Would you wear £3.99 perfume?

Recently I neared the end of my current perfume Coco Mademoiselle, boo hiss boo. Just as I was about to stump up a small fortune for a big bottle to see me through to Christmas, or investigate new perfumes, I received a text message from my friend which read

'Did you know Lidl do a perfume which smells a lot like your Chanel perfume?'

Say what now?



I had a little google and it turns out lots of people, including Klee have found Lidl's Suddenly Madame Glamour, hilarious name aside, to be remarkably similar to Chanel's easy to wear scent Coco Mademoiselle. I had to check this out. I hotfooted it (technical term) down to my nearest Lidl in the hope of finding a bottle. I thought I'd need luck on my side because the ladies of blogland have found it hard to track down but the shelves of my local shop were full of the stuff, I need not have worried.

The packaging is nothing to rave about, it's neither here nor there to be honest but seeing as I can't capture a scent in a photograph you'll have to make do with photos of the packaging.

Now to the scent. Just a quick sniff from the bottle and I thought it remarkably similar to the Chanel and sprayed into the air, again remarkably similar. The real test is on the skin. Could the Lidl match up to the Chanel?

I sprayed Suddenly Madame Glamour on my right arm and the very last of my Coco Mademoiselle on my left and allowed them to develop during the day.  I'm pretty sure this isn't a technical or scientific way of doing a scent test and I'm sorry no white jackets and goggles were worn to conduct the experiment. Ommmvvv.



They smelt very similar when first applied, sisters who are mistaken for twins a lot but when you take a good look at them there is a couple of years difference and one has a longer nose. That kind of similarity, y'know?
On my skin the oriental notes in the Chanel play louder than in the Lidl for the first 20 mintues or so. I can detect the citrus a lot more in the Lidl but I like that for summer. As the day wore on the difference became harder to detect and if I hadn't written down which arm was wearing which scent (yes my memory is shocking) I probably wouldn't have been able to tell the difference after 4 hours worth of wear on a warm day.

Would I compare the two?
Yes. I think they are very similar, especially once they've worn in during the day.
Would I buy either again?
Hmmmm I think I'd buy the Lidl before I buy the Chanel. Whilst I like Coco Mademoiselle I don't think of it in any way near as luxurious as other Chanel perfumes (I think that may just be the way the notes play out on my skin) and at £61 I'd rather buy something which excites me and drives me a bit batty than something I like but isn't me, me, me.

At £3.99 (for 50ml) I can afford to have a bit of a play with fragrance and yes it might be from Lidl but hey...I don't care.

Would you buy and wear perfume from Lidl? Have you tried any bargain basement perfumes?


Edit - Some people have asked about the Lidl perfume lasting. I find the lasting time of perfume differs greatly from person to person and perfume doesn't last especially long on me. I've worn the Lidl perfume 3 times now and it has lasted for arounc 6 hours each time which is about the same as the Chanel perfume for me.

TTFN,

P.S. No Keira Knightly advertising the Lidl either - another plus point.

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Saturday Savings

The weekend is here and so is Saturday Savings, hurrah. If you need to part with money this weekend make sure you're using a voucher code of some kind. I've collected together some of my favourites codes, sales and discounts - hopefully you'll find them helpful.

Fashion

The shop/brand: FUNKY DIVAA

The deal: 20% off your first order with the 1st code, 50% off with 2nd code. These may not work together

The code: 1. NEW20    2. BDAY50

The website: Funky Divaa

The expiration: Undefined

* * *

The shop/brand: DOROTHY PERKINS
The deal: Free P&P when you spend £40
The code: Applied at checkout
The website: Dorothy Perkins
The expiration: Mon 28th May

* * *

The shop/brand: URBAN OUTFITTERS
The deal: 15% off
The code: STYLEUK
The website: Urban Outfitters
The expiration: 31st May

* * *

The shop/brand: MONSOON

The deal: Up to 50% off in their mid season spring sale

The code: Ready discounted

The website: Monsoon

The expiration: Undefined

* * *

Beauty

The shop/brand: L'OCCITANE

The deal: Free Princess Cherry Collection (worth £20) when you spend £35 or more.

The code: ADY27

The website: L'Occitane

The expiration: 31st May 2012

* * *

The shop/brand: SALON SKINCARE

The deal: 10% off when you spend £50 apart from GHDs

The code: May10

The website: Salon Skincare

The expiration: End of May

* * *

Home

The shop/brand: LAURA ASHLEY

The deal: 25% off all home items

The code: Ready discounted

The website: Laura Ashley

The expiration: Undefined.

