Harvey Nichols Sale

I remember distinctly raving to everyone that London was heaven because the sales were astronomical and it was delirious trying to fathom the idea of designer bags lurking in bargain bins when London goes on sale. Incredulous looks I got, and when I was here during the Boxing day sales five years after that ethereal experience, I couldn't find it, and I thought it was merely a mirage.

Lo and behold. I didn't dream it all. I saw a man on the tube reading his paper and on the front, it said, Harvey Nichols sale now on. #HNSTAYCALM. How to stay calm? I was moments away from experiencing that glory again! And this time I made sure I documented it because I didn't want people to disbelieve anymore that this heavenly experience existed.

Marc Jacobs in Bargain bin

You know what you spy behind the massive bins?

 Rows upon rows of Alexander Mcqueen discounted Pashminas and chiffon classic skull scarves!

GBP 134 for the Pashmina

GBP 83 for the scarf

Proenza Schouler Tote in the 70% off racks!

Alexander Wang 45% off!

PS1 bag in Paprika only GBP792!

I only hyperventilated in the bags department, but I must say the shoe department evoked the same emotions from shoe aficionados. Overheard, "I am at the Harvey Nichols sale, stuck in the shoe department. I have been here for a few hours trying on every pair of shoes that are on sale. I don't want to ever leave".

These Balenciagas caught my eye

 I didn't want to leave, but I couldn't buy up the store either, seeing I made a pact that I wasn't going to amass all these new wants before I make this move to London. Ah well, more for others to enjoy. I ask you again, How to stay calm?

One Day in Paris

Such a tiring day, but I'd do it again in a heart beat.

Leaving St Pancras on the Eurostar

Paree!

View from the Arc De Triomphe

You can see Paris through the clock in Musee d'Orsay

Musee d'Orsay: The house of the largest Impressionists art collection in the world

Arc de Triomphe

Headed towards espace in Louis Vuitton

Waiting for the vacuum lift that takes you to the gallery

The art being showcased at the moment at espace was an artistic journey throughout Istanbul Turkey, but I dare say the holiday began here in this oasis

Stopping for a cuppa

Gorgeous Laduree tea salon

Shopping frenzy

Swarovski Xmas at Galleries Lafayette

Bottega Venetta's pastel confectionery window display

Where all your dreams come true

If not, there's always LV toting dancing penguins

Tips for recreating this one day:

1) Taking the Eurostar from London to Paris is easy and reasonably safe as long as you keep your valuables where you can see them

2) Download the Paris Metro App and the Trip Advisor map of Paris that gives all the comments and nearest metro stops of the main attractions. Both these apps you can access reasonable amount of information without data and so it was a quite a boon when you haven't got roaming on.

3) If you take the Eurostar, you get 10% off extra on top of your Vat refund at Galleries Lafayette and two tickets for the price of one at Musee d'Orsay (Pity I only went by myself)

4) The Laduree at Rue Cambon (near Madeleine station) is less busy compared to the salon at Champ Elysees

5) Please use the tunnel at the end of Champ Elysees to get to the Arc de Triomphe. That roundabout is atrocious to cross above ground and dangerous too!

6) If planning to buy any of the Chanel classics, be prepared that you might be competing with all the other tourists that travel there for the very same reason and stock as you. (Oh yes, I bought a bag for myself by the way, thus saving myself over $1k in AUD - that's how I justify the purchase)

The art of shopping

I sometimes feel like I have lost the art of shopping. It seems awfully rusty having not been accustomed to the cardio of sweeping through shops and the navigation of which labels are positioned in the malls. What one does nowadays when hitting the shops instead of clicking on buttons in Jammies in front of your computer.

Well, @Jay2DaL had to go dress shopping (isn't that the best kind?) for a couple of weddings this month. And so the weekend begins somewhat like this: You wake up and you put on your shopping outfit. Something that's easy to slip in and out off. Something that it stylish and yet comfortable and weather friendly.

I settled on a Kookai top with the shoulder flower details, my new silk Witchery Maxi skirt and Novo Gladiator sandals and my Rebecca Minkoff bag that allows me easy access to my things and still be able to have my hands free for rifling through racks.

