• Koodos have a sale on Ray Ban sunglasses. Approx 25% off most styles, lots of different designs http://bit.ly/cRU0pS

• Koodos also have 24 styles of Tom Ford shades, reduced to £89 each … http://bit.ly/dCArfa

• Luxe fans might want to look at some of the wear-forever pieces in the Karl Lagerfeld sale at Cocosa http://bit.ly/bd6nfy

• Cocosa also have a smaller Alexander McQueen sale, more one for the shoe gals http://bit.ly/bd6nfy

• If you’d like an invitation to join Cocosa so you can look at their sale previews, please send me a DM or PM, or an email and I can send you one (I don’t work for them, by the way!)

• Just seen the Great Plains sale – lovely £60 dresses reduced to £9 and so on, impressive. (thanks to @fabinyour40s) http://bit.ly/aEVl7m

• Elle Macpherson lingerie up to 70% off (gorgeous) and Anna Sui shoes at BrandAlley http://bit.ly/9C4zCN

• You’ll have to be quick! Massive reductions on Meyer Prestige pans, kitchen gadgets, retro-styled kettles at ACHICA. http://bit.ly/aUvV0q

• Cheapsmells.com have Dolce & Gabbana – Feminine 100ml EDT, for only £25.00. That’s a saving of 40% off the RRP. http://is.gd/dObLn

• £2 fish tacos and more for 2nd birthday of Benito’s Hat, Goodge Street (via Londonist) http://bit.ly/abAYdg

• Further reductions in the M&S clearance. Some things have sold out, but I have it on good authority that there are still lingerie bargains to be found… http://bit.ly/a2MCcs

• Open City is FREE and your chance to look at secret London for one weekend in September (via @AboutLondon) so don’t miss it http://bit.ly/bNTai7

• Fragrance Direct have stacks of perfumes under £10, have a nosey around their offers section here: http://bit.ly/bmXLZQ

If you’ve seen any other freebies or bargains this week, please share the good news!

• The last few days of warehouse clearance now at Play.com. Some cheap clothes and you can stock up on stocking fillers http://bit.ly/cFNITl

• Grab your YO! Virgin free plate of sushi at participating stores. Hurry this offer expires soon… http://bit.ly/ciBdWV

• The Dorothy Perkins sale just started (online) and it is looking v good. Am considering this dress, or some shoes… http://bit.ly/b6i2O9

• So it turns out you can get 5% cashback going via Quidco, and free P&P with code: DPTDEL if you fancy anything in the Dorothy Perkins sale.

• There is free delivery on the Tesco Clothing site this week, as well as a clearance sale http://bit.ly/r79p2

• See by Chloe and Betty Jackson sales opened this afternoon at www.cocosa.com

• Free night out ideas from lovemoney.com http://bit.ly/ckJdS2

• I have my eye on a couple of the lamps at ACHICA today – time to spruce up the boudoir… http://bit.ly/d8zfuw

• Some big reductions on Freesoul jeans etc (male & female) at SecretSales this afternoon http://bit.ly/dhirb9

• The CheapSmells summer clearance sale is rather good, & more than just scents. Stocking up on half price Elnett… http://bit.ly/bBCs4I

• Designer sunglasses sale, up to 80% off at Vente Privee (incl Luella, Erickson Beamon, M Williamson etc) http://bit.ly/dzxsMx

• Fitness fans, the three day Nuffield Health gym pass is back at Wahanda and it’s FREE! http://bit.ly/aCWAdS

• Wahanda’s daily MobDeal is good too – £20 for two waxing or threading treatments http://bit.ly/9e2Dcg

Have you found any bargains of your own today? Come on, spill the beans!

• End of line toys TishTashToys on sale http://fb.me/E2ECYomH

• Free samples of Elastoplast’s new sticking plasters (handy for holidays or handbag 1st aid) http://www.elastoplast-promotions.co.uk/samples

• Free grow your own veg booklet and free Tuscan salad seed mix offer. Will be offered mag subscription to Which? Gardening magazine, decline politely if you don’t want one http://bit.ly/9NUJEb

• Nice lovemoney.com article about finding freebies http://bit.ly/bh2Rul

• Last chance to win a £25 pampering voucher for a top hair and beauty salon in Leeds: http://bit.ly/b5NwBC

• An update from the kitchen garden – going a long way on not a lot of money… http://bit.ly/8YSa8i

• SecretSales have some great reductions on Petit Bateau, Peter Werth (men), and Les Nereides jewellery http://bit.ly/aDA7Cp

• Calvin Klein swimwear sale today at BrandAlley http://bit.ly/c4WU9J

• The summer clearout at the Perfume Point outlet has some nice scents at up to 86% off RRP (some sold out already…) http://bit.ly/9J26IX

• Some really good deals on Raymond Blanc cookware, going like hot cakes at ACHICA http://bit.ly/9k07Tq

• Amazing deal for gardeners – 6-pack of tomato seeds, mix of tasty varieties, for planting next year, only 99p +50p P&P http://bit.ly/aGuxf1

• Today only, eBay Daily Deals have classic white cotton shirts for women for £16.99 (usually £50), sizes 6-20, free P&P http://bit.ly/cOLrOb

Have you seen any other great deals today? Please share the bargainy goodness!

