From China with Love: Cut Price Fashion Review

 
I’ve shopped on ebay for years but I always used to be sceptical about buying from China. While the vast collection of eastern fashion always appealed to me I was concerned about the quality and sizing of garments and worried about items being lost or delayed in the post. Then a few months ago I spotted an owl pendant that I’d been unable to find on the high-street, at just over a pound including international shipping from China it seemed too big a bargain to pass up so I ordered it and prepared myself for a long wait. Amazingly it arrived in well under two weeks -a lot faster than the 28 day estimate. It was carefully packed in a padded envelope and the quality was on par with what I’d expect from fashion jewellery sold in the UK.

Since then I’ve purchased other jewellery, stationary, electronics and even a ball gown from China, while not every transaction has been perfect any problems I’ve had have been minimal. Recently I bought one item that arrived damaged and another that just didn’t turn up, in both cases I found the sellers very friendly, approachable and eager to help. They both acted quickly to solve the problem, offering my choice of replacement or full refund.

My latest purchases are a studded collar shirt for just under £10 and a ribbed bodycon skirt for an incredible £2.85. I was delighted when they both arrived last week within a couple of days of each other. The shirt is so pretty and versatile –I can imagine layering it under sweaters or pairing it with a simple blazer and coloured jeans. I’m really happy with the design and the quality, the chiffon fabric has just the right level of sheerness and has some weight to it so it hangs beautifully. The collar too has been embellished with high-quality riveted metal studs, I can’t imagine them coming loose or falling off with use. My only minor quibble is that despite being quite narrow at the shoulders the body of the shirt is very boxy, I’m considering slimming the sides a little for a better fit. The shirt was described as ‘one size’ and measures approximately 14’’ at the shoulders and 18’’across the body. It is 22’’ long and the sleeves are approximately 20’’. It can be found on ebay.co.uk here. 

I am equally happy with the bodycon skirt, the colour is beautifully rich and the simple design will work with everything from a blouse to a graphic tee to a sweater. The thick woven material has a really nice feel and I think the addition of the pleating detail makes the skirt look a lot more expensive than it was. The fit however highlights just how different Chinese sizes can be from western ones. Described as a size ‘S/one size’ the skirt measures a mere 10.5’’ at the waist and just over 12.5’’ at the hips, although the fabric does allow it to stretch a couple of inches this still makes it smaller than the average UK4. If you need a petite fit like me buying from China can actually really work to your advantage, but I’d still recommend checking measurements very carefully before buying or if in doubt asking the seller. If you’d like to try the skirt it can be found here.

Sale Shopping and Bargain Homewares

I've never really been a big fan of sale shopping, just looking at those rails of badly organised, jumbled clothing gives me a horrible sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I think it’s partly that I just don't have the patience required to wade through the masses of clothes looking for the best bargains although I’m sure my lack of sale shopping success isn’t helped either by the pandemonium that is the first few days of the post-Christmas sales with all their attendant pushing and shoving, clothes trampling and disgruntled screaming children –anyone who has ever dared to venture into Next on Boxing Day will know exactly what I mean.

Nowadays I avoid the first weeks of the sales completely and usually stroll in around mid-January when things are much quieter and I can browse at my leisure. This year this strategy really paid off and I found some amazing bargains that were double or even triple discounted!

 

 

My first purchase this year was this wooden Shabby Chic ‘Love’ hook to hang jewellery on. Before buying this my necklaces were in a sprawling knotted mess spilling into three separate jewellery boxes, now I’ve used it to hang my favourite pendants and beads on which keeps them tangle-free and has freed up a lot more space for other items in my jewellery box. It wasn’t a huge saving but still a bargain at £5.

While browsing online I also found this very elegant voile and crystal light shade from Argos, I think it looks much more expensive than its £9.99 price tag. It’s still available here but unfortunately no longer on sale.

Last but not least of the homewares (and not technically a sale item) is this wooden ampersand. I was in Primark exchanging an unwanted Christmas gift when I spotted it, I love freestanding letters and symbols and after looking at similar items for a lot more I couldn’t believe it when I learnt this was only £4 full price! I’m not keen on the matt black finish though so I will be customising it in some way very soon.

Also spotted during my inaugural trip to Primark were these adorable short pyjamas. In the past Primark sizing has started at an 8 so I was pleased to see they’ve now added a 6 to their range, although I did find that while the shorts fitted me perfectly the top was verrry long in the body so despite the small size the fit wasn’t very petite-friendly, nevertheless I thought they were just too cute to resist so I added them to my basket, and as an extra bonus when I got to the till I found they had been marked down to a ridiculously cheap £4.50!  

Next I popped into Miss Selfridge –who had the best organised sale section I’ve seen for ages combined with some fantastic reductions! I chose these light beige chinos (£15, reduced from £38) that I thought would be the perfect spring/summer transitional piece. Being chronically short-of-leg I wasn’t sure I’d be able to carry this type of trousers off but I found by cuffing them and adding heels they actually looked ok. I loved the fact they also came with a great quality tan belt that in my opinion would have justified the price on its own. Available here online.

Lipsy has always been one of my go-to shops for pretty evening dresses, over the past couple of seasons I've noticed they've started to add more wearable daytime pieces too. I think these shorts are the perfect blend of both, paired with a sparkly top, a clutch and heels they’ll work for a night out, equally I can also see me wearing them with a vest and sandals during the day. I picked these up for half of the original price- £17.50.  

Finally although I live in heels I do occasionally see a pair of flats I really like, and these Ravel patent ballet pumps immediately caught my eye. I thought the shape was really delicate and flattering and the patent finish and bow detail gave them a chic, Audrey Hepburn-esque vibe. I’ve always been a fan of ravel shoes since they had high street stores so I was excited to find something from them that I knew would be great quality for only £17!

Purchases made: 7 

Money saved: £££   

Sale success at last: Priceless!