Sale shopping!

Thought I would just write a quick post as I have lots to do tonight! ♥

 I realise we are now well into the month of February but I wanted to share some of my purchases I got in the January sales! I LOVE sale shopping! I always manage to find lots of bargains and I think part of the fun is stumbling across things that you would never expect to find. It is the best feeling when you find something which you fall in love with and it is a super cheap AND it is exactly your size. I know some people absolutely cannot stand sale shopping (my sister for example). I am not sure whether it is because of the 'busyness' that usually comes with sale shopping or the frustration of searching for hours in every shop to come back home with nothing (or maybe a combination of both.) Before I show you some of the things I got this year in the January sales I just wanted to give you a few of my 'Top Tips' for becoming a 'successful sale shopper' (no doubt many of you will already be exactly that!) ♥

1) Don't buy something because it is cheap!!!! This is a trap I have fallen into many times before. I used to always buy items I didn't need and brought them purely because I thought it was a good old bargain. The problem with this is that you then discover months later that same item is still sat/hung in your drawers or wardrobe, unworn with the tags still on. You then wonder what an earth went into your mind when you brought this item because you can't imagine ever wearing it and worse yet wouldn't even go down to your local shop wearing it! It then ends up going into a bag designated for the charity shop and you never cross paths with it again....♥

2) Wait until after Christmas to buy clothes!!! I find it sooo annoying when I buy clothes before Christmas and then you go into the sales to find everything that you brought is now half price. I actually got a jumper for Christmas from Zara, given to me by my mum (it is shown in one of the photos later on in the blog post.) I decided to return it because although I really liked it, I have so many jumpers and found this one particularly itchy when I tried it on. My mum also said as it cost £50 I could have the equivalent of that in euros...which I desperately needed *wanted* for my uni ski trip in January. (In case you were thinking what a mean daughter I am for taking back a Christmas present my mum had given me, my mum was not at all offended and was the one to suggest I took it back!) Anyway, myself and my mum were shopping in January after Christmas and I was buying some black trousers from Zara when my mum spotted the jumper on a stand near the till. I asked her what size it was and she said it was in my size and reduced to £15. I therefore couldn't leave this on the shelf as it was a to good a bargain not to get! ♥

3) Go at the end of the sales!!! Some people may argue it is best to hit the sales as soon as boxing day starts but I sometimes think it is better to wait til the middle or nearer the end of the sales as most things often get reduced a lot more. Also at the start of the sales it can be super busy so waiting nearer the end of January means the immediate rush will be over and you will actually find yourself being able to take more than one step without someone pushing into you! However, I still think it can be good to go to the sales a week or so after they start as well as towards the end of January so then you definitly don't lose out on any brilliant bargains! ♥

4) Don't be disappointed!!! I think the reason why some people dislike sale shopping so much is because they go in with high expectations thinking they are going to come home with a bunch of things. I think if you have that attitude, it has the reserve effect. My advice would be go in to have a good time shopping and if you grab some groovy bargains...then great and if you don't well then there's always next year! ♥

5) Other tips...I have a few more random tips which I am just going to quickly state. Firstly, don't forget to try clothes on (if that is what you are buying!) This may sound obvious but I often can't be bothered to try things on because the queue to the changing room is long or I haven't got a lot of time. Obviously if you are in a real rush then forget trying the clothes on but I would definitly recommend trying on the clothes if you can. In the past I have brought things, not tired them on and then I have forgotten to return the item because it was to small or big or I just didn't like it on. Sometimes as well, if you don't return the item within a certain amount of time you aren't able to get your money back and then get a gift card with the amount on instead (which can be a bit annoying.) ♥

Another tip is check the item thoroughly. What I mean by this is check that there are no marks/holes/tears etc on the item. I know sometimes things are in the sale because they have been damaged but often sale items are reduced purely because they are old stock and are out of season. Quite often I have brought something in the sale and gone to the til and explained that there is a mark on the clothing and they very often give you an extra 10% of or more (although it usually makes the item non-refundable). ♥

I am going to stop rambling now and post some photos! I hope you have enjoyed reading this post and I apologise as I realise this post would have been more appropriate posted about a month before. But these tips can be used regardless of whether it is the January sales or when you go shopping during anytime of the year and there is a sale on. ♥

 This is the jumper I got from Zara! Since wearing it I have had sooo many compliments. ♥

  I love this cute dress I got from......SAINSBURYS (random I know!) As you can see from the photo it is actually quite long so my very skilled Auntie actually turned it up a few inches for me. I wore it today and loved it! ♥

This playsuit was from New Look for £12. I think it is the perfect evening outfit to wear either with black tights and boots or bare legs and heels. I think it would look lovely in the summer with a nice tan. ♥

 Here is a full length photo of me wearing the playsuit which I actually wore on New Year's Eve. The back of the playsuit is also really nice (a bit of back is showing and there are two cute black buttons at the top). ♥

I also got this gorgeous cardigan from Jack Wills...it is sooo amazingly warm to wear. This was £29 reduced from £98! It is the perfect cardigan to thrown on over a dress or to wear with leggings or jeans. Very pleased with this purchase. ♥

And now I really want to go shopping again!!! ♥

XOXOXOXOXOX