My day at Princesshay – A shopping diary

This month I was asked to trial the Princesshay Gift card by going on a free shopping trip! After much deliberation, my answer was of course yes – who doesn’t love a shopping spree? My Mum was planning on coming down for a visit from London and she is a bit of a shopaholic so I thought it would be the perfect time to try it out.

We started the day at 9.30 popping to the Princesshay Customer Service Kiosk on Bampfylde Lane (between Superdry and Chandos Deli) to collect my card.  With the card I got to choose a Gift of Choice wallet, available in multiple designs, including an exclusive ‘Great Big Rhino’ design.

I opted for one with cupcakes on it. The Gift Card can carry between £5 and £500,  mine had a very generous £100 on it to spend in any of the 70 shops and restaurants within Princesshay.

We began our shopping spree the only way I know how, with coffee at indie cafe Chandos Deli. Chandos is tucked away behind the Customer Service Kiosk and is a glorious find. Selling all things Mediterranean, it is a bit of a home from from nome (Hubby is half Italian).

Chandos sell a lovely range of cured meats, olives and cheeses, a fine array of Tea Pigs and condiments. They also make great coffee served with a smile and you can eat in or take-away, I bought myself a cappuccino and a box of Maldon’s rock salt very easily with my Gift Card – it works a bit like a credit card – I just had to swipe and sign.

At 10am my mum and I had an appointment in Debenhams beauty department for a Bare minerals girlfriend party.

Amy from Bare Minerals did a half face make-under on my Mum and myself and showed us how to finish the other half, learning as we worked. It was lovely to start our shopping spree with some pampering, I also noticed that Benefit next door have a Brow Bar so I booked in for a wax and shape the next day.

Bare Minerals have a beautiful range of natural make-up made from (you guessed it) minerals and natural ingredients, I have been using them for years.

For my make-under I sampled their new Bare Pro pressed powder foundation which I found to be lovely on my skin, natural looking but with great coverage. It was lovely to learn how to do it ourselves. I purchased my foundation with my Gift Card, it was very easy.

After we came out I popped into HMV to look around, I love music shopping and I wanted to buy a new CD so I had a look through their HMV recommends section where members of staff have reviewed several new albums.

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On the basis of their reviews I opted for Part time spies by the Ramona Flowers – I wanted to hear something “of the moment.” 

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On a side note, isn’t it awesome that in an era of downloadable music, the likes of The Carpenters, Bob Marley, The Beatles and Freddie Mercury are New and Trending!

I picked up a copy of the new David Bowie biography at the counter and paid for it all on my card.

In the meantime, Mum couldn’t help herself and had sneaked off across the way to Schuh and had bought herself some new shoes. I caught up with her sharing a joke with the lovely shop assistant.

We’d worked up quite an appetite and headed for lunch at our favourite hang out Yo! Sushi. We were delighted to discover that Blue Monday had turned into Blue September! For those of you who don’t regulate Yo! Sushi, this means that all the plates on the conveyor are £2.80 each – a bargain!

Yo! Sushi sells a range of Japanese dishes, with mostly cold plates of sushi and other delights on the conveyor belt. You can also get hot dishes to order like noodles, rice and dumplings (Gyosa).

Mum and I helped ourselves to food, we had a lovely lunch for around £25 for both of us with a range of sushi, fruit and chocolate balls from the belt, tempura from the menu and fizzy water from the table tap. We totally managed to resist the temptation of prosecco (for a change).

After we had re-energised  we headed back to the shops and I popped into JD Sports to try on the red retro Adidas trainers I’d been coveting for a while. I was a bit naughty and ordered my size online.

Next up, I wanted to buy some presents for the kids so we headed to Tiger, I just love the kooky array of products they have in there. From funny shaped ice cube moulds to straws with paper flamingos on them, you’re guaranteed to find quirky gifts and random fun objects.

I bought the kids some fabric pens, a magic water book and a matching cards game.

Finally we stopped at Neal’s Yard for some natural remedies, the staff at Neal’s Yard were very knowledgeable and helpful.

The shop smelled gorgeous. Our herbs were carefully selected, weighed and bagged up and we enjoyed a lovely cup of herbal tea.

I bought some lavender for my cat to help her skin recover and Mum needed some camomile based tea to help her sleep.

We had a fab day in Princesshay and the Gift Card makes a great gift for people of all ages. It’s perfect for birthday presents, thank you gifts, secret santas, wedding present, and any other present you can think of!

It is incredibly easy to use, you can purchase from the Princesshay Customer Service Kiosk on Bampfylde Lane between Superdry and Chandos Deli or you can pick one up online. You can even keep track of the balance here. All the cards are registered to the purchaser and the balance can be retrieved should the card be lost or stolen.

Thanks to Princesshay for our lovely day, here’s a little video of what we got up to..

 

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