There’s still a lot growing on the windowsills, including cherry (Garden Pearl) and plum tomatoes, sweet Genovese basil, baby leaf spinach, rocket and land cress. I was told that all the tomatoes would ripen at the same time with these varieties, but instead we’ve had plenty of fruits each week and there are still flowers here and there as well. That’s much better for a kitchen garden, as it’s better to try for a continuous supply of fresh produce rather than a glut that needs using up or preserving.

I think next year I’ll be less lazy with what I grow and have some cordon type toms, instead of the bushy types. Longer growing seasons and higher yields should make better use of the limited space, even if they aren’t the sort of plants you can chuck in a pot and forget about.

The windowsill is warm, sunny and pest free, which is handy for most plants. The garden has had lots of problems with beet leaf miners which have ruined most of the outdoor spinach, leaf beet and chard, but baby leaf spinach is just fine on the sill. The dwarf beans are happy here too, away from this year’s swarms of greenfly, and still flowering and making full sized french beans every few days.

The windowsill herbs here are mint and parsley, and they’re doing fine. No need to spend stupid amounts of money for very little at the supermarket…

Most of the pots had to be moved outside in the end. There’s almost no topsoil here, but they’re doing OK on the decking. Here we have different types of basil, lemon balm, marjoram, a cucumber plant, autumn sprouting calabrese, thyme and some toms with an incredible amount of fruit on them. There are some mixed wild flowers in there too, to get bees to pollinate the plants, and to attract hoverflies to eat garden pests.

I’m experimenting with some more unusual foodie flavours I’ve never grown before, including giant red mustard, sorrel, russian tarragon, salad burnet and golden purslane. To keep a regular supply of the things we eat the most, I’ve also been sowing a few seeds of parsley, radishes, stubby carrots, coriander and spring onions every couple of weeks in small pots. Very easy to throw together and it really keeps the grocery bills down because you don’t run out of your favourites.

This looks like a raised bed, but it’s just more knackered decking with the wood taken off the top and the rubble removed, plus some cheap compost chucked in. This monster below is white sprouting broccoli, and it’s basically the only thing that the cat hasn’t dug up (I suspect it secretly threatens to eat the cat when I’m not listening). Thanks to my be-clawed ‘little helper’, the almost-raised bed hasn’t been much of a success and the only way it’s going to work is if I plant things in it that are already pretty large. I’ve been growing a few things in modules in the mini-greenhouse so let’s see how the next batch of plants get on.

The front of the decking has an older cucumber plant with some salad leaves at the base, the non-stop courgette plant and some almost-ready salad potatoes. They have all done me proud and been very easy to grow with hardly any care needed.

The back of the decking is where I got a little over-confident, with some sweetcorn, a butternut squash plant and all kinds of beans growing up the trellis (which saved on buying canes). Take it from me, sweetcorn and Hunter squash are not ideal for most small gardens – they’re nutrient hungry and low yield, and thirsty. Don’t try this at home. But the seeds were free and if it all goes to plan they will probably be delicious. To get the best yield from sweetcorn you have to plant it in clumps rather than rows, there are 12 in this picture.

The sweetcorn variety is a new one that grows about 4 to 6 mini sweetcorn per plant, but if you miss the baby corn stage, unlike some others, it goes on to give you a couple of nice fat corn cobs per plant as well. Sounds too good to be true, and it is – to get the baby sweetcorn out you practically have to rip the plants to pieces so although they were tasty I am letting the rest of them become full sized cobs.

Hardly any beans so far - a late frost got half of the first lot and karate kitty got the second lot. Thanks kitty. The borlotto beans are the only variety outdoors to produce anything edible to date. Fingers crossed for the rest of them, which were a late sowing.

There are a few crappy old windowboxes left behind by the previous owners, and these are now filled with herbs, various salad leaves, beetroot, mini-cabbages, fennel, and a few other goodies. There are also some marigolds to cheer the place up and bring in the bees/scare off pests.

The hanging salad baskets have grown a lot of food from very little compost, including red and green salad bowl lettuce, herbs, radiccio, juicy spring onions, and Tom Thumb lettuces. This one also has edible flowers which allegedly double up as pest control (marigold and nasturtium) but I like the splash of colour as well.

That’s all from the garden for the time being. What have you been growing? Any success stories?

