Happy New 2024 & an investment buy round-up

By |2024-01-05T16:55:50+00:00January 5th, 2024|Categories: Retail Review, Sale|Tags: , , |

Well it's back to it this week with a big happy new 2024 to you. How does it feel? Are you full of fresh starts or is it a bit like having a bucket of cold water tipped over your head? I have to say I'm in the latter camp - the dates didn't fall well this time did they? It was almost as if I hurtled straight from the sparkle of New Year's Eve into the grim reality of [...]

Black Friday 2023 – best offers compendium

By |2023-11-24T11:38:11+00:00November 20th, 2023|Categories: Christmas, Sale|Tags: , , , , |

Hello and Happy Friday week. I think this is when most of us try to complete our Christmas shopping so I won’t talk for long. Instead I’m bringing you a compendium of the best Black Friday 2023 offers. I’m being sent them by the dozen every day so I'm sifting out the best as I go along and I’ll add more as they keep coming in. This is what's live so far - Black Friday 2023 – best [...]

John Lewis Sale SS23 – The Edit

By |2023-06-22T10:37:01+01:00June 22nd, 2023|Categories: Retail Review, Sale|Tags: , , , |

Boo! I'm early this week because the John Lewis Sale SS23 has just gone live and so I'm bringing you an early edit to help you pick your way through the many great offers. We're also heading away for an extended weekend and I have lots of work to finish before we set off, hopefully we'll be leaving the rain behind - I'd got used to living in endless days of warm weather. Anyway at least it makes it a [...]

Midlife beauty favourites and new discoveries

By |2023-01-20T14:18:50+00:00January 20th, 2023|Categories: Hair & Beauty, Sale|Tags: , , , , |

I've had a few reminders that I haven't done a beauty post for a while so now feels like a good time. This month when we all feel a bit 'peely wally' as my Scots friends call it is a great one for refreshing beauty routines - and never forget the power of a free on counter makeover, it's a great way of learning new techniques and finding products that work for you. Just pick a brand you already like [...]

Thoughtful sale buys for the new year

By |2023-01-06T16:47:24+00:00January 6th, 2023|Categories: Retail Review, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , |

Hello and Happy New Year to you - I hope you've had a really good Christmas break and avoided the wretched cold/cough virus that's going around. I had it when I left you last and only started to feel better on Christmas Day which was a bit of a shame as it meant the build-up week when the boys first came home was a bit muffled - but at least it meant we could enjoy Christmas itself. I smiled sympathetically [...]

Black Friday 2022 – best offers directory

By |2023-11-15T10:19:18+00:00November 25th, 2022|Categories: Christmas, Sale|Tags: , , , |

Hello and Happy Friday. I think for most of us this is the  weekend when we try to complete our Christmas shopping so I won't talk for long. Instead I'm bringing you a compendium of the best Black Friday 2022 offers. I've been sent hundreds of them this week so I've sifted out the strongest discounts and I'll add to them if/when they change throughout the day. Let's get started with a Black Friday 2022 - best offers directory... [...]

John Lewis & Partners Sale – clearance and half price edit

By |2022-07-21T15:02:57+01:00June 23rd, 2022|Categories: Retail Review, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , |

A big summer sale started last night at John Lewis & Partners with some really good clearance offers so I'm getting this week's post out to you early. I can see things are disappearing fast and so I'll pick out my highlights and then leave you to look through the rest in your own time. There are particularly good offers on some of our favourite brands including Boden where you can find items that have actually been sold out for [...]

My best winter buys & 2021 over and out!

By |2021-12-22T16:59:28+00:00December 22nd, 2021|Categories: Christmas, Midlife, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

I can't believe this is the last post of the year - I'm running out of time and there's lots I want to say to you so I'm going to crack on. I'm starting with a quick catch-up of the last few days, then moving on to a round-up of my best winter buys & 2021 over and out! Christmassy days out So let's start over in Newcastle. We had a whirlwind visit to take mum-in-law out for the day [...]

