Primark Frustrations!

In February I set myself a spending ban. It was harder than I thought (as the world is full of cute little things I want to buy and wear/hang up/use) and there were a few points I found myself very very tempted, especially with all the sales and discount codes everyone seemed to throw out! Nevertheless I struggled through and was actually quite proud of myself come payday.

Even though I couldn’t spend I obviously window shopped (obviously), particularly in Primark which I pass through on a daily basis on my walk to work. There were many t-shirts I ooow’d and aaah’d at, both for myself and my wife, and I promised myself come March I’d  snap one or two of these tops up as a little pat on the back.

With a little time the other morning before work, I went into Primark to grab myself and my wife a new top each to perk up our spirits, but as I rifled through all the size 8, 10, 12, and 14’s, I quickly realised I was going to end up disappointed. It’s not the first time I’ve had this problem with Primark. They’re renowned for their dodgy sizing and lack of stock, but I still couldn’t help but be annoyed. On my second day with no luck, I grabbed a sales assistant to help me out. She sent someone to rifle through the back room and found one of the tops in my desired size. It was the Harry Potter one, which I was thrilled with as my wife had wanted a new HP top for a while. Eventually, I found another top I wanted with only one size over 14 jammed in the middle.

I just don’t understand, when it’s clear the demand is high, why Primark refuse to stock as many 16+ sizes as they do 14-. Especially when they have ‘geeky’ t-shirts and must know their larger sizes are gone extra quick with there being so few. It’s frustrating and disappointing, even more so when their sales are littered with these smaller sizes they couldn’t shift before.

Another problem I have with Primark (and most high street stores in general, actually) is the selection of men’s and women’s popular culture clothing (comics, TV shows, movies etc). Me and my wife are both massive Marvel and Star Wars fans and the selection of men’s clothing compared to women is infuriating. Girl’s clothing must be tight fitting, pink and proclaim something about only dating whatever kind of character they’re selling. Yes, they can be great and sure they’re fun, but why is this our only option? Why can’t  I have the Marvel belt or The Walking Dead t-shirt? And y’know, what if a guy wants a FRIENDS t-shirt? These gender stereotypes are ugly and useless and placed on top of the fact that women’s size availability is ridiculous it makes me really despise the place sometimes…

…but the clothes are cheap. For many years ‘geeks’ have struggled with the price tag that comes attached to our favourite obsession’s merch. It’s just one of those things when it’s your morals vs. your wallet and GOD DAMN that’s a pretty bad ass Batman top for just £6.

In closing BAD, PRIMARK! BAD!

 

Post Christmas Spending (Must be a good girl, now)

Post-Christmas sales got me bad this year. So bad. My bank account is still sobbing. I’ve not even checked on it in a while, I think we need some space before we start to work things out.

I can’t help it! Every time I get those emails with the discount codes, they just call to me. Of course I need more phone cases even though I can only use one at a time, of course I need 3 new clutch bags even though I rarely venture out of my basement flat for reasons other than work, of course I need another £30 order from everythingfor5pounds.com – despite having made an order every month since summer…OF COURSE!

OK, so maybe I’ve gone a little OTT since having a job that pays reasonably well. Being an unpaid intern and going through employment hell for the majority of last year had me a little starved for ‘me things’, as selfish as that sounds. My wife worked overtime just to keep us afloat and I sat in our living room for days on end, too broke and too ashamed to do anything.

So, yeah, maybe I was entitled to a couple months of splashing. Getting back in to blogging and having a small business loving manager sat next to me all day opened me up to a whole new world of shopping, a world I was all too happy to indulge in. And that’s good, that’s ok. Self-love can be a great thing, but I think it’s time for me to put the brakes on for a while.

Starting February, I’ve put myself on a spending ban. We’re starting to save for our Las Vegas trip in October which means we’ll have to tighten our belts considerably. No more naughty shopping sprees, no more being lured in by a bargain. If there’s something I want, rather than pay all out and get it right then I’ll save a little at a time (which should weed out the things I really want from momentary whimsies).

But before all that starts – let us take a look at just a few of the shiny things I gifted myself for ending the last half of the year on a high (new job, new licence, new wife).

Velvet Volcano

My bulletproof love for this lady is no secret as I recently bought myself the Frankenkitty winter set and waxed lyrical about how mad in to it I was. Her squishy wearables aren’t the only thing I love, I’m also all heart eyes for her jewellery (and anything else she touches). So I gifted myself two necklaces I’d had my eye on for a while. BATS! RAINBOWS! They fit both sides of my personality wonderfully.

Skinny Dip London

Skinny Dip is a new love. I found them through Thunderegg who stock a few of their items, and then they emailed me with their end of year sale and…well…there wasn’t much I could do. Full price their items do run a tad pricey for me, and the majority of things I probably wouldn’t pay full price for, but I love their style, design and sense of humour. I grabbed myself this wonderful phone case and stunning clutch with some killer discounts. LOVE.