Stylish Dressing For Back To School & The School Run From F&F

 I'm really excited to have collaborated with  F&F at Tesco again, and where we are given the opportunity to review items from their Back to School  range. We have thus far been super impressed with the school wear range from Tesco and again the quality and value for money is second to none. With Miss. Poppins growing at quite some rate, it can be challenging to find suitable sizes for her, though Tesco offered items in sizes that fit her really well. We always buy a 'spare' pair of shoes for the new school year in case of any eventuality and she absolutely loved a F&F pair of school shoes so we couldn't help but try them out. At only £10 they offer real value for money too, with a fashionable wedge heel great for her, and also very practical looking for me.

As well as the shoes, which I have a feeling shall become the 'main' pair, we opted to try out a pair of cotton rich navy cycling shorts. These come in a 2 pack, and are perfect for P.E. at school. She said they felt super soft on, and of a very high quality. She also tried out the girls jersey zip through hoodie. As Miss Poppins is hoping to join many sporty groups at school - this really is a perfect buy. Even I had a little try on and it really is super comfy.

Next it was Master Poppins' turn and for him we chose some staple items - two sweatshirts, including one from their basics range and which I have to say for £2 is not bad at all. The two pack sets of shirts, the long sleeve set and short sleeve set are indeed as it says on the label, easy to iron, good quality and very smart!

The 2 pack school shorts have special dirt defence, adjustable waists which are very handy for my skinny minny  - I think he looks very preppy!

His school trousers, with Teflon fabric protector at just £3.50 are a great value choice, and the 5pk of fresh feel ankle socks I think are just the cutest!

We have all been very impressed and shall certainly be going back to Tesco for any other back to school items needed.

 Prices: (can be dependent on sizes)

1x Basic Sweatshirt - £2

1x Unixsex School Sweatshirt - £4

1x School Trousers - £3.50

1x 2pk School Shorts - £5.50 (Sale)

1x 5pk Ankle Socks - £4

1x 5pk Sports Socks - £1.50

1x 2pk S/S School Shirts - £4

1x 2pk L/S School Shirts - £4.50

1x School Hoodie - £6

1x 2pk Cycle Shorts - £5

1x School Shoes - £10

So eleven pieces of school wear items for the grand total of £50. I think Tesco offer great value for money in their back to school range, and they really are quality items too.

The team at F&F also very kindly offered an outfit for myself to test out and wear on the school run. Being the fashion loving shopaholic I am, I couldn't wait to get browsing! Being somewhat of a thrifty shopper I headed straight over to their sale and found some lovely items I thought perfect for drop off. Early September can still be warm (here's hoping) so I couldn't resist the little jazzy denim skirt! The pretty pink crochet detail cardigan is so me and the camisole a perfect staple to go with many outfits. With some simple canvas pumps I think a cute little outfit to maybe head off and grab a coffee with one of the school mums. 

Skirt - £8 (Sale)

Cardigan - £8 (Sale)

Camisole - £3    

Again, great value for money and when the items arrived I was really impressed with the quality. Well I couldn't leave it there could I, so I popped these in the basket too - again two items from the sale being the jeggins and shirt. I thought a lovely outfit to wear on cooler days. I love the slogan snood and a perfect scarf for between the seasons.   

Jeggins - £5 (Sale)

Polka Dot Shirt - £7 (Sale)  

Snood - £5

On my more comfy days I loved these on trend aztec pants - they really are so comfy and having a hint of pink right up my street. A pretty lacy waistcoat creats a very relaxed feel and they go perfectly with the camisole too.

Aztec Pants - £6 (Sale) 

Camisole - £3 (As Before)

Waistcoat - £7 (Sale)

So some great items there, 8 items, and 3 outfits for just less than £50 - probably more than 3 outfits in fact as you could mix and match. F&F I occasionally find tend to be quite a generous fitting so a couple of these items had to be returned and different sizes purchased, and I have to say the customer service was ace!

As I was in a spending mood and have this 'big' birthday in less days than I care to think about, I thought I'd treat myself to something to wear on the day. Again I headed to the sales and fell in love with an outfit that cost me less than £20! I thought I could also perhaps incorporate the camisole.

