Ladies Shoes - Essentials, But At What Price?

Think about ladies shoes and you realise that you can't get much more well known than Jimmy Choo. At the end of December 2007, the company announced record sales for the year; £85.6 million, in fact.

As banks are closing and the US and UK are in hard economic times, it seems that fashion sales are the one thing not dwindling. It is funny how we, as consumers, will feel the need to cut back on our essentials, like food shopping etc, and yet we are still prepared to splurge on a pair of designer shoes. Maybe the Credit Crunch hasn't hit some of us properly? I know i would think twice about buying a pair of £200 shoes these days; even if they are Jimmy Choo.

Ladies shoes are a necessity, but what we decide to pay for them is another matter. I bought some Primark flats the other week at a cost of £8. They were pretty and i knew they wouldn't break the bank at that price. So, i get them home...could i walk in them? Think again; as a standard size 6 i was pretty surprised that these shoes were way too big on me. I even slipped down our drive in them, since the sole had no grip at all. One day of wearing and they went in the bin. I couldn't stand it any longer, i felt like i should convince myself that they were a total bargain and i should keep them, but that had the opposite effect. I thought to myself "£8; that's very little for a pair of shoes and I've got what i paid for". There was no quality in the shoes. I certainly won't buy ladies shoes from Primark again. That £8 could have gone towards a decent pair of shoes.

Ladies Accessories and The Perfect Bag Solution!

When it comes to women's spending, there is little that can get in the way of that designer handbag habit. Wherever we go, us ladies need to have a handbag permanently attached to our arm!

Ladies accessories come in all different forms, from scarves to gloves. But the handbag is one accessory that we just can't seem to live without.

Marie Claire reported on a recent study of 'handbags' not long ago, and it emerged that we spend a staggering 76 days in a lifetime rummaging through our bags. That covers all those times you can't find your keys or makeup, and you end up looking you have a mini version of the Mary Poppins handbag that seems to have a bottomless depth! This has happened to me many times, and, frankly, it is just embarrassing.

I think most women want ladies bags to be as stylish as we are, and we hate looking like a contortionist in the middle of the street trying to find various items in our bags. So, the hottest thing on the market right now is the new 'Bagatidy' which is like a portable section of your bag where you can keep all your possessions and then move it from bag to bag as necessary, so you never lose anything or leave anything behind at home when you change bags. This is a great idea!

Ladies bags are forever littered with the rubbish we throw in there, so why not get organised and invest in a Bagatidy. The only thing you have to remember to do then, is transfer the Bagatidy to each new bag! If you're lazy like me then you may just prefer sticking to the old way. We can't help it; it wouldn't be a proper night out if you didn't have to rummage in your handbag!

Bargain Hunters...

If you love shopping for female fashion then there is no better place to find a bargain than on eBay. With an endless supply of fashion listings, it's no wonder that eBay is so successful. Statbrain.com has estimated that there are 12,021,367 visits per day to eBay.co.uk, which i am sure you will agree is a staggering amount of traffic. With that in mind, there is sure to be something you see on there that you feel compelled to purchase (as I do; on frequent occasions).

If the thought of buying female fashion on eBay fills you with horror, it's probably because you associate eBay with buying used clothes. But this is definitely not the case, as there are many sellers out there who are parting with genuine items still with their store tags on the garments! Even a brand new item such as this can be saving for you, since you will generally find clothing sells for less than it would in store. Unless, of course, you are looking for that inimitable designer runway piece that was a limited edition of about 10. Then you're probably going to have to splurge some serious cash to get what you want.

I have been ranting about eBay for ages. trying to get my friends to sign up and share the love, but unfortunately i have had a losing battle with them, since they say they do not want to get 'hooked' and it is quite obvious that by that comment, they know they will!

I'm addicted; i can't help it. You go on there with the intention of searching for one thing and then find yourself searching for the most random items you could imagine. Things that you could quite easily go the shop 5 minutes away and buy, but for some reason it just seems so much more 'exciting' searching for it on eBay, as though saving yourself 55p is the best bargain in the world.

I remember hearing Weird Al Yankovich's parody of eBay and thinking how spot on he was with his lyrics, and if you're an eBay addict you will know exactly what he is on about!

A couple of years ago i also saw a program on BBC3 called Spendaholics, where there was one girl addicted to buying on eBay and was consequently in serious debt. It's not worth ending up like this, but if you like female fashion then it can't harm you having a little browse can it? Be sensible and set a budget, but have fun!

Alice McCall Returns For Another Season At Topshop

At Topshop, female fashion comes first. The buyers have transformed Topshop over the last decade into something that has young fashionistas drooling at the window displays. The latest news is bound to create another stir in the fashion world, since it has just been announced that Australian brand Alice McCall is returning to Topshop to design another range of fashions for another season. The first range they designed was the fastest selling line to date. You can view the full article here.
















Alice McCall designs are beautifully designed and the Topshop range will be another choice selection of limited edition pieces that will not doubt sell out pretty quickly. From memory, the Alice McCall Topshop collections are only available at Topshop Oxford Circus, London, but hopefully there might be some pieces that filter through to the Manchester store, which is far easier for someone like me to get to!

So what does this mean for those of us who are fashion obsessed? Well, i think it's great that they have top designers creating their own ranges, and it really makes you feel like you're getting something just a little bit special. Female fashion never looked so good.

The new Alice McCall fashion ranges will be available from September 25th.