School Table Top Sale

The local girls grammar school has a couple of table top sales every year. They always have one towards Christmas and we were waiting for the advert to appear in the local paper. Today was the day and we welcomed the 9am start instead of going out at silly o'clock to go to the Carboot sales.

I think that I did fairly well but poor David managed to come home with just light bulbs for our outside lights at £1.

I bought a couple of items for my sister. I bought this authentic murano glass Pandora charm which came with box and bag for £5. I don't know much about Pandora to be honest but I know my sister loves their bracelets and has bought quite a few charms when we have been out shopping together so I am sure she will appreciate this gift. I found an identical one for sale on eBay at £29.95 so I guess £5 is a good price.

I also bought her some soft bronze coloured sandals from Earth Spirit for £1. These have been worn once and the lady said they were too big for her but I think they will be just the right size for my sister. These are usually £23 - £30 to buy new.  I know these aren't the most elegant sandals but as you get older you go for comfort and "going for walks" so these are perfect.

I bought two Louis Vuitton style hand bags. One is an across the body style in the classic LV material and this cost £4. It has a really long strap on it so it fits comfortable across my body. This cost £4.

The other is my favourite and is in a lilac and purple canvas with white leather handles and trim. It has a matching cotton scarf and came with its dust bag. This will be great for on a sunny holiday or even for our British summer and cost just £3.

I also bought a Hugo Boss canvas beach bag and towel - both new and sealed for £3.50. Handy for a day by the pool or beach.

I love this cream Rocha John Rocha ceramic candle holder which was £2. Great for on my window ledge with a scented candle flickering through the lacy edging. It is a decent size too (I placed it next to a full sized bottle of fizz to show the size)

I got four home magazines for 25p each. They are all dated last year but for £1 this is a great price for flicking through and getting ideas from.

I found a few cosmetic items. Two Boots No7 eyeshadows in Truffle and Antique Rose. The Antique Rose is my all time favourite and is a discontinued shade so I keep on the look out for it whenever we are carbooting. These were both 25p each.

I found a Clinique chubby stick in a very wearable shade of Super Stawberry. This was priced at £1.50 which is a little more than I would normally pay (I bought three for 50p the other week) but as they normally cost £17.50 I'm not complaining.

Two Yves Rocher Aragon oil moisturiser for hair and body for 50p each.

Series 1 & 2 of Rome for £4.50 and another DVD for 75p.

Not a bad haul for an hour's work and back home in time for a coffee and cooked English breakfast of  sausages, bacon, egg and mushrooms. Naughty but nice!

Marks & Sparks Bargains

I was on a training course a week ago on the other side of Manchester and had to drive past the Lowry shopping Centre to get there and back. Of course I could not resist popping in on my way home on the Thursday as it was late night opening. I only called into the Marks & Spencer store to have a look in the clearance section to buy some trousers for work. I  already have a couple of pairs of black ones and some grey ones that are now three years old and starting to look a bit shabby. They sometimes have the plus sizes in the clearance section which normally you can only buy on line.

Sure enough they had three pairs all in different styles and after trying them all on I chose the straight leg style in long length. They were priced at £6. 

I found a swimsuit in a jazzy pattern that I did not need but I love the quality and styling of M&S swimwear. I have never been able to find better quality elsewhere. This was priced at £14. 

I fell in love with gorgeous damson devore kimono top with heavy fringing for my niece for Christmas. I tried it on myself and was tempted to keep it but I think she will love this and at £14 I thought this was also a good buy.

I then found two adorable red felt Christmas cushions with applique reindeer on them with holly leaves and berries. They had beading on them and white blanket stitching around the edge. I loved the chunky button fastening on the back. I fell in love them and wished there were more. Bending down to get them off the bottom shelf I spotted two more that had fallen down the back of shelves - woohoo!! These were priced at just £5 each and currently there are similar on line for between £19.50 - £35.00. Two each will be going on my settees - two on each settee in the next week or so.

When I got to the till, the assistant told me that the swimsuit had been reduced even lower to £6 (result!!) and that the trousers were on offer at two pairs for £7.50.

I did a u-turn and found a pair of wide leg jersey trousers for wearing at home (a true sign of getting older - when you buy clothes that are comfy for wearing around the house) which were priced up at £5 but cost me just £1.50.

Another great shopping trip at M&S. 

M&S Beauty Advent Calendar

I bought two tops and a pair of trousers on-line for wearing to work from Marks & Spencers, and as I had spent £35 I was able to buy their beauty advent calendar worth £250 for £35. Now my regular readers will know that I've already bought the Boots No7 advent calendar so I didn't need one at all but as this looked like a good deal £ wise I was unable resist.

I received it yesterday and could not resist having a beauty feast and opening it up all in one go. The packaging is brilliant. Individually numbered boxes that slide onto shelves in a Christmas Tree shape. All quite substantially made and not flimsy at all. Once I had taken out all the contents I packaged it up, popped it back into the delivery box and will use this next year. I'll fill it with some other items - not sure what yet - and give it as a gift to someone in the family.

So what was inside the boxes?

Two fabulous full sized nail polishes in the kind of shades I love. One is a nailsinc gel one coat in Piccadilly Court and an Autograph one in Cranberry which has a iridescent sheen to it. Fabulous for the festive period although I do still love a Santa red.

Two decent sized tubes of Neal's Yard Bee Lovely handcream and Rituals magic touch body cream. This is in Ritual of Sakura scent which reminds me slightly of baby powder. Quite a comforting scent.