We then set off and have lunch after finding parking in the city. There are plenty of flat rate parks on the weekends and the Cinema Centre carpark is only $10 for the whole day. Lunch wasconvenient and cheap, under $10 at Mappen the Japanese self-service noodle bar.

Then we were ready to shop. Quite unsure of where to begin to find the best dresses of the season, we looked in QVB where the dresses we thought we liked were full of inapropriately placed cutouts or slits. But here's a gem we found with simple, modern retro designs that are classy and still on-trend. We bought the clothes entusiastically as they were well made pieces with a soft, feminine fit and very reasonable prices.(30% store opening discount did help too I suppose).

Zeitgeist viscose pants (new purchase) teamed with Zara singlet and Rory Beca lace Blazer

Wayne by Wayne Cooper dress teamed with Tory Burch Red Patent belt

At the crazy Myer one day sale where 30% to 40% was being offered on most labels off the rack. This charcoal capped-sleeves Wayne Cooper dress is one size too big and missing its belt, but at a quarter of its original price (and the mentality that I'll eventually grow into it one day) the dress was too good to give it a miss and so it came home with me.

What we also got to sample today but didn't buy because they've sold out was the Misscha Super Aqua Snail cream, a cell-renewing formula made of snail slime. A big rave at the moment apparently, and I'd give it a go one day I think.

Things I had to remind myself of whilst shopping again was to check how many items one was allowed in the fitting rooms, to take with you other accessories/ items of clothing to pair with the one that were trying on so that you can see what the end result looks like and to check whether there were special sales on in the major departmental stores instead of the boutiques as you could get the same things for cheaper just because. Also, discovering gift cards in your jam-packed wallet is always a really pleasant surprise at the checkout counter and finding clothes that fit you well before handing over the cash is the bonus, instant satisfaction compared to the long, drawn-out experience of online shopping.


What about you? Do you still appreciate the traditional methods of shopping anymore?

 

Priceline beauty discount

Who says beauty is only skin deep? It is as deep as your pockets I'd say. And if they aren't quite that deep then well, you'll just have to take advantage of these offers such as store wide 20% off all cosmetics and skincare products at Priceline today and tomorrow. You can shop online too!

I shopped and saved on the following essentials that needed replacements for my bathroom:

 

And although there wasn't a discount for the nail polish remover, with my Priceline Club quarterly discount voucher of $4.56 I still ended up saving more than $17 in this haul. Glee!

Those aren't the only things I need replacing by the way.

I have hit the pan on my Dior compact, which is truly the end of an era. Because since staying true to their makeup for about over 5 years now, they have relentlessly discontinued or repackaged (so that i can't get refills) my favourite products no matter how many times I have found a close substitute within their range.








So with that, I bid Dior adieu and look forward to trialing a new house of makeup. Hopefully my next five years will be better served.




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Today I saved - Priceline haul

There's always something a girl can find to buy at a drugstore. I wandered into Priceline today knowing I wanted to buy something, not knowing what. There's been a lot of agonising over aging here lately.

Models Prefer Mini Hair Straightener 15% off, I saved $2.25 but given a GHD is over $200, this is a real real steal. Of course it doesn't work as well as a GHD, it just serves the purpose in removing the kinks at the end of my bob.

 Models Prefer Thermal Radial styling brush. I needed a radial brush and this one was only $10.

This here is the real reason I went to Priceline. I needed a neck cream. Getting closer to 30 is showing on my neck nowadays. Noticeable creases are forming and if they are like the fine lines around my eyes, I know they won't go away. I'll only be able to minimise the appearance of wrinkles. The Loreal Youth Code Night cream was on special so I thought it was worth a try over the Olay anti-ageing cream which wasn't discounted.

The pleasant smelling cream was thick and oily, hard to absorb into the skin, but it promises that after one night my skin will be rehydrated and results within a week. I will report back. I saved $11 on this.

Garnier invisi mineral deodorant 20% off so I saved $1.10 on something that is just an everyday staple since I had hit adolescence.

