The Weekender!

February payday is just around the corner & you have booked a cheeky little weekend away with your loved one, the girls, a family break or you’re away with work (boooo!).

You don’t want to carry a suitcase because it’s too big for just your undies & a few outfit changes, but you ALWAYS end up with 6 small bags & another full of your toiletries! (come on girls, I know this isn’t just me!).

I’ve put together a collection of weekend bags to cater for all weekends & all budgets!  Weekend away playing bingo with Granny Joan? Romantic Birthday city break with Mr Perfect?  Wild Hen Do with the girls?  You’ve come to the right place!

Family Weekend

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The lovely Cath Kidston is a very cute way to travel away with the family.  Great for throwing everything in & putting in the car, it’s waterproof & will hold all of your essentials for that one night away.

 

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This is their foldaway overnight bag & at just £40.00, you’ll have Aunt Susanne ordering one as soon as you arrive.  With matching travel items available here, it’s a nice little item to have stashed away!

Festival / Camping Getaway 

Your going camping or to that festival you’ve been planning all summer, but you want to look the part?  ASOS have this little beauty to answer your prayers!

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The printed canvas design on this Mi Pac Weekend Travel Bag will have you fitting in immediately & with a removable shoulder strap, it’s easy to lug around to the campsite showers.  It’s also wipe down which is perfect for those festival spillages!

Was £34.99, now £25.00.  You can get it here!

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Romantic City/Countryside Break

Your man has just told you to pack a bag for the weekend.  He’s whisking you away to a log cabin/weekend in London.  For no reason.  This could be it.  It could be your big proposal.  Do you really want to be taking that tatty old holdall that you’ve had since your last school trip to Devon?!

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No!  This is your big day.  This is your future husband we’re talking about here! You NEED something to scream ‘LOOK AT ME!  I AM IN LOVE!’

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Even if your weekend turns into a big flop (his big ‘surprise’ was his promotion at work. Yuk!), then this little beauty will make up for EVERYTHING!!!

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The Louis Vuitton Keepall collection is everything.  It’s something I look at and I go weak at the knees.  The David Beckham of weekend bags if you like.   Starting from around £805.00, this little baby will last you a lifetime!

Activity Weekend

It was January, you needed to get fit, you & the girls had too much wine.  Next thing you know, you ended up booking yourself on a ‘health retreat’ activities weekend.  Running, biking, swimming.  You name it, you’ve signed up to it.

Well now it’s March & you’ve realised that A) You’re never drinking again and B) You actually own no sports gear whatsoever.  In the hope of at least looking like you know what you’re doing, here is your perfect companion to help get you through the weekend!

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This Nike Brasilia Large Holdall can be picked up from Argos & at the moment there is £8.00 off!  Get it online  here!

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I promise, if you turn up with this, Sporty Steve the swimming instructor will be thinking you’re fit as a fiddle from the get go!  Also a nice option to have stashed away for when you do choose to join that gym you have been promising to join!

Working Weekend

So, you said yes MONTHS AGO to that email that went around the office about that conference in Manchester.

I know, I know, WHY?!  But you did (silly!) and the only weekend bag you have is that big fluffy, faux fur number with the pompoms that is fine for those girly sleepovers, but hello! you’re an independent professional woman (or that’s what you want your boss to think!), well up steps River Island.

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A firm high street fave, this is the perfect option to board the early Train & check into the hotel ready to greet Rob from the desk opposite, who you have never spoken to, but find yourself sharing the whole weekend with.

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This is black, quilted & is big enough for everything you would need for the weekend.  Did I mention it’s only £65.00?

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With matching wheelie case & makeup bag available here, you can’t go wrong!

Shopping Weekend

You & the girls have booked a hotel in the city of London & are going to shop until you physically drop (preferably into a large mojito!).

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This Radley large weekender is perfect to take for the whole weekend but also handy to stash away your shopping bags during the day.

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With the pretty pink colours & the signature dog design, this will soon become a firm favourite in your collection!  Prices start from around £90.00 & you can see a familiar  version here.

Hen Do / Party Weekend

You’re planning a weekend clubbing or you’re flying out to Ibiza.

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Another perfect option by River Island.  It has an adjustable shoulder strap & with its black snake print design, it’s fun & a bit more ‘out there’ compared to your work or romantic weekend getaway bags!

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Large enough for a few outfit changes & even enough room for a bottle of champagne, at £65.00 this will be a firm favourite for your girlie weekends!  View this bag here!

The All-Rounder!

There are some things in life that are just perfect for any situation.

