Tag Archives: Shopping

Don’t shop in the US right now if you’re traveling to Europe!

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A while ago I wrote a post that had actually been requested by quite a few readers – What to buy in the UK vs. he USA. Sitting on the loooonnnngg flight home yesterday I thought it was time to update you all in case you are planning a trip from one side of the Atlantic to the other.

I think there is still a common misconception that the USA is much cheaper than the UK. Right now it isn’t! A pound will currently only buy approx. 1.4 dollars. Two years ago it would buy about 1.75, and even last year it was around 1.6. When you remember to add the approx. 8% sales tax to the US sticker prices, on top of the current exchange rate, it means that several, in fact many items are much cheaper in the UK!

Take for example my incredibly indulgent purchase in Selfridges on Friday. A Givenchy Pandora bag. In the US it retails for $1950 + 8% sales tax. In the UK it is £1155 – approx. $1625 – significantly cheaper!

Cosmetics are also cheaper – admittedly many of they high street brands that I buy are British – such as Nip + Fab and Soap and Glory. As Boots always seem to do a 3 for 2 deal or some sort of discounting make sure you stock up there and not here in the USA. Having said that it is still the case that many high end cosmetics are cheaper in the US – a Mac lipstick is $16 here and at least £16 in the UK.

High street brands are much cheaper in the UK. A pair of jeans cost me £29.99 in Zara – the same pair here is $49.99 + the sales tax (sales tax varies state to state, and even county to county here).

So while there is so much uncertainty about the UK Brexit I would encourage you to do more sight seeing than shopping on your trip to NYC! Your pounds aren’t going to buy you many dollars!

I’m back in the office today – albeit very jet lagged. After a 9 hour flight yesterday (highly recommend all 3 films I watched – The Big Short, Black Mass and Carol) I went straight to the polling station to cast my vote. I still get tremendously excited about the privilege of voting with my new citizenship. My lovely Husband treated me to a huge Thai takeaway and I hugged my children tightly. It’s lovely to go away, but it’s really lovely to come home, especially when the sun is shining and the blossom is blooming!

Hill and Friends bagBag – Hill & Friends (won in an Instagram competition with Sue!) // Jeans – H&M (on sale!) // Shoes – ASOS (20% off certain items now) // Top – AllSaints // Coat – Zara (old)

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The NAP sale is ON!!!

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Be quick – the Net-a-porter.com sale has started in the US, and there are some amazing items on sale including my Golden Goose at 30% off!!

Golden Goose

Poppy and Joanna do NYC

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I’ve just had the most brilliant 48 hours! One night in NYC with my incredible 9 year old. She is a natural traveler! It was so much fun to spend time together – just the two of us. She is a joy to be with and didn’t ever complain even though we walked miles, sometimes in the cold rain! Yes the weather sucked on Tuesday afternoon – we were completely caught off guard by the constant rain. Thankfully the sun made an appearance on Wednesday morning!

We left bright and early on Tuesday – but that didn’t stop our flippin’ flight being delayed due to the NYC weather!

We're offOn me – Sneakers – Golden Goose (similar here) // Jeans – J.Crew (30% off with SHOPNOW) // Top – AllSaints (now on sale) // Bag – McQ by Alexander McQueen // Scarf – H&M (old)

We stayed at the City Rooms + NYC hotel at Lafayette and Canal. I highly recommend it – cheap as chips for NYC, clean, VERY basic, hardwoods, comfy beds, clean bathrooms and easy access to Canal St. subway to get Uptown. As soon as we arrived we headed out for lunch to Jack’s Wife Freda – just the best restaurant in SoHo as far as I am concerned – I love it there and they are totally child friendly. Poppy just loved people watching.

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After lunch we wandered around SoHo in the rain – unfortunately for Poppy very few of the stores there had a children’s section but she still managed to find a Swatch that she loved, swearing that she would much rather have that than clothes. Mom you’re a sucker.

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The following day, after breakfast at Jack’s Wife Freda again, we headed Uptown to 5th Avenue – where of course Zara had a kids section – and oh how quickly we forgot about the watch. We totally blew the budget in Zara 😉 I must say thank you to the lovely Maya at Jack’s Wife Freda. I follow them on Instagram and I had mentioned Poppy’s excitement about eating there. As we were eating breakfast I tagged a few photos of Poppy. Having seen we were there Maya called the restaurant and asked them to take extra special care of us – so sweet. Poppy really enjoyed her watermelon juice on the house.

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AllSaints top

Top – AllSaints // Jeans – J.Crew (on sale plus another 30% off with SHOPNOW) // Shoes – Gucci

After yet more shopping we were pretty exhausted – we walked miles – and we’re not used to that in Atlanta!

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We picked our bags up and headed back to La Guardia ready to sleep all the way home. We had just the best time and I am already talking up NYU for Poppy 😉 She is a natural in the City and can charm anyone – she had the store assistants and flight attendants eating out of the palm of her hand.

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Far more fun than any birthday party we could have thrown – well at least for me anyway! 😉

 

The sale we have all been waiting for!

