Just Popping By!

Morning Folks!

Just a quickie, I had to tell you about my fab new slippers.

After spending 12 hours a day in heels, there is nothing I like better than kicking off my shoes and putting on my slippers when I get home.

I like a slipper that stays on my foot and for the last few years have been wearing ballerina pumps style slippers that i pick up for £5-6 a couple of times a year.

I have a tendancy to wear slippers outside, grab some shopping from the car, take out the rubbish etc and so my slippers do not last long.

So this week I changed style and bought these cuties from M&S

They look super on, very elegant, and are really comfy.

I also like the proper sole, which means I can pop outside without fear of risking my footwear. The downfall of it's predecessors.

Of course this means The Chap wants to know if I will now be taking out the rubbish?

lol

Frugally yours

Abigail

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Ummmm, I Did Buy Them.

Firstly Hello and Welcome to my new follower. I cannot see a new name on the list of members. So please leave a comment to say Howdy! Thanks for visiting. x

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A theory suggests that a woman’s hemline rises and falls according to stock prices. Therefore, in good economic times we get miniskirts (60s) and during periods of recession hemlines drop to the floor (70s).

If this was the case, then I would currently be walking around the office with a 20ft train to my suit!

I have new theory, heels drop in height according to one’s age and experience

In my teens and twenties I tottered along in 6 inch heels and platforms (if appropriate) bearing burning soles and stiff calves in the pursuit of elegance and high fashion.

I also of course wore black velvet hot pants. (Oh the naivety and arrogance of youth!)

Earlier this week, I mentioned my work shoes were walking their way to the great fashion catwalk in the sky. I measured them, they are 3 inches high and for the last 12 months have been a little uncomfortable by the end of the day.

I might even have said “Ahhhhh” as I kicked them off in the evening.

Yesterday I found them walking their way outside to the bin, I think they took offence when The Chap said “Have you taken your shoes off?” whilst gagging the other night in the lounge.

Normally, of course I smell sweetly of purity, virtue, and rose petals. My feet, have other ideas…

So today, after trying on the same pair of shoes in Wallis for 3 days and egged on by a couple of site Visitors (I blame you Out Of My Window & Amanda) I decided to buy them.

They were perfect for my needs, under £30 and smart.

I also adored the little heel with the large surface area.

As I get older, I am really chasing comfort in work attire and the cobbled streets around our offices coupled with the 15min walk to the town centre did mean I wanted to be at ease during the stroll. 

High heels and stilettos do not promote this. Plus after breaking my kneecap 3 years ago, I get nervous about falling and causing more damage.

It appears that growing up for me these days does not mean getting taller but getting shorter and as I get older more experienced, my car insurance is not the only thing reducing in size....my heels are as well!

I am terribly concerned that another few years and I will be walking around in flat brogues and elastic waisted skirts! Lol

On a quick aside, there are a few good deals around this week. WH Smiths are giving away free sweets everyday with O2, this week our office have enjoyed Moshi Monsters, Fruit Shoot Jellies, and Guzzle Puzzles as we cold called our way through the county.

And finally, Tesco have a new voucher scheme on. I am not a huge fan of pyrex cooking dishes. I find them a little ugly, but I do really fancy the Cast Iron casserole dish for £29.99 with 10 stickers. Each sticker is given out with a spend of £20. So you need to spend £200 before you can buy the pot for another £29.99. That is an expensive way to buy a casserole dish!

However, if you do shop at Tesco this could be a month’s shopping for a family, plus of course you get vouchers with petrol purchases too.

I have as always put a call out to family and friends. So far I have 2 stickers, but my mum has secured another 5 today for me.

I think Tesco have now wised up to the fact vouchers are being traded, which is possibly why they have changed from vouchers to stickers. But, I have managed to peel them off when our office cleaner gave me one yesterday. I also checked the terms and whilst they cannot be sold there is no mention that they cannot be gifted to a family member or friend.

Frugally yours

Abigail

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Look At What I Did Not Buy.

These are my work shoes, and they smell.

They smell really bad!

I have been wearing them for about a year, 12 hours a day, 5 days per week. The insides are worn and I keep having to dig out plastic bits from inside of the heel.

Truth be told, they have not been the most comfortable of work shoes as they are slightly too large and the left shoe tends to flop off a bit if you walk into town.

I once went out to visit a client and walked to the top of the stairs only to have the shoe fall off and clatter to the bottom. That was a bit embarrassing.

So I have been keeping a weather eye open for a new pair. I bought these off Ebay, but I think I prefer to try shoes on.

