RUMMAGE REWARDS

So I've never really been one for sorting through piles of stuff to find that "hidden gem" that you can boast about to all and sundry for years to come. I hate T.K.Maxx with a slight passion, I think maybe all the shit shoes and fluorescent lighting cause my hackles to rise. Anyway, about a month ago, something momentous happened. Something that can only happen once. An experience that can either go really well or be toe-curlingly awkward and you can't wait till it's over with. I lost my virginity. My car boot virginity that is. And the old adage is true, when the first time's good, it leaves you hungry for more. Religious attendance every week has thus far secured me:

4 ornate side plates (£2)

1 brass swallow (£3)

1 pair of M People style earrings (£1)

1 large washed out and buffed gold leaf and floral vase (£2)

1 pair of leather studded cat ears (£1)

1 large gold "C" on a chain (£1)

And this week, today to be precise, I have secured what I can only be the bargain of my life.*

A GENUINE PPQ COAT FROM THE AW07 COLLECTION COMPLETE WITH PACK OF AMERICAN MARLBORO LIGHTS IN THE POCKET FOR £15.

Just to reiterate... FIFTEEN POUNDS.

Here's a picture so you can see what I'm gloating about. I'm sorry, I know, I know I sound just like all the other scavvy shopping dicks - but I simply cannot help it. I've opened the Pandora's Box of self-satisfied smugness, and boy am I basking in it.

*Apart from the Buffalo boots I got when I was eleven, reduced from £150 to £19 - they were a size four, I was a size seven. I wore them everyday till I finally hit the size eight milestone and they made my toes bleed.

PPQ

With the front row including an eclectic mix of Jodie Harsh sitting snug alongside popette Pixie Lott, PPQ’s status as celebrity favourite was further cemented. Things were kicked off with a series of LBD’s adorned with reams of particularly mustard hued gold fringing. Gold lame inserts added a little flash to simplistic black tube dresses, and an entire lame trench was a real showstopper not to be tackled by the fainthearted. Models teetered out on black (again) patent heels which were rather stripper meets little bow peep, a vertiginous heel adorned with sweet enlarged bows as fastenings. Gorgeously executed wool coats came tiered, tailored, belted and nestling in fur from the collar down to the waist. There was again the very ‘on trend’ combination of black and brown, the latter sneaking its way into the bodice of a dress in subtle satin stripes or as the jacket lapel on what could best be described as a ‘power romper’. One couldn’t help but cite Dynasty as a major influence, but as much as there were shoulders and spandex aplenty, Bodycon often gave way to sweet A-Lines. Molyneaux and Parker added a modern touch with unfussy middle parted hair and the signature drainpipe skinnies were present and correct, this time taking form in the sexiest of black leather and finishing above the naval. There is no doubt that PPQ design what women want to wear, and even if you don’t manage to get your hands on anything, expect to be seeing on a celebrity near you very soon.