Miss Penny's Money

Hi Voxers - after a year of not blogging I've started up again over at www.pennygolightly.com. Please drop by and say hi if you have a moment.

There's also a bargains feed on Twitter, http://twitter.com/pennygolightly

P x

We've had fun, but this just isn't working out. I don't have enough time to devote to you, and it isn't as much fun as it used to be. I don't see a future for us.

Nothing personal. It's not you, it's me.

Penny

Shall we have something nice now and forget about the wankers of the world? Okay.

Scent - that's always good for a treat. When you're shopping for perfumes you can't try that many on in a day, maybe four or five at a push. So if you fancy treating yourself to a new one, it helps to whittle it down to a short hit list before you start.

I've found basenotes.net very useful for doing that, but it can get quite unwieldy searching their database unless you know quite a lot about perfumes in the first place.

Today though, I found something different. It is also surreal, highly subjective and it makes me laugh. For example, everything by Paris Hilton gets the lowest marks and accompanying comments such as "barf-bag floral" and "remedial candyfloss." Others are variously described as "mango overcoat", "ashtray floral", and "trashoid oriental" which just tickles my pickle.

It's a bit bitchy and the list is incomplete, but when it comes to the 5-out-of-5 rated perfumes, I generally agree with them. I'll be coming back to this in future, I'm certain.

Perfumes - the guide.

My local branch of Lidl have just filled up their aisle of Christmas goodies. They are, for the main part, very cheap and pretty good quality - and as most of it isn't seasonal Brit food I'll be scoffing some of it right away.

While I do hate the in-your-face commercialism of many of the shops that do this with their stock, I'm also thinking it helps those of us on smaller budgets. I get to spread the cost over three months instead of buying all in one go.

Speaking of stocking up, Tesco have a couple of their champagnes, a decent vintage cava and a nice-looking prosecco on at half price this week, plus a deal on Plymouth gin... (scroll down to get to spirits and sparkling wines).

Right, must dash...

It's been an aesthete's paradise on Planet Penny for the last few days, so why not share the goodness around?

Exhibit A - Brewhaha rose tea

Finally! A rose tea that tastes strongly of real roses, rather than straw/dust/soap. I'm rationing myself to one cup a day to keep the addiction in check. More at www.brewhahaltd.com, including stockists. Would go perfectly with satin pyjamas, feather fans, fine china and pistachio 'maccarons', if you were going to go the whole hog.

Exhibit B - Bourjois rouge hi-tech liptints

They are similar to Benefit's cult Benetint, but have a wider range of colours, last longer, don't highlight dry skin, and cost about £7. They last through lunch too, and I've found mine doubles up as long-lasting blusher for a night out. So they are miles cheaper and I like them more. Minor gripes are that the on-lip colour is not the same as the colour of the bottles (so try a tester drop on your lips in the shop before purchasing), and the packaging could be a little less chunky. But like I said, minor gripes.

Exhibit C - Fashion lingerie at New Look

Go and have a look, you'll be impressed. They have totally turned this department around, and are now making a smallish but perfectly formed range of undies, and right now I think they're the best quality/value/design at the cheaper end of the high street. Oh, and they make things in my size - did you hear that, Primark? In fact, they cater for a few sizes outside the narrow range of 32-36 A-C, so 32DDs and 38As etc might find something to suit. The styles have nods to Elle McPherson, Roberto Cavalli, D&G, Calvin Klein, Agent Provocateur, and more.

Exhibit D - The accessories section at the Oxford Circus H&M

They are selling 'nickel tested' jewellery. As someone who has quite extreme reactions to nickel (I hear it leaves the toilet seat up, hence it shall never visit my house...) I can't tell you how much fun this is. Long chunky chains, pendants and earrings from £2 that won't burn through your skin like something from Alien. Get the gothic/Balmain bling look for under a tenner. And check out the Johnny Loves Rosie-inspired range of hair accessories.

1. There is a huge new La Senza store opening on Oxford Street near the Marble Arch Primark today. If, like me, you are petite or otherwise non-average and find that your sizes sell out lightning-fast online and in their shops then you might be in luck. I walked past it yesterday evening as they were stocking up the shelves and it looked promising.

This season I rate a lot of their styles. Very pretty, fashiony and wildly impractical - hurrah! (you know how most girls feel about shoes? I'm like that for the frillies). Many of them are inspired by burlesque, and new and classic collections from Agent Provocateur. I particularly liked their AP-like 'colour block' (black with camel) cami set and silk slip, but have run out of pocket money and will have to admire it from a distance. They also have silk bras in block colours starting at £15, or sets with pinstripes, polka dots, white bibs on black, ruffles, or even lace overlaid on satin. Whatever tickles your fancy.