I found the perfect pair today in Wallis for £29.95. Low heel with patent toes and in black. These are the same pair but in brown / black.

http://www.wallis.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?beginIndex=1&viewAllFlag=&catalogId=33058&storeId=12557&productId=8744256&langId=-1&sort_field=Relevance&categoryId=221016&parent_categoryId=&pageSize=200&refinements=Price{2}~[20|30]^category~[700028|221016]&noOfRefinements=1

I toddled off to WH Smiths whilst I thought about them. WH SMiths are currently offering free sweets everyday this week for O2 customers. Yesterday was Sour Patch Kids and today was Fruit Shoot Jellies.

That made me think of vouchers, so I sat down outside the shop and searched O2 online, Quidco, Voucher Codes and MSE. I even, I am ashamed to admit, rang up Wallis Customer Services who also stated there were no deals currently available.

I guess I am not getting any new shoes soon then.

I then went off and grabbed a free can of Cola from Greggs with another voucher.

I think I am slightly obsessed with vouchers now as well as socks.

The poor Chap, having to share a house with these offending articles. If something pongs so badly it affects the owner / wearer then you know it has to be bad!! Lol

Frugally yours

Abigail

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Rest In Peace x

These are my work shoes. Bit grim are they not? The back stiffening has completely gone and until recently when I armed myself with a tube of superglue, they used to let water in through the soul of the left foot.

They are scuffed at the back and have been re-soled about 3 – 4 times. If I was being scrupulously honest I would admit they had a slight aroma too.

I only have these one pair of work shoes that cost me about £50. Normally work shoes last me about 6 months being worn from 7am-7pm 5 days per week.

These little babies have lasted about 3 years so I feel I have had my money’s worth.

For the last 3months I have been keeping an eye out for some new work shoes. They had to be smart and in leather that were comfy enough to wander around town, a lower heel to my current shoes and in black. Oh, and did I mention cheap too?

Since joining Ebay, I have put in a number of bids on slightly worn shoes with no success.

Until I won these. £8 incl P&P from Wallis in black leather. Worn once apparently (they look unworn to me!)

They arrived last night and are currently gracing my feet as I type and are very comfy.

Very pleased, they suit my limited budget and for £8 if they can last until January then I feel I have had my money’s worth.

My old shoes? Well they walked themselves out of W Towers and committed Harri Kari in a black wheelie bin.

Rest In Peace.

What was your best Ebay / Freecycle bargain?

Frugally yours

Abigail

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An Ode to Shoes!

However fat I keep getting, and if I ever get any slimmer, my shoes the dear old friends will still always fit.
I have been struggling today to think about what I wanted to talk about, and suddenly when I got home it came to me as I opened the door....shoes!

Every woman who has ever lived loves those little colourful wisps we float around in every day. We have suffered burning soles from high heels and crushed toes from pointed ends. And we have never complained at their price, for you see shoes are like food for me.... except they feed my soul.

I cannot begin to imagine how much I have spent over the years on the. Look at these.

They still have the receipt in the box £327. Hideous price, but Oh My! Aren't they beautiful?

I liked one pair of gold mules so much I bought them in silver gold and black. Well, I could not decide which I liked best. They are though sitting down shoes as they rub.

I also purchased these a year or so ago. High and elegant, I have to admit I also bought them in nude too.

Let us not forget the boots...

These are designed to be worn without socks so your feet can be seen through the suede lattice work.

But now in this recession damned times, buying shoes is an indulgence I cannot afford. Perhaps I do have enough to keep me going a little while...

However, fear not Dear Visitor, I can been able to purchase 2 pairs recently that have not stretched the bank balance and can be justified by this "Simply Thrifty" Miss.

These are Kurt Geiger, at Christmas a glossy mag had a voucher inside for £20 off a pair off KG shoes, so I ordered these babies delivered for a grand total of £12. So pretty and perhaps more wearable than some of my other babies.

But, this is the pair that motivated me to post today.

For you see I bought these over Christmas and forgot about them putting them in a bag in the boot of the car.There they stayed until this weekend when I cleared the car.

Completely unworn Autograph high heeled shiny black shoes, so wearable at work or on an evening out. And I got them from a Charity shop in S Staffordshire between Christmas and New Year for the grand sum of £3.49. Perfect fit.
The shoe Gods were smiling on me.

And whilst the Jimmy Choos pictured at the beginning will always be the pair I love the most. Well, these little babies come in a close second.

Please do not criticise me for my old fetish for footware. I have learnt the error of my ways and I know I cannot indulge in any more spending sprees, but maybe you will allow this woman to occasionally stroke my collection, or even maybe visit a shoe shop if I promise not to buy another pair until the debt is cleared?

Another No Spend Day today.

Frugally Yours
Abigail
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