rubbish that did not sell the first time around. The price is vastly reduced and therefore women grab at items they would not normally consider, convinced they are about to purchase the item of a lifetime. There are exceptions of course, and I am not saying that I have never bought anything in a sale. I find that high end shops and department stores do sales the best. Zara for example tends to put the majority of their stock in the sale so you can easily find something current and stylish. Reiss is another high street chain that does a very good sale. By contrast, I find Topshop, Miss Selfridge, River Island and H & M messy, almost jumble-sale like, with items that look as if they have been kicking around in the stock room for the past 3 years. The messiness alone is enough to turn me off - I am too OCD to contemplate rifling through, and I immediately find myself drawn to the full price section.

Nonetheless, I have had a look at some sale stock this summer and found a few pleasing items from Zara. One of my favourite finds was the dress Pippa Middleton wore to the French open last month:

Full price this dress was a pretty good bargain anyway at £35.99. I was lucky enough to grab the only small left in the shop for £24.99. I love this dress because it is such an easy item to wear to work, as well as on a summers day with wedges like Pippa herself. I have also spotted this amazing bag on the Zara website for a very reasonable £19,99 (down from £39.99):
I am immediately drawn to the lovely bright colour of this bag, and the messenger shape and style is very current and would look amazing with casual weekend looks. I also know that I would buy this bag at full price, not just because it is in the sale, making it a true bargain.

What do you think of sales? I wonder what sales are like in other countries... let me know what you think, I love reading your comments xoxo