Summer Haul

I love shopping and everything about it. I will put up with aching feet, rooting through mounds of messy clothes and queuing in hideously long lines that trail three times round the store, but one thing I cannot stand is rude staff. 

You know it really ruins my day when I am served by someone who is either: not paying you any attention, talking to other staff members when they're meant to be serving you, giving you the look or just being outright nasty when you ask them a simple question. Poor customer service puts me off shopping in shops, especially at makeup counters. 

But then again, not all shop assistants are horrible; I've been served by some really nice people in shops before. I love it when I go to pay at the till and the shop assistant is like "Oh! I love this top it's one of my favourites!" or when they go out of their way to help you, checking the stock room or ringing round other stores for that pair of shoes you need to have.

So this post is dedicated to YOU nice shop assistants who have made me buy more things with your charming smiles and your courteous compliments!

I've never really liked Republic that much because I never felt like their designs were original. I'd go in Republic and be browsing through rails and rails of clothes to find that it was exactly the same stock as what Topshop was selling last season, seriously Republic if I'd wanted that stuff I would have bought it from Topshop when they were selling it?! So I wasn't surprised when they went into administration.

But ever since they went into administration I've been looking in there more because they are often offering large discounts to try shift the stock they've already bought for summer, and to my surprise a lot of the stuff was actually very nice and on top of that quite cheap compared to other shops! 

Republic Shorts £24 (I think)

The first thing I bought from there were these slightly acid wash denim shorts. They are actually made by Glamorous, a brand that Republic have recently started selling but they really stood out to me because of the unusual wash and the leather detailing inside the front to pockets and one back pocket. These shorts are very different from any I own and I know that these will be a summer staple!

Republic Jumper originally £20 but  had 20% off making it £16.

The second thing I bought was this beautiful white cropped jumper. I've seen a lot of white mesh tops online but I don't think I would ever be confident enough to wear one of those, so this is a safer more wearable option. The holey (is holey even a word?) knit makes it a lightweight jumper that is perfect for the English summer or breezy evening on holiday abroad, but I can also see myself layering next year at sixth form during the winter.

New Look Cami's £9.99 each

The next place I went was New Look and as you can see I went cami crazy! The truth is that I am one of those people that when I find something I like I buy it in every colour. I picked up a neon yellow, neon orange and then a pink/nude. I love all three colours and they were only £9.99 and I cheekily used my sister's student discount so they were significantly cheaper than the ones Topshop are selling. Plus they are the perfect length, flowing over your stomach to hide the fact that you've eaten one too many ice creams!

Primark Shorts £5

When I saw these shorts in Primark I knew I'd hit the jackpot, especially when I saw they were only £5, yes £5! In the picture they do look quite short but I tried them on in the changing rooms and luckily there is no cheek exposure! Also if you're not really a fan of black, don't worry because Primark are selling these in every colour of the rainbow so no one has to miss out. But one thing I would say is that you need to try them on because I had to go a size down in these shorts and you don't want them falling.

Topshop Jacket reduced to £30 from £60 in the sale.

Finally is this Topshop jacket that I've wanted for months, every time I saw it in store I'd have to go over and stroke it like a cat, telling it that one day it would be mine and I'd look after it forever and ever, well when I got my hand on £60 that was... 

Anyway I went into Topshop last week when the sale had just started and while casually browsing through rails and rails of junk, I saw it. My baby. I quickly ran over and frantically started checking the labels looking for my size, and there it was: the last size 8. I looked at the label fearing it would have only been reduced to £59 or something ridiculous, but much to my surprise and delight it had 50% off and it was now £30! On top I got student discount so it was only £27 instead of the original £60 I was going to pay for it. Luck was really on my side that day as we just made the last bus, oh yeah!

A lot of people hate sales but I love them, I cannot tell you how many nice necklaces I've found in the Topshop sale for £2.50 instead of £22, all the rooting and annoying shop assistants is worth it for that moment when you find a bargain and I'd love to know what is the best bargain you've ever found in the sale is.

Eleanor xx