Like, a Chanel perfume or a Clarins mascara.

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You can add Longchamp shoppers & travel bags to that list.  These are absolutely perfect for anything.

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Versatile & stylish, these will last you forever.

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Starting from around £53.00, Selfridges have an amazing collection in all shapes & colours.

Longchamp2Check them out here!

 

 

SO!  There you have it!  What are you waiting for?!  GET PACKING! x

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Vacation: Day Four

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Day Four saw us somehow get up bright & early with our last but one breakfast on the balcony!

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We were getting very upset that the holiday was almost over, but we tried not to think about it!

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We had a perfect relaxing pool day catching the last bit of sunshine & lounging around with a book.

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We took a break from the 35 degree heat with some wine & some lunch at the pool bar!

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We then got ready for our last night out in Puerto Banus!

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After a bottle of cava on our balcony, we had just enough time for some last minute photos before our taxi arrived.

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When we arrived on Day One, I had emailed La Sala restaurant to see if we could reserve a table. With waiting lists of 3 weeks, I didn’t know what to expect.

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Thankfully, we got given a table & we were over the moon!

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The busiest place by far in Puerto Banus, we grabbed a pre-dinner cocktail at the busy bar!

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This is one of the best places I have been!

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Live music, fantastic food, friendly people, it was perfect!

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I couldn’t have picked anywhere else for our last night!

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After our meal, we decided to order a bottle of champagne to finish off our holiday in style.

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After La Sala closed at 2am, we then got given free entry into Aqwa Mist, which is the club attached.

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The music was fantastic & we stayed here until around 4am.

We had a plane to catch the following day, but we were having such a great time, we didn’t mind!

Come back to see what we did with our final hours in Marbella!

 

Vacation: Marbella Day Three

By Day Three, we well & truly felt like we were home!

We had planned a girlie shopping day for today & we were so excited!

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We had breakfast & walked into the Port around 10am.

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We did a little walk along the beach, visiting some shops on the Port as we strolled along!

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We then stopped off at Piucaro for lunch.  This was one of my favourite places.

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The views were utterly remarkable.  Sitting overlooking the sea with a bottle of wine & fantastic food was perfect. At that moment, I realised this is what working hard is all about.

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After lunch & with the sun still shining, we were excited to hit El Corte Ingles!

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Just off the strip, it has the best Zara! We spent an age in there trying everything on & then we found some wonderful independent stores outside.

The Spanish girls selling their beach dresses, playsuits, day dresses etc were gorgeous! We loved walking around the little stalls & ended up buying a few little dresses from there.

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Everyone is so friendly in Marbella!

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We then walked back to the resort & had a few hours in the sunshine before getting ready for night three!

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We went to the Hard Rock Cafe for a cocktail before dinner.

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I love it in here.  It’s just a fun place to go for a cocktail!

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It’s always busy, which makes for a great atmosphere before heading off on your evening!

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We then moved on to dinner at the Belvedere.

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This place was beautiful!

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The views overlooking the beach were gorgeous & the food was delicious.

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We went to our favourite little bar on the strip for champagne & cocktails & then found ourselves in Funky Buddha/Seven nightclub.

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This place was stunning inside, with amazing VIP areas.

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We found ourselves in here until closing which was around 4am.

I had a feeling Day Four would include a relaxing pool day after tonight!

Vacation: Marbella Day Two

Hello & welcome to day two!

After a perfect sleep, we got up bright & early to enjoy breakfast in the sunshine!

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We had done a food shop on our first afternoon & stocked up on bread, meats, cheeses, fruit & yoghurt so we could enjoy our breakfasts on our balcony!

We then got dressed & ready for a pool day!

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The pool area at the Vasari is beautiful.

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It’s so quiet & peaceful, with palm trees & bright flowers that moving from the pool is a hard task!

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We grabbed some morning smoothies which are made fresh at the pool bar.  I went for fresh mango. Perfect in the sunshine!

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At lunch time, we grabbed a salad & a gorgeous glass of wine at the pool bar.

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With temperatures hitting over 30 degrees, we were in pure heaven! Our holiday tans were officially started!

After a fantastic pool day, we got ready for a lovely little evening in Marbella Old Town.

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Marbella Old Town is a firm favourite of mine & I love eating here!

Less commercialised than the strip in Puerto Banus, all food is traditional Spanish.

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With the old churches & restaurants lit up in the evenings, it’s just the most beautiful place.

We chose a restaurant on the corner & sat there for the majority of the evening.

