Haul | Primark, Topshop, River Island, Garage & Missguided!

From Top to Bottom -

Blazer - Primark

Jumper - Primark

Dress - River Island
Crop Top - Missguided

 Skater Skirt - Topshop | Pencil Skirt - Primark

Skater Dress - Primark | Blouse - Primark

Shoe Boots - Garage

Ballet Shoes - Primark

Clutch Bag - Primark

Hi Ladies! I haven't done a haul post for a while now so I thought it was about time I shared some of my recent purchases with you all. I'd just like to point out I didn't buy all of this at once, probably over the past couple of weeks or so. As soon as I found out I'd landed myself a job I just had to treat myself so I bought the River Island dress and Garage shoes that are featured in my last post here and I am in love with the both. It was nice to finally be able to buy a nice new outfit and not feel guilty about it. I also had to get myself some new work wear which is the reason behind my other purchases. The good thing about my new job is that their isn't a strict dress code so even though we have to look smart we can pretty much wear whatever we want. We also have 'dress down Fridays' where we can wear casual clothes and 'fashionable' clothes so this obviously called for a few new bits and bobs for my wardrobe.

As you can see I bought myself a coupe of black skirts as they will go with absolutely everything, a sheer blouse that I LOVE, a cute little skater dress and a blazer. Apart from the skater skirt which is from Topshop, all of these items are from Primark. The Primark in Newcastle city centre was being refurbished over the summer while I was in Australia but as I didn't have a job I couldn't bare the thought of going in there without any money. However, as soon as I got the call telling me I'd got the job, one of the first thing on my to-do's list was going for a trip to Primark. All I can say is oh my goodness, Primark have UPPED THEIR GAME! I literally wanted everything but as I haven't actually been paid yet I had to reign it in and stick to the 'essentials' - we'll call them that so I feel better about my shopaholic ways.

As for 'unessentials', I bought myself this cute little missguided studded cropped top a few weeks ago before I even found out I had a job. Tut, tut, slap on the wrist for me. I do love it though and think it will look super cute with a high-waisted skirt. Continuing the studded theme I bought some ballet pumps to wear for work that are embellished with a bow and studs and I also bought this studded clutch bag for my friend Debra's birthday. I really wanted to buy one for myself too but I have one almost identical in black so I thought buying another while I'm skint might be a teeny bit greedy. I do love it though so I might re-consider this 8). 

So there we go, all the lovely clothing and accessories I have been buying lately. I was rather gutted last week as after buying all this I found out I have a £250 bill to pay and have almost NO money left. Why do things like that always happen at the most inconvenient of times? Ah well, it's a good job I'm getting paid at the end of this month. Bring it on.

Have you bought yourself anything nice lately? 

Lots of Love,

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,