Oh I just love it and it fits perfectly - I was thinking I could wear tights if a cold day and go bare legged with some vintage style sandals if a little warmer. The waterfall jacket is just lovely and I think shall go with many items. Of course I couldn't resist a little try on ;) The cute sunshine bag is also a F&F item and was a gift from the children for Mother's Day.

  

Stripe Jacket - £10 (Sale)

Stripe Shorts - £7 (Sale)

Camisole - £3 (As Before)

 So there we, are a very Tesco-tastic post, some super items from F&F and I can't wait to see what new ranges they bring out. Whats so great about ordering is as I have discovered, if you don't want to wait in, with click and collect you can pick up your order from your chosen store for free! And, if you order before 3pm, you could collect it the next day! So a really good service too :) As for me, I have to be careful I don't get to click happy - as I could spend a small fortune - at least for now, my wardrobe is looking much prettier :) 

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Disclosure: F&F at Tesco contacted me to be involved in their 'back to school' campaign. We were provided with vouchers for schoolwear and a school run outfit for the purposes of this review post. Some items I purchased myself. All words and opinions my own.

Floral Bargains

The title of this post should really be Home Bargains as indeed this is where I found a couple of pretty floral treats the other day. I just love stumbling on floraly bargains from there and couldn't resist these. I have become bit of a hoarder of doormats and always like to have a brand new one hidden away when an old one has seen better days. Oh, how I fell in love with this floral rose one and a bargaintastic £2.99.

It looked like it was the last one on the shelf so I quickly picked it up, and claimed it as my own! How delighted was I to then stumble across these pretty floral hand towels, again at only £2.99 each. I just loved the white floral one and thought very Cath Kidston looking...

 
The blue hand towel I thought very Pip Studio esque, so I quickly grabbed one of those too. I shall certainly be going back to Home Bargains for the larger floral bath towels and again a very reasonable £5.99 for those.

I couldn't wait to get them in their rightful place at home and there was certainly one member of the family who felt right at home on the floral mat!

And the towels look just perfect in the bathroom, creating that lovely vintage look I love so much...

So, next time you pop into Home Bargains if you have one near you, you must check out the florals, and having purchased my three cheery finds for less than £10, I was delighted!

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C.P. Hart ~ The Perfect Bathroom Challenge - Update

Quick update from the team at C.P. Hart, one of the UK's leading bathroom retailers and suppliers of bespoke and luxury bathrooms. They challenged me to design my perfect bathroom and having set up my pinterest board, and based on a blank canvas of one of C. P. Hart's bathroom suites, my aim was to design a bathroom I could relax and unwind in. The winning design ~ as judged by the team at C.P. Hart, would be rendered into a 3D image, featured on the website and included in the 2014 brochure. C.P. Hart, who have some inspiring bathroom design ideas loved my vintage look, in fact mine was the only vintage style design offering, but perhaps was just not commercial enough to be a leading design to front their brand. C.P. Hart are indeed an innovative bathroom retailer who are the front runners when it comes to designing some stunning modern bathrooms so probably my vintage style bathroom didn't quite have that contemporary feel and look to be a 'showcase' design. My 'Perfect Bathroom' pinterest board was definitely more old school, than new school and I just can't help but be inspired by all things old and charming...

(Image courtesy of housetohome)

 (Image courtesy of thevintagehome)

(Image courtesy of housetohome)

(Image courtesy of housetohome)

In fact, I like things so vintage-esque in my bathroom, I'd of loved to have bathed the children in one of these when they were younger ;)

 A bathroom for me is that special haven to go and relax in - to almost get into a state of meditation and to let ones thoughts wander off. The best environment for me to do so in, would have to be somewhere that had a feel of days gone by, that had a charming and old fashioned feel to it. So, I would always try to re-create that look and hopefully capture the 'vintage' mood. I do like a bit of modern of course, and occasionally I wish for a wet room look, a bit like this design from C.P. Hart themselves.

  

Modern indeed, but also very chic. We could get all the family done in one go in there ;) However for now, I think I'll stick with my old fashioned styling as it seems is a look I just can't quite give up!

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