With the discounts, I saved $13.35 which is decent. What's a girl gonna do when there's bargains and beauty promises galore? Not shop? Didn't think so. *wink*

Save or Splurge

Should I splurge:

The Prada Double zipped Saffiano Tote for circa $2k. Calf Leather and super luxe, so gorgeously classic, it'd be safe to assume this'll last you through your lifetime. But there's a massive waitlist in David Jones they tell me and I might not have a chance with the popular colours before the next price increase. *Gulps*

Or save with:

DKNY's Saffiano work shopper tote for $420 from David Jones? It looks the same, functions the same, but it is lighter in weight (not to mention easier on the wallet). It is available rightaway.

But it is DKNY versus Prada! Is there even any comparison to be made?

If you don't get it, then you are playing for Team Mr.HEA, but in his absence, I'd love to hear your thoughts to help keep me grounded. Or enable me...

Patience isn't quite my strongest virtue though I warn you, I might end up going nuts trying my best to not cave in.

30 days of fashion & beauty

September has been a month of fashion and shopping, just as much as Octobers are for good dining in Sydney. Here's a rundown of my $500 spent in September 2012.

Carvela Stripy Snake Print Low Heel Booties - $219.58

Dolan Midi Cardigan in Navy Stripes (similar) - $53.90

Marc by Marc Jacobs Eno Colorblock Dress - $63.20

ASOS PETITE Fit and Flare Belted Coat - $87.83

ASOS STATUS Pointed Wedges with Metal Toe Cap - $48.80

And these gorgeous neck parties, $35 for both necklaces from the Galleries Victoria, the @ccesories kiosk in the food court area. All necklaces for only $19, but discounted if you buy more of course. And they are of gorgeous quality.

(OK, it was $8 more than $500, but what's a little rounding).

 These pictures were created using InstaCollage, but the pics don't end up being of high resolution do they? Ah well, they were a novel idea to trial, but I might stick to Diptic for the time being and pass on the funky frames, filters and cutesy icons.

(Still really loving the new tools I am exploring with the iPhone5).

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Stylethread purchase

Earlier this year I saw these rain boots on someone on the streets and mistook them to be Anya Hindmarch ankle boots, leading to a rather futile tweet and google search.




Randomly trying to pillage the bottom of the barrel sales on the end of season stock, I found out how wrong I was and how much I still wanted these.




Mel ankle rain boots were being advertised as the yummy bubblegum scented rain boots to have for the wet festival season ahead. I am just looking forward to having them to strut around in Cold wet London when I visit Mr.HEA in December.
Ordered the boots in black initially but Stylethread had run out of stock (gave me a voucher to apologize for the inconvenience which was unexpected but very welcome), so I ended up putting in an order for the Burgundy instead.




I am still shopping for winter clothing for London now that I have my tax return back in my account, but something tells me I am a little late to the party and perhaps I should just wait till I am there to shop.


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Bought: Two American labels

My Shopbop purchases are finally in my possession! I practically leapt out of the plane to the office to get at them. You've seen them before in a previous post where I mulled over whether I could justify the purchase. A $100 dollars off with a discount code really sealed the deal for me.

This Rebecca Minkoff Quilted Affair is gorgeous and such a fantastic mix between fun and elegant that I have no regrets choosing this as my very first Rebecca Minkoff handbag. Check out the fun interior that matches the dustbag. The linen lining keeps the bag young, but what wins me over is the quality of the leather and the weight in the solid metal chain strap. If you think the studs are a bit much, wait till you see the STUD I found in the side pocket, a signature token that accompanies each flirtatiously named bag. After all, Rebecca Minkoff did rise to fame with her Morning After bag.

So that's the impressive part. What's not so impressive is that the tag on the bag says the suggested retail price is $395, and I paid $395 for it only after a code discount, which meant that I really never got a discount to begin with. What a let down, that fact, and not something I had ever experienced with ShopBop.

This Tory Burch red skinny patent belt is true to size and it is brilliant in quality. I can't wait to rock this and take modelling pics! Oh and I did pay the suggested retail price for this, so no problems there!