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2006 has been a really wild year for me, both on this blog and in my offline life.
I launched The Bargain Queen on February 22nd, as a hobby to keep me sane while I was on extended sick leave. I figured it would be a good antidote to all the serious I.T. stuff I do at work: something girly and fun and frivolous to occupy my spare time. It’s turned into much, much more than that…
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Something new for the New Year — each week, I’ll post the best money-saving articles I’ve found online. Here’s my picks for the last week:
Beauty beat >> cheap thrills
Cheap Australian beauty products that work great… for anyone who’s run out of money over Christmas but still wants to look pretty.
Jonk’s Bargains
A bargain shopping directory for Australian readers.
Also, if you’re interested in fashion and technology, head over to Verbal Croquis and read Zoe’s great post, fashion invades Teh Geekosphere. Apparently not all geeky males are happy to have attractive, stylish female company in ‘their’ interweb. (Spoilsports!) Zoe’s response talks about how technology supports individual style and how that’s re-shaping the fashion industry. Interesting stuff!
This is what I recently picked up on a thrift-shopping outing for only $50:
On the left-hand side, from top to bottom:
On the right-hand side, from top to bottom:
Please excuse the poor quality photo. Everything’s much cuter in real life, I just didn’t have time to carefully photograph them all.
I recently bought these two skirts on eBay for $18 plus delivery (a little over $25 all up).
This skirt is by Tigerlily. I picked it up in as-new condition on eBay for only $13! It’s made from a silky cotton-blend fabric and hangs really nicely. It’s very lightweight and breathable — perfect for the hot Australian summer. It’s longer than it looks in the pic and the hem sits just below the knee.
Excuse the poor photo of this skirt. It’s a black cotton skirt that originally came from Sportsgirl. It cost me $5 on eBay. It’s also knee-length.
I love these eBay bargains!
Boxing Day is the start of the big post-Christmas bargain shopping season in Australia. To get you in the mood for bargain hunting, here’s one of my recent finds.
I bought these two from David Jones at the very start of the Boxing Day sale, i.e. Christmas Eve (when the staff mark down all the merchandise).
The ones on the right are from Via Spiga. They were AU$150, marked down from AU$300. They have a small kitten heel which you can’t see in the pic. The slim cut and high vamp make my feet look positively dainty in them!
The ones on the right are Kenneth Cole Reaction. They were AU$109, down from AU$150. They’re surprisingly comfortable given the high (for me) wedge heel that’s just visible in the picture. I wore them for hours at Christmas lunch yesterday and they barely hurt at all.
Even on sale they’re not the cheapest around, but good-quality, well-made shoes are an investment worth making — just ask The Manolo.
Have you ever wondered how a whole store of merchandise is magically marked down by the time the sales start, early in the morning on the day after Christmas?
A lot of stores get their staff to re-price items late on Christmas Eve, i.e. today.
So if you’ve been lusting after something that’s a fraction too expensive, go take a look an hour before closing time. It might just be discounted already!
Looking for some entertainment?
I’ve just created a new page with a list of fantastic blogs. It’s an eclectic mix, with everything from fashion & beauty to home improvement; copy-writing to indie music. They range from quirky-but-charming amateur efforts to seriously informative pro blogs. The one thing they all have in common is a royal endorsement from The Bargain Queen: I read them, I love them, and I think you might too.
So, get a head start on the new year and find some great new blogs to keep you entertained for the next 12 months!
(I confess, it’s really my long-and-unruly blogroll made into a neat, usable page with helpful descriptions of every blog. Should I categorise them as well? Let me know what you think.)
PS: The Top 10 Australian fashion and shopping blogs are also all worth a read.
Fashion and style are completely different concepts, and without knowing it, most people gravitate towards one or the other. People who are into fashion are fashionable or trendy; people who are into style are stylish.
You can be fashionable, or you can be stylish, but you can’t be both.
So which are you: trendy or stylish?
I just got my laptop back with a new hard drive installed, so I’m finally back online.
Today I’m catching up on email and responding to comments; tomorrow it’s blogging as usual. See you then!
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...for fabulous things at reasonable prices:
