It was a fun Friday lunchtime today when Lady Cross and her pals found themselves wandering around the wonderful stalls at Vintage at Southbank.
There are some amazing finds, fabulous frocks and wonderful people, all of whom are friendly and willing to sell. Here is a quick preview of some of the best.
My favourite jewellery stall was bobbin & bow, with this hummingbird necklace being a choice pick. The jeweller was inspired by her grandmother, who was also a designer. All the pieces are handmade and extremely wearable as well as being beautiful.
In terms of big-hearted personalities, one big hit with the girls was Galina Sherri. She is a stylist extraordinaire and has record-label musicians on her books. Her amazing emporium of goodies included a pair of open-toe Ferragamos (sadly size 4.5), mother-of-pearl antique cuffs and a gorgeous array of clothes to suit any discerning vintage buff.
And when it's time to stop for tea, when who better to call than Mrs Stokes. Lovely tea sets at affordable prices, including great names such as Royal Albert and Webster. But that's not all. Mrs Stokes offers a china hire service, haberdashery, cake-plates and stands and even tea parties.
After all, a nice cup of English breakfast always tastes better in fine china. Why not make it vintage?
Friday 29 July 2011
Tuesday 26 July 2011
Lady Cross seals the deal
Hi all
I thought I would share with you a quick hint about how to save money when making purchases, by sharing a recent shopping experience with you. I am not sure whether it is because of my non-practising lawyer status, or because of my Chinese heritage, but when purchasing items, I always remember the number one rule of negotiation - never accept a first offer.
Take for example the approach I took to buying a piece of jewellery for a close relative's special birthday. The piece that I picked out was not in the sale, and was priced at over £200. I sent a polite e-mail to customer services asking if they could offer me a discount code as I was buying a present for a 60th birthday. I pointed out that the item I wished to buy was not reduced, was retailing at a couple of hundred, and I would really appreciate any help they could offer me in relation to a special deal. A couple of days later, a very friendly and happy e-mail from a customer services adviser from H Samuel offered me an online code with a 15% discount. I also benefitted from cashback from my favourite cashback site Quidco (have you seen their latest advert on TV?).
I spoke to a friend at work about my success and she said she felt she could not bring herself to ask such a thing of a salesperson. I do have sympathy with that. If you feel uncomfortable about asking, then just don't. And to be honest, if you have that kind of vibe as you nervously ask Mr-Shiny-Shoes-in-a-Suit for a deal (while avoiding eye contact), the chances are that you will probably not strike gold. My friend agreed however that the worst response she could receive was a no. Which is true. And it is their prerogative to say no after all, so be prepared for that.
The key thing is to be polite, firm and non-abusive (non-abusive is important). After all, the staff are there to serve you and they probably make commission from your sale, so if they can help you commit to the sale with an incentive, then it is win-win situation - the best outcome in a negotiation scenario.
I know at times, customer service can be frustrating (you know my history with Santander), but at the end of the day, these people we encounter are not personally responsible for the bad experiences you have had. To be fair, sometimes they add to your irritation by being rude when you complain, which only exacerbates the situation, but generally I like to think that people are not horrible and do not have anything better to do then make your life a misery. Or has my foray from the steely legal sphere into the world of legal publishing left me soft and less cynical?
I'll let you be the judge of that.
I thought I would share with you a quick hint about how to save money when making purchases, by sharing a recent shopping experience with you. I am not sure whether it is because of my non-practising lawyer status, or because of my Chinese heritage, but when purchasing items, I always remember the number one rule of negotiation - never accept a first offer.
Take for example the approach I took to buying a piece of jewellery for a close relative's special birthday. The piece that I picked out was not in the sale, and was priced at over £200. I sent a polite e-mail to customer services asking if they could offer me a discount code as I was buying a present for a 60th birthday. I pointed out that the item I wished to buy was not reduced, was retailing at a couple of hundred, and I would really appreciate any help they could offer me in relation to a special deal. A couple of days later, a very friendly and happy e-mail from a customer services adviser from H Samuel offered me an online code with a 15% discount. I also benefitted from cashback from my favourite cashback site Quidco (have you seen their latest advert on TV?).
I spoke to a friend at work about my success and she said she felt she could not bring herself to ask such a thing of a salesperson. I do have sympathy with that. If you feel uncomfortable about asking, then just don't. And to be honest, if you have that kind of vibe as you nervously ask Mr-Shiny-Shoes-in-a-Suit for a deal (while avoiding eye contact), the chances are that you will probably not strike gold. My friend agreed however that the worst response she could receive was a no. Which is true. And it is their prerogative to say no after all, so be prepared for that.
The key thing is to be polite, firm and non-abusive (non-abusive is important). After all, the staff are there to serve you and they probably make commission from your sale, so if they can help you commit to the sale with an incentive, then it is win-win situation - the best outcome in a negotiation scenario.
I know at times, customer service can be frustrating (you know my history with Santander), but at the end of the day, these people we encounter are not personally responsible for the bad experiences you have had. To be fair, sometimes they add to your irritation by being rude when you complain, which only exacerbates the situation, but generally I like to think that people are not horrible and do not have anything better to do then make your life a misery. Or has my foray from the steely legal sphere into the world of legal publishing left me soft and less cynical?
I'll let you be the judge of that.
Saturday 30 April 2011
Wedding touch
Hello!
In the spirit of Royal Wedding madness, I am going to introduce you to Wedding Touch, a business venture of our friend Carren, who helped us on our special day. Check out her portfolio at http://www.theweddingtouch.blogspot.com/ which includes some pictures from our wedding.
Place cards, menus, table plans - all tailored to your specific wishes. My sister got our guests to sign their table menu which is a lovely wedding keepsake from the day. The table plan is beautifully framed and has pride of place in the study. I am particularly pleased about the table plan as each table was named after a Shakespeare play (well - our wedding was in Stratford upon Avon!) and Carren found old-fashioned pictures from each play and used them as watermark backgrounds for each table, with the guests names printed on top. The big "Jane-May and Graham" in the centre was handpainted.
Carren's magical touch in attention to detail, and quality and beauty of design was the icing on the cake (!) and providing the perfect finishing touch to our wedding day.
Have fun this Royal Wedding bank holiday weekend guys and gals - enjoy the sunshine! And maybe even enjoy planning your own wedding with Wedding Touch!
In the spirit of Royal Wedding madness, I am going to introduce you to Wedding Touch, a business venture of our friend Carren, who helped us on our special day. Check out her portfolio at http://www.theweddingtouch.blogspot.com/ which includes some pictures from our wedding.
Place cards, menus, table plans - all tailored to your specific wishes. My sister got our guests to sign their table menu which is a lovely wedding keepsake from the day. The table plan is beautifully framed and has pride of place in the study. I am particularly pleased about the table plan as each table was named after a Shakespeare play (well - our wedding was in Stratford upon Avon!) and Carren found old-fashioned pictures from each play and used them as watermark backgrounds for each table, with the guests names printed on top. The big "Jane-May and Graham" in the centre was handpainted.
Carren's magical touch in attention to detail, and quality and beauty of design was the icing on the cake (!) and providing the perfect finishing touch to our wedding day.
Have fun this Royal Wedding bank holiday weekend guys and gals - enjoy the sunshine! And maybe even enjoy planning your own wedding with Wedding Touch!
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