(Cheap) summer shoes!

I love a bargain, especially when it comes to summer shoes. I've bought a few lovely pairs so far this summer, all for under £10. I also had two beautiful pairs for my birthday so I've featured those in this post too.

See below for a clockwise description of each pair, starting with the floral trainers at the top!

Floral trainers - These beauties are from Primark and only cost £4. No, they weren't in the sale... they were just £4! They have pretty pink and green detailing as well as the navy and white stripes, so they're very versatile and can be worn with loads of different colours. 

Floral green flip flops - These are from O'Neill and cost £9.99. This is the highest price I'm willing to pay for flip flops. I love the colour and the design, and they're super comfortable. 

Turquoise flip flops - Another Primark purchase... £2.50! I have a few dresses and vest tops in this exact colour so I'll be wearing these a lot this summer. 

Coral flip flops - These were a birthday present from Neil's parents. I love the vibrant colour and the little studs on the bow are so pretty. 

Coral sandals - These were also a birthday present from Neil's parents. I'm a big fan of the double ankle strap and they're beautifully sparkly. I like sparkly things, in case you didn't already know. 

Yellow ballet pumps - These were £6 from Amazon. They were originally bought for my Minnie Mouse fancy dress costume but they weren't quite the right colour. I won't be returning them as they'll be perfect for the summer. The postage to send them back would probably cost me £6 so I didn't see the point in returning them!

Black pointy shoes -  I've seen photos of loads of people wearing these shoes on Instagram so I couldn't wait to get my hands on a pair. I had to go in to Primark three times before they eventually had my size (4) in stock, but I finally found a pair last weekend. These smart but comfy shoes were £6, so yet another bargain. 

Have you bought any of these shoes? Can you recommend any other summer shoe bargains? 

I love packing... no really, I do!

I love packing, mostly because it enables me to write lists and to be super organised. I've already blogged about my packing method so I won't go in to detail, but just thought I'd post a few photos from my packing fun ready for Florida! I always start packing two or three weeks before I go on holiday to make sure I've got everything sorted in time. I am a massive stress head so I could never leave it until the last minute. 

Here are a few photos from my meticulous packing process...

I have a lot of flowery clothes, apparently.

And a lot of flip flops and bags...

Minnie Mouse poncho and shower cap!

Most important items in my hand luggage... apart from passport and money. 

They're not exciting so I didn't photograph those!

Does anyone else love packing? I can't be the only one, surely?

I REALLY love flip flops

I never used to wear flip flops when I was younger. I preferred to be properly strapped in to chunky sandals so that they definitely couldn't fall off my feet or trip me up. What on earth was I thinking? These days, I absolutely love flip flops and want to buy every pair under the sun. Luckily, my bank balance doesn't allow me to do this. They're just so comfortable, and you can always find a reasonably priced pair to go with whatever outfit you're wearing. I'm not really a shoe person and don't have many pairs of actual normal shoes, but I'm building quite a hefty collection of flip flops.

My flip flops!

I've been able to wear flip flops non stop for the last three or four weeks as it's been so hot, and I've loved it. The basket I keep them in has been taken out of the store cupboard and put in pride of place in the living room so that I can rummage and find a matching pair every morning.

I also couldn't resist buying two new pairs this week from Debenhams and Accessorize... in my defence, I was having a bad few days and needed to cheer myself up! I love flip flops with a lot of detail on the straps, so these pairs were perfect. The pair from Debenhams matches my holiday bikini and will be perfect for the beach or casual shopping trips, and the pair from Accessorize is perfect for work or going out for dinner. Multi functional!

I've already chosen 9 pairs to take to Florida with another 2 possibles... I might have to be more ruthless with my shortlisting!

Summer bargains

You all probably know by now that I'm off to Florida in September. I've lost weight and gone down a clothes size or two since I went last April, so I needed to buy a brand new holiday wardrobe ready for this year's trip. I love it when I have an actual legitimate excuse to go shopping. especially if it's because most of my clothes are too big for me!

I've been purchasing items steadily since the beginning of the year rather than buying them all at once just before going away. This means I get to spread the expense between a few pay packets and I can also keep an eye out for spontaneous bargains. I've trawled a lot of internet sites and charity shops... I love a bargain.

I think I've nearly finished shopping for holiday clothes now, and I've managed to do it pretty cheaply considering I had to re-buy nearly everything. I thought I'd share some of my favourite new summer clothes with you in this post, and I've provided links to the items where I can and where the items are still available. Enjoy!

Dresses

£14 from Primark

£13 from New Look

£5 from Primark

Playsuits

See previous blog post for details

£23.60 in the Debenhams sale. See my Duffy the Disney Bear 

blog post if you want to know why I'm holding a bear!

Shorts

Absolute bargain from Play at £6.99 each. I'd have paid over £30 

if I'd have bought these from a proper surf shop!

Skirts

£3 from a charity shop, originally from New Look

Vests

£3 each from Peacocks. These are a lovely fit, even if they do look creased!

Shoes

Trainers - £6.99 from Primark

White flip flops - £4 from Tesco

Blue flip flops - £3 from Tesco

Swimwear

In the sale in Debenhams. Got to love Mantaray!

Accessories

Minnie Mouse sunglasses case - £3.75 in the Disney Store sale

Sunglasses - £4 in a random shop in Cardiff's Queen's Arcade

Black bag - £2 in a charity shop

White bag - £5 from Tesco

Spread over seven months, I've managed to buy a new holiday wardrobe without breaking the bank. I've even managed to wear some of these clothes in this country in the last few weeks as it's been so hot. Bonus! 

Has anyone else been shopping for summer clothes? Any last minute bargain ideas for me?

Bank Holiday Monday

I still can't quite believe that we actually had some sun on Bank Holiday Monday. I put sun cream on and wore flip flops for the first time this year, which was highly exciting. We had a barbecue at my boyfriend's parents' house, then went for a walk around Cosmeston Lakes. We stopped for a lollipop on the way back, then went back to the house to book lunch reservations at the Plaza in the Magic Kingdom ready for our holiday in September. Super organised, I know. We then watched two episodes of Castle before I drove back to Carmarthenshire to visit my parents and my nephew. Lovely bank holiday Monday!

Here are some photos of the beautiful Cosmeston Lakes:

What did everyone else get up to on Bank Holiday Monday? I'm already looking forward to the next one!