The other reason to try the new store with its full range of stock is that they have tons of offers on currently. If you're a matchy-matchy girl like me - c'mon, it looks loads nicer - this makes it easier to get a deal on a set. I've succumbed to one of their aubergine coloured ruched bras, currently on offer at £12, which took the sting out of buying the (slightly overpriced, sorry La Senza but it's true in this case) matching brief. Offers include 2 plain bras for £20 plus 2-for-1 on the matching briefs, 2-for-1 on selected slips and babydolls, and different mix and match deals on all sorts of knickers that go as cheap as 5 for £10. The super-cheap undies include their plain black satin briefs which look nice and go perfectly with plain bras, and are sold out on their website but still available in the shops.

Oooh la la. I might blog more about lingerie shopping later.

2. This Saturday there will be a Blitz party at Bourne and Hollingsworth. Free entry, and you're especially welcome if you dress up in 1940s gear. The bar is tiny, so get down there early if you're thinking about going.

Just popping in to say hi. Er, hi then. Things are kinda hectic at Penny Mansions, what with commissions and deadlines. And maybe a teensy weensy bit of romance.

Next week will be calmer. I promise to come back on and catch up with everyone, and do the sample sales and seasonal foods roundup.

Special thanks to Cha0tic for his tip-off about special offers on Sainsbury's luxury own-brand ground coffee and more. You can catch up with them by looking at the Sainsbury's offers section of http://www.mysupermarket.co.uk/.

Toodle-oo.

P x

Word has it that a few TKMaxx stores just took delivery of some Very Famous and Posh Names in womenswear (jeans, tops, dresses, coats, you name it). Should all be on the rails first thing tomorrow morning, bargain hunters. I'll be checking it out for sure.

Participating stores: Birmingham (Bullring), Brent Cross Shopping Park (next to Borders), Bromley (High St), Cambridge (Beehive Centre), Cheadle (Stanley Green Retail Park), Clapham (St John's Rd), Croydon (Purley Way), Hammersmith, Hatfield (Galleria), Harrogate (Victoria Shopping Centre), High St Kensington, Kew Retail Park, Kingston (Bishops Palace House), Lewisham (High St), Manchester (Arndale Centre) and Thurrock.

Hello Vox, remember me? I've been neglecting you, sorry.

This is partly because I've been out playing and enjoying myself, and partly because I got emailed out of the blue by someone I used to work for years ago - and was commissioned to write 40 articles. Joy!

But there has been a bit of wandering round and looking for bargains too. If you're quick, there's 20% off the ludicrously luxurious top bedding ranges at Debenhams, so you could be naughty and grab a tasty set of 500-thread count and get snoozing/trysting like royalty. The homewares section at BHS has some very convincing designer looky-likey items for your boudoir, living room or country-style kitchen, and there's money off the plain porcelain dinnerware too.

There are some really good sample sales coming up, and we've just gone into September's new seasonal foods, and I'll blog about them later this week if I get a moment. In the meantime, I just had a steamed artichoke with melted butter and black pepper for my lunch. Cor. Tasty.

I've also been messing about on eBay, and buying cute little tops for going out in (short sleeved silk blouse, brand new with tags for £2.20 delivered, anyone?).

So, overall, things are kinda lovely. How are you?

I dunno, you step away from the internet for 48 hours to sleep that pesky summer bug off and people start having lives, making amazingly cool announcements, and the spammers and weirdos come out to play en masse.

A few months ago, I joined a nearby book group. Lovely people, interesting books, insightful conversation (some publishers, editors and library bods attend), boozing - what more could a girl want? Well, I liked it so much I thought I'd join another one which concentrated on different genres, to expand the old reading a bit. The new one is organised via a fairly swish website which allows you to swap messages and fill in a page about your favourite books etc. I signed up the other day, but didn't get round to putting any personal information on it.

And lo and behold, this morning I found I have been, er, 'cruised' twice by someone in the group. Lucky me. Get this:

"Hay [sic] Penny, Dan* here. Saw youd signed up in July and wanted to touch base..."

Turns out the lovely chap, on top of being a sleazebag and a right slouch with the spelling and punctuation, is claiming to be a primary school teacher in a posh part of town. Oh, and he's a Coldplay fanatic, and his fave books are The Alchemist and Harry Potter. Fortunately he doesn't like Celean Dion. Woo, lucky me.

Even in my currently febrile and weedy state, I want to punch him. Why can't people like that just piss off and join a dating agency? It's completely put me off swish new book group. Bah.

* name changed to protect the guilty