C'mon deliver the parcel, the sooner the better, Mr Postman

I wrote about Ebay in a post a while ago and here's a little update on my recent Ebay shenanigans.

I ordered a few things from it, and have been waiting for a bag for almost 20 days, 20 days!!!!! I know, it's coming from China, but seriously. I NEED it. I was trying to explain to the boyf what it's like for a girl to get a new bag….

He loves gadgets and stuff! I love bags. When he orders a new camera, he get's all excited about playing with it… trying out all the different exposures, and different lenses. Well, I'm like that when I order stuff off the internet, I get very excited about receiving it - especially when it's a new gorgeous bag!

I just want to get everything out of my old bag and transfer it all (even old receipts, as you can imagine I don't keep my bag spotless) into my new bag. It must sound sad to a guy, but to us girls it feels amazing, I want to see how many secret pockets it has… if it has a pocket for my phone, another pocket for my Oyster Card, and…well, you get my drift.

So, I've been waiting 20 days for my new bag to arrive, and everytime I go check the post and it's not there I just get angrier and angrier and start resenting my old bag even more, it must really hate me. Oh well, it wouldn't understand, it is a bag after all ;).

I also ordered 2 dresses, a plain grey one which was really lovely and fitted perfectly and looks fab….

And, a black and grey dress with a skull print on the front (very cool) BUT when it arrived it looked tiny. And it is! It's like a tank top, a very tight tank top. In the description it said "one size fits all" really? One size fits who exactly? The girl in the picture was quite small to be fair, but the dress looked a little on the big side, so why doesn't it fit me? It's not even a dress on me! To be honest it's hardly a top. Gutted because it's ace!

As you can see, it's a tight tank top on me, and a dress on her. Blah!

I'm not trying to put you off Ebay because it's great and I love it! As my mum used to say, have fun but be careful.

Toodles

Amy xx

Allo, Allo, Allo

I went to the Markets on and around Brick Lane (London) yesterday. I wasn't expecting it to be so big!! I nearly had a shopping swoon.


I picked up a few bargains, a cute red owl print dress for just £3, and a pink checked western (chickabilly) shirt for £2. I know… bargain or what? I just wish I'd had more money - I could have bought something on every stall.

In my last blog I spoke about going vintage with military jackets, well I found loads yesterday, and they're cheap, so get down there and get one!

We came across some great vintage police jackets. The BF got a 1960's police inspector's tailored jacket - like new for £35. Cue the taunting ' pig, rozzer, gavver' etc. BF loved it, natch.


The stall holders themselves are good for a laugh, looking like they'd just jumped out of an episode of Nathan Barley. Seriously, if you walk around wearing a pink and green Lacoste shell suit jacket and jeans with one leg rolled up revealing your PacMan tattoo, you really need to have a word with yourself.

The stalls are really varied, some people are selling handmade jewelery, hair accessories, paintings and artwork…. others are selling vintage and new clothes, shoes and bags!

And there's even little jumble bits, so you can pick up an old lens for your camera or some 1970's vinyl.

If you get there early enough, Brick Lane is lined with people selling stuff out of their suitcases, whether it's handmade stuff or just stuff they've found at the back of the their wardrobes. Generally, there is lots of stuff. Did I mention the stuff?


Amy's guide to a Sunday shopping fix….

Orange Star - Cheshire Street. Great little market, stalls of random bits - 5 lighters for 10p, Duracell batteries etc - you know the thing, but there's also some great stuff to be found and it is lined with fab little boutiques.

Blue Star - Vintage shop Rokit. One word, amazing. Check it out.

Pink Star - market just along from 93 Feet East that is like a TARDIS - go in - it's massive and got some really cute stalls in this one, you can get yourself a real bargain (it's where I got my sub £5 pieces).

Green Star - Upstairs Vintage market! It's seriously big, so give yourself a while to check this bad boy out.

Yellow Star - Old Spitalfields market, again this is huge and packed so brace yourself. It's a bit more touristy and got more hand made designery stalls, but it is worth a visit just for the atmosphere.

Oh yeah - and it's Brick Lane, so you're never more than a sniff away from the tantalising smell of food, with stalls everywhere selling anything from Bangladeshi curries to Mexican grilled steak sandwiches and pretty much everything in between.

Amy xx

SIR, YES SIR!

Military boots have been on the scene for a while now, and I still don't own a pair!

STOP MOANING CORPORAL AND GIVE ME 10!!!!!

Jeez.. I only mentioned it! Anyway, they are going to be huge this Autumn and Winter so grab yourself a decent pair for the cold months ahead.

And whilst your at it, pair them up with a military jacket! You can buy them from everywhere at the moment.... Asos, Topshop, etc. are selling them, and it seems many girls are buying them brand new because you can get them in funky colours.

But, hey... get some balls and go vintage!

I was in a vintage store the other day and they have some ace ones, proper military. You can also find them in markets, and on ebay.














Like Liam Gallager.


I know, they come in quite boring colours, but we can make them look girly.... wear a bright coloured scarf or put a little cute brooch on it.

Come on girls, we can definitely pull them off!

STOP WRITING AND GET MARCHING CORPORAL!!! 1-2-3-4!!!

Life on the frontline of shopping is tough!

Amy xx

Bidding my life away.

I've only recently discovered the joys of Ebay and it has very quickly become a big part of my life.

I really enjoy going on and picking up a last minute bargain (who doesn't?), and I love the fact that you can do all this in your pyjamas at 3 in the morning, if that's your thing.

Talking of whether or not it is 'your thing', I was on last night, looking at shoes when I came across a pair of ballet pumps described specifically as 'old and smelly'. I was intrigued, so had to find out more... CLICK...












They did indeed look trashed, but they had 3 bids on them! It got me thinking... who would bid or even want to spend money on someone's old smelly shoes?

So I did a search... CLICK... and found loads! Must be a foot fetish thing, well each to their own, I won't be buying someone else's trashed smelly shoes.

Unexpected upshot of this bit of curiosity is that Ebay now thinks I'm some kind of weirdo and keeps recommending similar stinky listings.

Seriously though, Ebay is great for fashion if you're on a budget or not (just don't get into a bidding war) and the vintage selection is just to die for.

You can even pick up some fab designer pieces for pennies!

Amy's Ebay tips:
Read the listing carefully.
If it sounds too good to be true, it's probably a fake.
Beware second hand listings that use catalogue images - what are they hiding?
If you are worried or suspicious about the listing, check out the seller's feedback - anything less than 95% positive is generally a no-no for me.
Check the postage! A 99p dress is not such a bargain when you add on £6.99 postage and packing.

Amazing.

Amy xx

Chickabilly

I've noticed the rockabilly style is still going strong! Even I've started to put a bit into my outfits.

You don't have to be covered in tattoos or have wild hair to pull it off. All you need is some jeans, a headband, a shirt and you're on your way.

Roll your jeans up so they sit around your ankles (and so you can see your new anklet, of course)

Get a vintage embroidered western style shirt, wear it down or tie it around your waist. There's loads of them on Ebay, in vintage stores or even on the Oxfam website.

Get a handkerchief and wrap it around your head and tie it in a bow.


Right, now shoes are always hard to finish off any outfit, you can just wear some canvas pumps, but to make it a little more rock n roll try working your new style with some brogues, or Dr Martens and Bob's your mother's brother.

Aygness Deyn working the Chickabilly look


Amy xx