Eyeko Skinny liquid eyeliner in black. I use a pencil usually and favour a brown or dark purple so I think this will be going into my niece's Christmas stocking. A very wearable shade of Rosie for Autograph lip glossy. The shade is called Super Model Smile and I think will be a great day time shade for any time of year.

A lovely soft mini powder brush. The only thing mini about the brush is the handle as the head of the brush is full size. Great for bronzer, a powder foundation such as bare minerals or even for a blusher.

A couple of hair products. Percy & Reed wonder balm for using on both wet and dry hair. Josh Wood Radiant Shine hair oil for dry ends, smoothing a straight hair style or using as a pre-wash treatment. I think just a few drops of this will be enough as any more and my hair might just look greasy.

Three tubes of facial creams and treatments. Ultrasun factor 30 suntan cream. A must for me after my skin cancer on my nose last year. I don't face the day now without a high SPF cream. Filorga Time-Filler absolute wrinkle correction cream. I've not heard of this before and there are no directions on the tube. I assume - see a wrinkle, use this cream on it! That great brand Rodial, super acids x-treme acid rush peel. To be used as you would a face mask. 

Three smallish tubes of more face creams and potions. Studio 10 priming serum. I love a face serum and use one every day under moisturiser. REN day cream - nothing to write home about. Pur correcting primer for use over moisturiser and under make-up. I've not really used these before but think I'll give this a try straight away and see if I'm converted.

Leighton Denny mini glass nail file. This really is mini but a good size to pop into a travel bag and take away on holiday or for a weekend away. A full sized Burts Bees lip balm in original flavour/scent. I have a love/hate relationship with Burts Bees and luckily their lip balms fall into the love category.

A spray bottle of the most gorgeous smelling Shay & Blue perfume called Atropa Belladonna. The first hit is Parma violet sweeties but it softens to vanilla marzipan. A reasonable sized 10ml bottle. Great for taking away on a two week holiday.

A M&S night cream and a bottle of Alphah night treatment. This is used like a toner alternate nights under night cream to firm and revitalise. Again not something I have used before but I'll give this a try. 

Philip Kingsley hair Elasticizer. Now this is not my thing at all as I have had this product before in beauty boxes and I have sold them on eBay. That is where this one will be going too. Nuxe multi-purpose dry oil. I've had this product in other beauty boxes too although much smaller bottles than this one. I've never used it so don't know whether I like it or not so I think it might be put away for taking on a sunny holiday and using as an after sun or to restore dry hair. 

Finally three products that I don't know anything about at all. Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm. Skin Icelandic Relief Eyecream (in a tiny pot) and Pixi by Petra brow tamer. I've never had to tame my brows as they have always been well behaved. I think the balm and eyecream may be used but the brow tamer is destined for eBay. 

So, overall I am very happy with my purchase. I would say there are around 75% hits - perfume, nail polishes and make-up brush in particular -  with 25% misses or items that I have never hear of or didn't realise I needed - brow tamer and hair elasticizer in particular.

Have any of you bought yourself a beauty advent calendar?

Carboot & Tabletop Sale Haul

We were up with the larks and visited the Cheshire Carboot sale early, then onto the Farmers Market, followed by a weekly food shop at Booths Supermarket in Hale Barns, off to a nearby village hall table top sale and home for 11.30am.

Here are my bargains (minus the food shop in Booths)

A DKNY handbag for £5. I bought this from the same lady I bought the Clinique chubby sticks from last week. We've become quite chatty recently as I have bought something from her each week over the last few weeks,

A cute satin ribbon evening bag which can be used with or without the chain strap. I love the diamanté clasp on it. This was just £1 and is unused.

Three full sized bottles of Elizabeth Arden Visible Difference Gentle Hydrating Toner for £12 in total, so £4 a bottle. I knocked her down from her £15 price to £12. She said they were originally £26 each new which I doubted but I've looked on eBay and they are selling around £17 - £19 each so I think I've done well at £4 a piece. I go through loads of toner, and wondered whether everyone else does or is it just me?

Two Boots No.7 eye shadows in one of my favourite colours of Mink. These are both new and just 50p each. They are normally £7 each although Boots currently have a 3 for 2 offer on so they would be £4.66 each.

I also bought a used Bobbi Brown shimmerbrick in Nude from the same lady for 50p. Now buying used makeup is not normally something I would do at all but I have always wanted one of these but have been unwilling to pay £34. I think I will take a flat knife and take off the top layer to leave a fresh surface for me to use. It has not been used that much and is in good condition so I think it was worth a chance at just 50p.

A box of 6 Prices tealights in Cinnamon Stick - perfect for this time of year - these cost 50p.

Two cute hand warmers for taking to New York for just £1.

A cute candy cane bauble containing a pot of spiced apple body butter for £1. A great stocking filler for my niece.

Eight Weightwatchers magazines for 50p for all of them.

Following the Weightwatchers theme £3 worth of chocolate!! I have a sneaky piece or two every other evening.

A Patricia Cornwell hardback book for 50p.

Four pairs of new M&S briefs priced at £6 for £2 a pair. I have the matching bra so I now have a matching set with spare knicks - brilliant (sorry but I'm not posting pictures of my knickers.....!)  Four DVDs for 50p and I am so pleased that one of them is the boxed set of Brideshead Revisted.

A lovely glass dome for placing over cake or cheese but which I will be using at Christmas to make a table centre piece. This cost £2.50 and is a decent size. I think I will put some baubles or similar on a plate with some twinkly lights and pop the dome over it.

I also bought a couple of random 50p items. A Veuve Cliquot champagne bottle cover (hidden by         David so no photo) and a Harrods key ring of a white Scottie dog (that needs sponging clean)

Not a bad haul in total.