Small Matalan Haul

Hey Ladies! I hope you've had a lovely weekend. My boyfriend and I have been so lazy it's unreal but I've loved being cosy on the sofa, backing cakes and watching rubbish TV. I caught up with the last series of TOWIE today so I'm prepared for the new series starting tonight. Although the cast are some of the most irritating people ever I just can't help but find myself being addicted to it. Anyway, enough rambling, I'm going off the point of this post here. Whoops.

So if you have read my blog from the very beginning you might know that I am a huge lover of Matalan. I realise it might seem random and not the most obvious choice for clothing and accessories but I promise you when I say, they have some amazing on-trend pieces every season. I would probably class Matalan in the same category as H&M - somewhere I can go to grab a few on-trend pieces each season without breaking the bank. They stock everything from clothing to accessories, shoes and underwear so pretty much everything us girls need when having a good old shopping spree. The lovely home ware section is an added bonus too if your into a bit of interior design like me.

With this being said I thought I would show you the things I picked up on my most recent trip to Matalan. I didn't get too much as mum was treating me and I didn't want to push my luck haha. As I'm jobless at the moment my lovely mum said she would buy me a few bits and bobs to get my Autumn wardrobe a bit more up to date. How nice of her? Anyway, as I'm sure you can already see from the photos I managed to get myself a dipped hem top, a jumper, pencil dress, two pairs of shoes and some earrings. I got the pencil dress to wear to an interview I had last week and although it looks fairly boring on it's own, it looked lovely paired with a patent black waist belt, tights and heels. I felt rather ladylike I must admitt. If you work in an office I would really recommend taking a look at Matalan's work wear range as each time I pop in they have a lovely selection and everything is so affordable. I think this dress was less than £20 and as it's such a classic piece it can be worn over and over again with different accessories. 

So after I'd picked out the sensible work wear I then had a look at the rest of their new Autumn collection. They had everything from chunky knits to chelsea boots and I have to say I was very impressed. To be honest, if I wasn't trying to reign in my spending I could of gone absolutely wild. In the end I picked out this bright orange jumper and khaki dipped hem t-shirt. I loved both of these pieces as soon as I saw them and thought they would be perfect for the A/W. The jumper came in loads of different colours but this orange shade instantly jumped out at me as I think it will brighten up my otherwise neutral autumn wardrobe nicely. I've also been a big fan of the dipped-hem trend this year and think this khaki embellished t-shirt will look perfect under my leather jacket. 

As for the shoes I picked up, I love them both. Whenever I go shopping at Matalan I'm always amazed by how on-trend their shoes and accessories are. They always have a huge selection of shoes and this season is no exception. As I'm sure you will all know, studded slipper shoes have been all over the place lately and these ones were a bargain at £12.00. I've seen similar ones in Topshop for more than double the price so I was very happy to get my hands on these. Studs are everywhere at the minute so I'm happy to have some in my life. I then spotted these lovely deep purple wedge boots and although they weren't an essential, I just had to have them. I mean I don't need to explain why, just look at them, gorgeous! I featured them in this OOTD post here if you want to see how I wore them. As well as the shoes, Matalan's jewellery range is absolutely fantastic as it's created by the same people who make the 'Freedom' range at Topshop. I never buy jewellery from Topshop anymore, I just don't see the point when Matalan have exactly the same pieces for a fraction of the price. I picked up these cute spike earrings to wear out with my friends last weekend and they looked fab!

I've included a couple of photos at the end of me wearing my new Jumper and Pencil Dress lately. By the way, there isn't a stain on the dress - it's a dirty mirror haha! You can find most of the things I have mentioned on their website here.

So there we have it, a few things I've added to my wardrobe of late. Do you ever shop in Matalan? Do you love it as much as me?

Lots of Love,

Shopaholic Problems | Collective Haul

Caudalie Cleansing Water

Palmers Cocoa Moisturizing Body Oil

Garnier Fructis Pure Volume Dry Shampoo

Schwartzcopf Ultimate Repair Treatment Mousse

OPI Mauving to Manitoba

The Body Shop Body Butters - Strawberry & Mango

Revlon 'Berry Haute' Lipstick

Ankle Boots - Dotti

Floral Peplum Top - River Island

Dipped Hem Aztec Top - Cotton On

Double Chain Spike Necklace - Diva

Spiked Collar Necklace - Dotti

Spike Double Ring - Lovisa

Hey Ladies! I hope you are all well. I haven't posted a haul for a while so I thought I would show you some of the things I have been buying over the past few weeks. I bought some of these things with my birthday money and a few of the others were gifts. I went to Brisbane a few weeks back so my boyfriend treat me to this gorgeous double ring from an amazing jewellery shop called Lovisa. I walked into the shop and could of bought everything in there - there was four walls covered from top to bottom in amazingly gorgeous jewellery *heaven*. As you can probably tell from the jewellery I have accumulated, I am loving spikes at the moment. Anything spiked is a winner for me and I must get my hands on a pair of spiked shoes ASAP. 

I am also loving the peplum and dipped hem trends that have been popping up everywhere so I decided to treat myself to these two tops. I bought the RI one with my birthday money and I love it. It is such a flattering shape and can be dressed up or down which is always a bonus. I will be wearing it this weekend as I'm going to Brisbane (again!) so look out for an outfit post featuring it. As for the dipped hem top, I loved it as soon as I saw it. I'm a bit mad on aztec print so it instantly caught my eye. I bought it from an Australian shop called Cotton On which sells really affordable and on-trend clothing and accessories. This top only cost me around £17.00 so I thought it was quite the bargain. I will also be wearing this at the weekend so hopefully I will get some pictures for an outfit post. 

I have also bought a few random beauty products lately that I didn't really need but couldn't resist anyway. My boyfriend bought me the body butters and Caudalie cleansing water as part of my birthday present and I bought everything else when I was in Brisbane or shopping at the supermarket haha. Is it just me that is always attracted to the 'toiletries' isle in supermarkets? Anyway, look out for reviews on all of these products as I have been really enjoying using them.

Now my absolute favourite thing from this bunch has to be these gorgeous ankle boots. I have wanted some boots like this for such a long time so when I spotted these whilst shopping in Brisbane, I just had to have them. Me and the boy went half's on them (he's a good egg!) so I didn't pay too much and I just know I will get so much wear out of them in Autumn/Winter. They will go with almost anything! Yey!!

So there we have it, my shopaholic tendencies got the better of me again. I will probably buy more in Brisbane this weekend - I just can't resist. I may as well make the most of it while I can though as I will be going on a strict spending ban when I return to the UK. Boo.

Have you treat yourself to anything recently?

Lots of Love,