Black Friday directory – best UK high street offers

By |2021-11-26T10:17:56+00:00November 26th, 2021|Categories: Christmas, Sale|Tags: , , , |

Well here we are again, Black Friday which whether you like it or not isn't going anywhere. At this particularly difficult point in global retail history there are some strong offers from retailers who need to get cash flowing; some will be watching it anxiously knowing that it dictates their survival. So I'm going to list the best offers here, I know some of you prefer to avoid it but that's not a moral privilege that's open to everyone - [...]

Tried and tested summer beauty and other finds

By |2021-07-02T16:38:51+01:00July 2nd, 2021|Categories: Hair & Beauty, Health, Product review|Tags: , , , , , |

It's been ages since we've talked about beauty and I've had a few people asking me recently how I keep my skin glowing in summer. Well not very much changes in my routine, I have favourites that I buy again and again because they work. I've been invited to test quite a few new beauty products over the last months and I have strict terms for accepting samples. Brands have to understand that I will only recommend their new launches [...]

Shopping the Summer Sales – What To Look Out For

By |2021-06-27T11:32:55+01:00June 25th, 2021|Categories: Retail Review, Sale|Tags: , , , |

There are always sure signs that Summer is here aren't there? The build up to Wimbledon, strawberries starting to taste as they should, pea pods in the shops... and the start of the sales. This year they should be interesting because the world of retail has continued to be turned upside down by Covid; some categories such as garden furniture and packable jackets have sold out whereas others have a surplus of stock so it's going to  be a bit [...]

Black Friday – the best offers updated all day

By |2020-11-27T17:07:03+00:00November 27th, 2020|Categories: Christmas|Tags: , , , |

So here we are, Black Friday. I think it finds the nation in an unusual mood after the tiering announcements yesterday but in many ways they give us more of a reason to support Black Friday than ever because for some retailers, and in particular small ones, it's a last gasp that will give them the cashflow to keep going a little longer. When the announcement was made I listened to Mr MC with his President's hat on, talking to [...]

Retail update – small British brands – and à bientôt…

By |2020-08-07T11:30:28+01:00August 7th, 2020|Categories: Hair & Beauty, Retail Review, Style, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

Retail update - small British brands - and à bientôt... I'm typing with my fingers crossed because if everything goes to plan, we'll be setting off on our holiday tonight. Preparing to go has been challenging because all kinds of things have kept changing. This has included our usual petsitters being offered a holiday that was too good to resist on the same dates as ours which wasn't a problem until we realised the cats' inoculations had run out and [...]

Hush sale top ten & retail behind the scenes

By |2020-06-25T14:22:39+01:00June 25th, 2020|Categories: Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , |

Hello, I'm a day early but the Hush sale has started so I thought I'd bring you my Hush sale top ten. I warn you, the sale site is a pain to go through because when you click on an item it doesn't usually remember where you left off so you have to scroll down to find your place again. Before I go into my top picks though I thought I'd give you an update on sales in general because [...]

Chic heatwave dresses and good sale buys

By |2020-06-19T13:25:41+01:00June 19th, 2020|Categories: Shoes, Style|Tags: , , , , , , |

We have a post with a purpose today, it's all about chic heatwave dresses because Meg wrote in to say "I have a colleague who's been looking effortless in the heat when we have our Zoom meetings. I'm still struggling to make the transition from office to home and I find I'm sweating in front of the camera wearing the structured ponte dresses I usually wear to work. Can you help me to find the kind of thing I'm looking [...]

Supporting Food Banks – Blogger Sale Now Live

By |2020-03-17T18:12:26+00:00March 17th, 2020|Categories: Sale|Tags: |

I thought I'd give you some light relief from the strange days we're living through by bringing you a blogger sale. There isn't anything that I don't like, it just isn't possible to wear everything and so I'd rather share it with you. The charity that I'm raising funds for this time is The Trussell Trust. All of the Food Banks across the country are now really struggling with supplies and of course they're about to need more stock than [...]

My best buys of AW 2019 – and thoughts for a midlife Christmas

By |2019-12-19T15:48:27+00:00December 19th, 2019|Categories: Christmas, Midlife|Tags: , , , |

This is it, the last post of 2019. I've been trying to work out what would be most useful to you right now and so in anticipation of the sales starting, I've sifted through what I think are the best buys of AW 2019. They're the hero pieces in my wardrobe and so I've rounded up my personal recommendation of what to look out for from specific retailers' sales. I'll finish with a few thoughts about Christmas because it feels [...]

The best Black Friday offers 2019 – dates and details

By |2019-11-29T16:44:41+00:00November 29th, 2019|Categories: Christmas, Sale|Tags: , , , |

Good morning on this busiest shopping day of the year. It's an unusual one this time because a lot of retailers are using it to launch their winter sale early. Others are trying to add a bit of excitement by changing their offers every few hours. I'm going to keep updating this list throughout the day so check back to see if I've been notified of anything new. In the meantime, here are the best Black Friday offers 2019 so [...]

Friday cornucopia and – a chance for us to meet!

By |2019-10-24T11:56:50+01:00October 10th, 2019|Categories: Hair & Beauty, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , |

I'm early this week so apologies to everyone who tells me that my post is part of their Friday wind-down routine, I'm juggling again and so it was now or never. So it's a Friday cornucopia today (on a Thursday... confused? yes me too) with a mixture of clothes, beauty - and... a chance for us to meet. At last! More about that at the end of the post. Hush mid-season sale - recommendations I'm going to start with the [...]

Summer sales – great buys and midlife lately

By |2019-06-28T16:45:32+01:00June 28th, 2019|Categories: Accessories, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , |

Just a quick post today because I can't imagine many of you will be reading when there's glorious sunshine outside. Anyway, we're back from France and I'll tell you all about it and how the packing capsule worked out next week. In the meantime I'm whizzing through some 'summer sales - great buys' and I'll end with good news in a quick midlife lately roundup. Summer sales - great buys It's hard to think of anything other than t-shirts at [...]

Blogger sale now live

By |2019-04-12T17:08:22+01:00April 12th, 2019|Categories: Sale|Tags: , |

Apologies for the lack of notice on this one but the clothes I was planning to shoot for today's post didn't turn up so I've had to pull my blogger sale forward instead. As you know I'm sent more clothes than I can ever wear and I can't think of anyone I'd rather share that good fortune with than you. All clothes are only very lightly worn or sometimes brand new and as usual, I'm raising money for the blood [...]

Blogger charity sale now live

By |2019-02-19T16:58:17+00:00February 19th, 2019|Categories: Sale|Tags: , |

The blogger sale is live here! Come and see the things that are spilling out of my dressing room. When they’re gone, they’re gone. Here are a few bullet points: The shop is only open to UK customers this time - we tried until late last night to find a way of dispatching them overseas at a reasonable cost but in the end the delivery price would have been disproportionate. Do let me know if you have a low cost solution [...]

My best high street winter buys – prepping for the sales

By |2018-12-18T16:58:47+00:00December 18th, 2018|Categories: Christmas, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

And just like that the A/W season's over and the sales are beginning. As retailers start to announce profit warnings it's clearer than ever that it's been one of the worst trading periods on record and so there are going to be some dazzling markdowns. While I've been having a clearout, I've made a point of looking at the pieces I wear on repeat and asking myself why. As part of this process, I've been struck by the fact that [...]

Bag boutique flash sale and my summer plans

By |2018-07-17T17:24:00+01:00July 17th, 2018|Categories: Accessories, Style|Tags: , , , , |

At last, we've nearly arrived at High Summer which for many is the chance to step aside from the treadmill or at least set it at a slower pace. This is the last week of grind in our house. The youngest is already on holiday and the middle son breaks up on Friday. I have my final few days of working in London for a while and so I will be able to catch my breath at last. I don't [...]