* * *

Please check your code has been applied before you commit purchase. Minimum spend my apply. The  relevant companies have the right to withdraw any code or voucher at any time. A Thrifty Mrs will not be held responsible for codes that are out of date or not applicable for any reason..

TTFN,

P.S. If you've spotted any sales or voucher codes please do feel free to add them to the comments section.

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Brilliant Bootsale Buys

Bootsale seasons is in full swing and we've hit a few over the weekends. Strangely, I've also come across a fair number of mid-week bootsales - I always thought they were a weekend thing, turns out not-s-much.  So I've been taking myself off on little bus and train trips to find some goodies.

Here are some of my favourite bootsale goodies from the past week or so.


The four items in the first photograph came to a total of £1.25 from the same seller. I've found myself starting a little collection of globes recently, there's something about them which draws me in. This one isn't vintage, in fact I think it is a smaller version of a John Lewis one I bought for my God Son, but for 50p I couldn't say no. The candle sticks, ah the candle sticks. I've developed more than a collection of candle sticks, Mr Thrifty would call it an obsession - he can shut up. I can't resist them, especially if they are coloured. Who doesn't want a little forest of candlesticks dotted along a shelf?

This gorgeous mantle clock was 50p. You read that right, 50p. Utterly crazy. Sure, it needs a good clean and a new key for winding but 50p? Aaaaaamazing. Isn't she beautiful? I shall call her Cassandra.


This slice of kitsch-y Catholic fabulous-ness set me back a hefty £1.75. Cue sucky-teeth-builder-giving-a-quote noise. It is light as a feather and I feel the need to stick magnets to the back and have it cover up our ugly boiler but Mr Thrifty - he say no.

I picked up these cufflinks for Mr Thrifty for 25p. Everything on the stall was 25p, everything. So I picked up a fist full of necklaces and got the hell outta there with a commando roll before they realised their mistakes. I've found some amazing clothes and revamped my wardrobe for about £4.78 too, but I'll share them with you soon.

 You might also find useful:
10 Bootsale Tips
How to find plus size clothes in charity shops
7 tips for removing that charity shop smell



TTFN,

P.S. Have you had any good bootsale finds recently?

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5 Thrifty Storage Ideas

This post brought to you by Money Supermarket.

In the current economic climate everyone is trying hard to save themselves a bit of money. Of course, there are some obvious money-saving tips. Using comparison sites such as Money Supermarket will make sure you're not missing out on the latest financial deals and products. But when it comes to finding ways to keep your house tidy and organised, sticking to a budget can be tricky.

However, there are a number of ways to find extra storage ideas in and around your house that don't have to break the bank. In fact, some options won't even cost you a penny.

Grab Yourself a Bargain

If you do have a small budget for your storage but can't quite afford anything new, consider heading off to your nearest flea market or jumble sale. Keep your eyes peeled for old trunks, chests or even unwanted toy boxes. If they don't look too great at first, think about giving them a fresh coat of paint or decorating them.

Trawling through car boot sales, the local paper or online auction sites could net you a bargain, such as a piece of unique furniture that has character.

Getting hold of some simple bookshelf units is another great option and they can be used in any room in the house. The simpler they are, the better – and cheaper – because using them for family photos, treasured knick-knacks or even CDs, DVDs and magazines can give them a new lease of life.

If bookcases threaten to take up too much room, go for simple shelves instead. They offer extra storage space for anything, not just books and take up very little space if you have a smaller area. You can paint them to suit the colours or décor of your chosen room.

Simple Storage Ideas

Hooks are another great option for storage and are perfect for hiding coats, clothes or even sacks full of toys for the kids' rooms. Hooks come in all kinds of colours and sizes, are really easy to put up and can go absolutely anywhere. Use them to fill those nooks and crannies, such as the unused space under the stairs, the backs of doors and even inside wardrobes.

If you really can't afford to buy anything new or second hand, then try to have a think about unused space around your house. The more obvious choices include under the bed or on the tops of wardrobes, which are great for storing things such as bedding, magazines, board games or work papers that you don't necessarily want to put on display.

You could even fill some cheap wicker baskets or colourful plastic tubs with all the little bits and bobs that don't have anywhere to live and display them on top of kitchen units.

Finally, if you're feeling particularly creative and don't mind a bit of collecting, start saving up all those cardboard boxes that usually get thrown out. Decorate them in funky coloured papers, including the lids and then create a wall of boxes.

Depending on the size of your boxes, you can store pretty much anything and the colourful designs will look fantastic in children's bedrooms or a family sitting room.

TTFN,

P.S. This post was brought to you by the clever money saving folk at Money Supermarket. I'm opening up my blog to occasional, relevant posts so if you'd like to blog here on A Thrifty Mrs please do get in contact with me via email thrifty@athriftymrs.com

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