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The Net-a-porter.com sale has started!!! 3…2…1…Go!

Net-a-porter sale

Where do I start?!

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What an amazing week it has been!  Lots of shopping, lunches, and FAR too much prosecco! After recovering from jetlag and a trip to the soft play center with my nephews, my Mum, my sister and I headed to Manchester on Thursday.  I love shopping in Manchester – it is great to be outside instead of a mall, and the sun shone for us all day.  I am really impressed with how they have cleaned up the city center and even the Arndale is a pleasant experience these days.  AllSaints was my first port of call and I cannot say enough great things about the staff there.  They were brilliant and really helpful. I love the Emi Freesia top that continues to feed my black and navy obsession:

Emi Fressia top

The Tiko t-shirt is a classic AllSaints draped cut – perfect for spring.

Tiko

The Leyla t-shirt is beautiful – I have the dark grey with navy sleeves – really soft and drapey and it feels fabulous on.

Leyla

We then headed to M&S, of course!  I was not planning on buying anything…but then my sister spotted these lovelies.  I love a biker boot and these are really ‘neat’ looking – the sole isn’t too heavy – plus 20% off – a bargain!

biker boots

Then a lovely dress.  Remember this VB dress?  I loved it, most hated it.

VB dress

The Limited range has this quilted dress, tailored for the high street.  I tried a UK10 and a 14 in store – too small and too big, but the 12 is perfect – I will love it with some sun on my skin!

Quilted dress

This photo is not the most flattering – it makes me look like I have no shape – but I assure you the drop waist is fab and it gives me shape around my backside from the back and sides.  I’m really happy with it.

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I came away from M&S really impressed – it’s a long time since so much has appealed to me.

Finally I stocked up on my Molton Brown body wash – this Bushukan scent is sold as a men’s fragrance here but it is wonderful and works for us ladies who prefer scents without too many floral notes.  The scent lasts all day – I just love it.

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Not a bad haul hey?  The great news is after playing mule for some friends here I have plenty of space in my bags now I’ve handed their goods over!

The best bit of the whole day though was lunch in Harvey Nicks.

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I’ll leave my weekend shenanigans to another blogpost – needless to say it was fun and prosecco fueled!  Here’s an amazing photo that my very kind friend, Marlene from www.chocolatecookiesandcandies.com took – what a great souvenir to have!

 Joanna London

Jacket – AllSaints // Top – AllSaints // Jeans – JBrand leather jeans // Boots – Navy Newbury boots (out of shot)

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Fun in Next!

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I will be traveling for the next few days – wending my way from Bury to Kyrenia – so there’ll be no blog post for a few days.  To make up for it I’ve done two today.  I couldn’t wait to tell you about my exciting morning;)

Mum and Dad took the children out for the day so I got to have some ‘me’ time in Bury with the shops that I miss.  M&S, River Island, Primark and Matalan were all on my hit list.  However, I was completely side tracked by Next.  What a revelation!

Well in all honesty I had seen some of my blogging friends wearing some great items from Next recently, so I knew I had to take a look while I was here.  Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery no?  We are all inspired by what we see in other blogs – and I’ve already bought Avril’s shoes, now I have Hollie and Eve’s jacket, and I think Kat’s jacket too?

For the trip I decided to give two fingers to the weather and wore all white, with my Boden leather jacket.

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T-shirt – Zara TRF linen t-shirt with pink flower (old – can’t see it online in the sale but it may appear again) // Jeans – H&M (old) // Scarf – Boden chincilla pinspot lightweight scarf (I love this and want the acid lime one too)

Here’s the gorgeous Next jersey biker jacket in grey.  I tried a 12 to start with and it was huge so ended up with a 10.  Both Hollie and Eve All Worn Out have this.  It is the softest, snuggliest jacket ever – perfect for Bury – maybe not so much for Atlanta and Cyprus.

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I then spotted these great harem trousers in white.  Some of you may like these – they are not low slung at the crotch – but have quite a tapered leg, others of you may not – as, with most white jersey, you can see the pockets.

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I’m not normally a blouse person at all.  But I was immediately drawn to this.  The leopard print obviously caught my eye, but the colors are also lovely – greys, white and blush tones.  The shape is great too and very forgiving for the muffin top.

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With the jacket it creates a good day to evening outfit.

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The top with skinnies.

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Next up I saw this blue jacket.  I loved it immediately.  It’s a really flattering cut, lightweight and washable too.  I also love the neckline.  Oh and I totally love the fact it was only 28 GBP!  I think Kat has this.  It didn’t photo well at all – I think Next in Bury has the darkest changing rooms ever.

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Finally the shoes.  I didn’t get them – I wanted to – but the toe problem reared it’s ugly head again.  I loved these and realized that I don’t have any navy heels at all so I could completely have justified them – but the little toe just wouldn’t behave.  They came in grey too.  I’m afraid I can’t see them online but I think they were about 28 GBP.

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So all in all a fun trip to Bury – I even managed to grab coffee with my sister.  I didn’t make it to anywhere else but Next I’m afraid.  A good job I think really:)

 

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