The Boden sale summer 18, gift ideas and a brainteaser

By |2018-06-29T16:52:41+01:00June 29th, 2018|Categories: Accessories, Gift ideas, Sale|Tags: , , , , |

I can't imagine that many people are going to be sitting around reading blog posts this weekend - the sunshine is too glorious and so I'm not going to take up much of your time. There are just a few things I wanted to bring to your attention. First of all the Boden sale summer 18. There's something interesting going on at Boden - the sale's late, they haven't been doing as much discounting recently and a lot of the [...]

2018 summer sale edit – where to find the best bargains in each category

By |2018-06-22T16:47:48+01:00June 22nd, 2018|Categories: Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

You have no idea what a rollercoaster ride it has been in the world of retail this summer. As I mentioned last week, in my April meetings the brands that I work with had all scheduled a summer sale 'pull forward' because of the bad weather. Since then they've been playing chicken with the weather and delaying the start dates for as long as possible. This is when the 'Ops' teams send the marketing teams to the verge of a [...]

Blogger sale now live

By |2018-05-13T10:58:34+01:00May 13th, 2018|Categories: Sale|Tags: , , |

The blogger sale is now live here. Just in case you missed them, here are the important points to remember:   I use a simple storefront. This means that even if something is in your basket, it is still available for others to buy until you check out. If it is something you really want, it is worth checking out immediately and then going back into the shop to browse again. It may help to know that extra postage received from [...]

A capsule summer city wardrobe, what I’ve been wearing and a blogger sale

By |2018-05-11T17:20:39+01:00May 11th, 2018|Categories: Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I have a few different things to talk to you about today. Firstly a capsule summer city wardrobe challenge - can I create a chic wardrobe for a month in just fifteen pieces? Then a few outfits of the day and finally, full details of the blogger sale that will open on Sunday morning 13th May at 11am (British Summer Time). Please read the details carefully to avoid any misunderstanding or disappointment. Capsule summer city wardrobe challenge I get all [...]

How to find a good hairdresser and a few reviews

By |2018-05-03T15:21:18+01:00April 27th, 2018|Categories: Hair & Beauty, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , |

It's one of those medley posts today with my analysis on how to find a good hairdresser followed by a bit of this and a bit of that. Before I start though I must share some good news. With having a week away I forgot to tell you that my mum-in-law has the all clear after her breast cancer scare. It means we still haven't got to the bottom of her chest pains but at least it's not the thing [...]

Spring home updates and a wander round the shops

By |2018-03-30T12:31:00+01:00March 30th, 2018|Categories: Interiors, Sale|Tags: , , , |

Happy Easter weekend everyone. After a week of mayhem in the office (it's never good when a forthcoming Bank Holiday coincides with the end of a lot of clients' financial years), I've had some serious disruption to my schedule. So here I am, blogging on a Bank Holiday. However I will be logging off very soon and I'm going to spend the rest of today deciding how I'm going to bring some spring home updates into our house. It's hard [...]

Winter sale edit and a Christmassy Midlife lately

By |2018-01-08T16:38:15+00:00December 19th, 2017|Categories: Christmas, Project Happier, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

T'was the week before Christmas... and I looked at my diary only to realise that I have blithely arranged for an awful lot of festive gatherings to take place... all through our house. I'm not quite sure how that happened but I have some serious food prepping to do. So, as I will shortly be mutating from Midlifechic to Midlifechef, my last post will have to be a quick one. I'm starting with a quick winter sale edit because if [...]

Black Friday 2017 best offers compendium – updated all day

By |2017-11-24T18:04:53+00:00November 24th, 2017|Categories: Christmas, Gift ideas, Sale|Tags: , , , , |

Black Friday 2017 best offers. Last year you told me you found it helpful to have a simple guide to the best offers on Black Friday. So, I've done my best to arm you in advance with posts on Christmas gifts ideas and outfits (they're listed at the bottom in case you need to refer back to them). I'll keep updating this as offers go live and change during the day. Here are the discounts you need. Black Friday 2017 [...]