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With the candles twinkling & the white wine flowing, we were so happy.

After our meal & around 1am, we grabbed a taxi back into Puerto Banus.

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With nothing really closing until the early hours, we decided to go to the Shisha Lounge on the edge of the Port.

Overlooking the sea & underneath the stars, we sat there & relaxed with a cocktail & some apple flavoured shisha.

I do not think we had ever been so chilled!

Around 3am, we got a taxi back to the Resort ready to grab some beauty sleep ready for Day Three! x

 

Vacation: Marbella Day One

So the time had come.  We had been working hard for months like little beavers, counting down to this day.

HOLIDAY TIME!

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Me & the girls visited Marbella, Spain last year for a girlie break & we loved it so much that we just HAD to go back this year!

Flying from East Midlands Airport with Ryanair, our flight was just after 6am.  I love early flights! It just means that you have a full day at your destination – what could be better than that?!

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After picking up breakfast & some duty free, we boarded our plane!

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We arrived into Malaga Airport just after 10am Spanish time & headed off to grab our transfers.

We booked private transfers so we were greeted by a lovely old Spanish gentleman who took us away to our resort.

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We stayed at the Vasari Vacation Resort which is located in Puerto Banus.  I stayed here twice last year, & I could not recommend the place more! It is beautiful. The location is fantastic – 5 minute walk to the Port where you will find all the bars, restaurants & clubs. It’s gated with security so safety is fully taken care of.  There is a supermarket at the end of the road, so stocking up your fridge & cupboards is no problem!

The drive from Malaga Airport to Marbella/Puerto Banus is around 40 minutes. We arrived to the Resort just after midday.  Check-in time is normally around 4pm & therefore our room wasn’t quite ready.  We LOVE the pool bar at the resort so we grabbed some lunch & a bottle of Cava.

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Reception said we could change into our pool wear in the reception bathroom, so we changed & grabbed some sun loungers & another bottle of Cava!

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When we finally got into our room, we were not disappointed!  We had a huge balcony, which is great as we love to sit out on an evening & get ready.  For our first night I wore a River Island dress, my Michael Kors shoes & carried my DKNY bag.

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We took a taxi to the Port around 10pm & grabbed some dinner at Picasso’s.  We love it here! The food & the atmosphere are second to none.  People queue to get in on an evening as everyone wants to attend this popular pizzeria. We ate so much food that we seriously could not move!

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Just look at the view we had over dinner! It truly is surreal!

After dinner we went to a few bars on the strip & then called it a night around 1am.  It had been a long day & an early start & we were so excited for the next few days!

Be sure to come back to see what we got up to on Day Two! x

Holiday Eve at The Hilton

So it’s the Eve of your holiday.  You have been counting down the minutes, days, weeks & months to this moment and your excitement levels are off the scales.  Sound familiar?!

Well, me & the girls had the same excitement so we booked ourselves into a hotel to start off our holiday in a relaxed & fun way.

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We chose to stay at The Hilton’s East Midlands Airport Hotel.  Our flight was from East Midlands Airport very early the next morning so it all made perfect sense.  We managed to get a great offer on the Holiday Extra’s website & I would highly recommend them.

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The Hotel was wonderful.  We headed off around midday & checked in just before 2pm.  We grabbed some lunch at the hotel bar/restaurant & then went to check out our room.

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As we were going on holiday, we had packed all our swimsuits etc, so we decided to take full advantage of the pool & spa area that the Hilton has to offer.

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We spent around 2 hours lazing around in the jacuzzi, steam room and sauna, before showering & heading back to our lovely room.

We had pre-brought food & a bootle of prosecco & had our very own little pre-holiday slumber party!

With a 3am alarm call for the morning, the spa was just what we needed & we headed off to bed feeling so relaxed!

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It was a perfect way to start off the girlie holiday!

If you do want to check out the Hilton at East Midlands Airport, then you can do so here 

Make sure you come back to see Day 1 of our Vacation!

Hello July!

Hello!

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I hope you have all had a wonderful June!

I cannot believe we are now into July – where is the year going?  Are you all enjoying the sunshine?

I have just come back from an amazing little holiday in Marbella, Spain & I will be posting some pictures on here over the weekend!  Be sure to come back & check them out – it was a wonderful break away with my two best friends!  Sunshine, music, memories & fun, we really did have a great time.

However, it’s now back to reality, but thankfully England has been lovely and kind to us all and the sun has been shining its little heart out the last few days!

The weekend is now upon us & I for one cannot wait to top up my holiday tan!

Happy Friday! x

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