Hope sale – and revisiting my past

By |2017-07-07T17:05:33+01:00July 7th, 2017|Categories: Family, Midlife, Relationships, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

I have a late addition to the summer sales for you. Hope will be opening their sale tomorrow (Saturday 8th July) and I have a VIP preview which means you can go onto the site and snap up the bargains before everyone else. In preparation for the new stock arriving, they are having a huge clearout from past seasons and a lot of items are 70% off. It's a great opportunity to buy something of high quality at an amazing price. Here [...]

Out with the old and in with the new at Hush – and other things

By |2018-01-08T17:00:20+00:00June 30th, 2017|Categories: Accessories, Hair & Beauty, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , |

Another week has flown by and I didn't have time to post on Tuesday so I'm bringing you a cornucopia today. Let's start with Hush. I meant to cover the sale on Tuesday but didn't because I was actually down with Hush in London. They invited a small group of over-40 bloggers for a sneak preview of the Autumn / Winter collection. We met at The Ned, the new and most talked about hotel opening in London. What a fantastic [...]

Summer outfits of the day… and great sale offers

By |2017-06-23T14:49:02+01:00June 23rd, 2017|Categories: Accessories, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Let's have a quick catch up today. I say quick because I lost a whole day's work this week thanks to lightning striking the local substation. It meant that we had no electricity on Wednesday from 11am until nearly midnight. The schools were closed and, as always, at first it was fun. We played boardgames and then lit the barbecue so that we could munch our way through the melting freezer food. By 9pm though, when we had reached the [...]

Best Summer Sales 1 – Baukjen, Finery, The White Company

By |2017-06-16T16:31:29+01:00June 16th, 2017|Categories: Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , |

Hello everyone and Happy Friday! The sales have begun so here's the first of my 'best summer sales' posts highlighting the top picks from some of my favourite brands. I've focused mostly on pieces that I have and wear a lot so that I can genuinely recommend them to you. I'll add my pictures to the brand's shots to give you an idea of what they look like on an ordinary body. Best Summer Sales: Baukjen Baukjen has definitely carved [...]

Advance notice – blogger clearout sale tomorrow!

By |2017-05-05T16:01:45+01:00May 5th, 2017|Categories: Sale|Tags: , |

A quick bulletin from me today just to give readers in the UK advance warning. I have been having a clearout and, after taking lots of bags to the charity shop, there were things that have hardly been worn. So I thought you might like them. Tomorrow I'm going to run a 'blogger clearout sale.' I have reached the point where I just have too many clothes. They are all lovely things that are hard to part with and I can't think of [...]

What to wear in January and end of sale bargains

By |2018-01-08T17:07:37+00:00January 13th, 2017|Categories: Accessories, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

I confess that I have always struggled with the month of January. So much so that we set our wedding date for 10th February so that I would have something to keep looking forward to during the darkest month. Although I love living where I do, the absence of bright city lights is something that I really notice at this time of year. The usually stunning vista of wide open skies is bleak and grey. Now that I've been blogging [...]

Losing the extra pounds gained over Christmas and other things

By |2018-01-08T17:09:09+00:00January 4th, 2017|Categories: Christmas, Family, Health, Project Happier, Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

Hello and Happy New Year! I know I'm supposed to be full of perky new year's resolutions but I tend to see September as more of a time to start afresh than January. For me the decorations are down, the middle son has already gone back to school and this morning, I faced the scales which led me to a moment of self loathing because I've put on half a stone. However, when I look back at the fantastic Christmas we've had, I [...]

Best Winter Sales 2016 – Part One

By |2018-01-08T17:09:42+00:00December 20th, 2016|Categories: Sale|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

So, the discounts are starting to rain down. I'll be bringing you details of the Best Winter Sales 2016 in my next few posts. I'm starting with the ones that I know have limited stock and the opportunity for pre-Christmas delivery so that Midlifechic readers can get in there first! Best Winter Sales 2016 - Hope First of all I bring you Hope whose sale site has just gone live. As you know, there is a feel good factor about buying from [...]

How to have a fun Christmas with teenagers

By |2017-03-18T23:03:27+00:00December 9th, 2016|Categories: Christmas, Family, Project Happier|Tags: , , , |

Christmas is easy when they're little isn't it. They believe everything is magical and, although it's physically exhausting, you really don't have to think very hard. But then they grow, their wishes are for bigger things and yet they still dream of the magic so I've been thinking hard about how to have a fun Christmas with teenagers. My boys are utterly resistant to anything changing. For them, Christmas is steeped in tradition and last week we had to break it [...]

Ultimate Guide – best cyber weekend offers 2016

By |2017-03-19T16:47:04+00:00November 25th, 2016|Categories: Accessories, Christmas, Hair & Beauty, Sale, Shoes, Style|Tags: , , , |

It's the busiest shopping weekend of the year so I'm just going to get straight to the point and give you my 'ultimate Guide - best cyber weekend offers 2016' post, an easy to use listing of all the best offers in one place. I've listed the best deals first. The links should take you straight through to the landing sites. Cyber weekend - Fashion offers Finery 30% off everything (ends midnight Sunday 27/11) Hush 25% off 25 items (ends Monday [...]

Great offers from Finery and Hush – it’s not even Black Friday!

By |2017-03-19T17:21:37+00:00November 24th, 2016|Categories: Christmas, Sale, Style|Tags: , , |

Hello, I don't usually post on Thursdays but I wanted to alert you to some great offers from Finery and Hush. This is not a sponsored post by the way, I just don't want you to miss out. I've also listed the brands that have gone live early with their Black Friday offers at the bottom of this post with the links and codes that you need to redeem the offer, I'll continue to update it throughout the day. But [...]

Hush Flash Sale – Be Quick

By |2019-08-09T16:50:16+01:00October 25th, 2016|Categories: Sale, Style|Tags: , , , , , |

Just a quick extra post today on the Hush Flash Sale. It starts today and finishes on Sunday 30th. It includes a number of items from both this season and last Winter, here are the things that I think are the best buys. Hush Flash Sale - last year's stock These pieces have the biggest discounts Cashmere crew neck jumper in cloud 44% off Annabelle dress/tunic in atlantic blue 45% off 2015 jumpsuit in black or burgundy 33% off - these [...]

Final reductions at Boden and Hush – my edit

By |2016-08-04T14:43:13+01:00August 1st, 2016|Categories: Sale|Tags: , , , , |

Hello - I wasn't going to post today but then the final reductions at Boden and Hush popped into my inbox. I've looked through them with a will of cast iron and these pieces are either new to the sale or further reduced. I think they are worth a second look. Boden - newly added to clearance My absolute number one is these Sienna sandals. Metallics are so easy to wear with anything that they're especially good for holiday packing. You [...]

Playing chicken with the Hush sale

By |2016-06-30T12:13:22+01:00June 29th, 2016|Categories: Retail Review, Sale|Tags: , , , , , |

As you probably know, there is 20% off at Hush until midnight (Thursday 30th June) with code SMILE, so my hunch was that the Hush sale would start on Friday, however I have now heard that it will be Tuesday 5th July. Looking through the site, many of the items are already sold out or in a low stock position. I've been through what I think are the best buys, assessed the stock levels and I'm having a little wager [...]

The high street sales & Father’s Day thoughts

By |2016-06-29T16:30:49+01:00June 17th, 2016|Categories: Family, Relationships, Sale|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

So the sales have started early. Because the weather has been bad there is a glut of clothing that retailers need to offload and temptation is everywhere. I've been through a number of stores and picked out what I think are the best bargains but before we start, let's make sure we set off on the right track. 12 things to remember when you hit the summer sales Don't forget that high summer clothing only needs to be a very small percentage of [...]

Great Boden sale buys

By |2015-12-29T22:28:56+00:00December 18th, 2015|Categories: Sale, Style|Tags: , , , |

A quick and functional post from me as the Boden sale has just gone live. A lot of the reductions seem a bit mean after all the recent discounts so it might be worth playing chicken with some of these items if they're showing good stock levels to see if they go down further over the next couple of weeks. Anyway I had a good look through the site last night before it started so that I wasn't distracted by the discounts [...]

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