• YumiDirect’s 50% off summer sale continues: http://www.uttamdirect.com
• Get an extra 40% off chic tops for this weekend only at TheOutnet http://bit.ly/dvWOJz
• Limited offer of cut, deep condition and blowdry for £19 (was £49) at Headlines SW1 http://bit.ly/b69NZf
• Very impressive one day designer sale, lots of brands and big reductions at BrandAlley right now http://bit.ly/agxlww

• SecretSales: Earl Jean and Elvis Jesus streetwear and denim, plus Bench and designer sunglasses sales http://bit.ly/9lWKRe
• Thinking about getting this deal – free Nokia E72 phone plus £15 per month for unlimited internet etc http://tryth.at/ba4r7
• Brabantia bins, iPhone and iPod hard cases, beautiful vacuum jugs (for coffee @ the desk) and posh towels today at ACHICA http://bit.ly/9QIVhF

• M&S summer sale big clearance is now on http://bit.ly/a2MCcs
• Don’t forget, it’s the most excellent DSUK sale this afternoon/evening – be there! http://bit.ly/aJwMKC
• Get two free Tae Kwon Do or self defence lessons: http://bit.ly/9orq3p
• Taylors are giving away 1,000 free bags of dark roast coffee http://bit.ly/alVY0N 

• Boohoo have dresses from £8 in their sale, worth a little trawl… (or try the new collections) http://bit.ly/cYGWY1
• Comp to win three £25 pampering vouchers (Leeds-based salon) http://bit.ly/9qB72Q
• Debenhams have two tickets to the hottest retro festival Vintage at Goodwood to be won http://bit.ly/djoa27
• Invite your friends to join SecretSales & you could win an Apple iPad http://ow.ly/2fG9t

If you’ve seen anything else, please let me know. Share the bargainy goodness!

Please add your own bargains and sales below if you’ve seen anything good!

Regular readers will know that I’ve tried a few different group buying websites with varying results. The idea behind them is that if enough of you get together and express an interest you can command a hefty discount by sheer weight of numbers. I think they tend to work best for treats such as meals out, spa and beauty treatments, comedy nights, exercise classes and so on.

Anyway, I am very fussy about which sites I’m happy to endorse. One of the nicer ones is Kahootz Leeds, a relatively new service that gives you a range of offers each week with up to 70% discount if you sign up to their mailing list. They regularly have a good choice of offers at local restaurants, spas and hairdressing salons, and they’ll soon be expanding to cover the Manchester area too. Regular site users can also gain site credit for referring their favourite deals on to friends, which they can then redeem against future purchases.

If you live within easy reach of Leeds, we have an excellent competition for you this week. All you have to do is click on the link below and sign up to receive the Kahootz newsletter, it’s as easy as that. This time next week, Kahootz will pick out three lucky people who signed up via this website, and they will each win a voucher for £25 to spend on pampering treats at Charles Lewis Beauty in Leeds.

You can spend your prize voucher on one or a combination of the following:

1. Hairdressing: haircut/colour, blow dry, hair up, half head of foils
2. Express facial
3. Spray tan
4. Back, neck and shoulder massage
5. Manicure/pedicure

If you’d like to be in with a chance to win these sweet pampering treats,  just head over to the Kahootz site and sign up to their newsletter using the following link: Penny Golightly and Kahootz Leeds Pampering Competition.

If you aren’t one of the lucky winners announced next week, you will then have the option to purchase one of these rather lovely £25 pampering vouchers for the discounted price of £11, if you wish.

T&Cs: Three winners will be drawn by Kahootz Leeds this time next week. You must use the Penny Golightly link to sign up, or your entry will not be counted. UK entrants only please. Multiple entries will be disallowed. Penny Golightly and www.pennygolightly.com are not affiliated to Kahootz Leeds, and your competition entries will not profit this site financially. No purchase required, no cash alternative. Your details will not be passed on to a third party without your permission.

You can hang out at home with some music or a good book, scarfing down home made ice lollies and granitas, or sipping some cloudy lemonade or ginger beer. If you have outside space then a few tea lights twinkling away in old jam jars are all you need to sit out on warm evenings.

Or head to any of the parks with a cheap rug or mat and a home made picnic. I know there are a few park poseur types who spend a fortune on blankets, hampers and fancy plates, but it can all be done on a shoestring and to hell with keeping up with the Joneses. The only thing that’s really worth spending a little extra on is a good vacuum flask that keeps things piping hot (or icy cool, if you prefer) and is leak-proof and fairly robust. Have a quiet one with the papers, or add plenty of friends and a few beers, it’s perfect either way.

When the weather’s warmer you can take off and do loads of different free walks, ranging from a short slacker-ish ramble to a full-on yomp, depending upon your preference. You can also get out of town for very little with various special travel offers and off-peak advance fares. I recently had a return trip to Brighton for £5, which made for a perfect day out, including a wander down the seafront and some loafing about on the beach.

While the big ticketed day and weekend festivals get a lot of press, there are also hundreds of free events to get yourself along to, with happenings to suit every taste. There’s always something free to try down at the Southbank, and there are plenty of outdoor fairs and festivals that have heaps of stalls and entertainments and cost nothing to attend, from Lewisham People’s Day to Notting Hill Carnival.

The main collections of most museums and art galleries are free, and many regularly have late evenings which are filled with interesting creative programmes (the easiest thing is to sign up for their mailing lists). Or head out to some or free or subsidised gigs, outdoor theatre, or even the BBC Proms (prices start at around £5).

Who cares if we’re broke, let’s have fun anyway.

 Some of the bigger luxe brands include Prada, John Galliano, Martin Margiela, Vivienne Westwood, D&G, Sophia Kokosalaki, Romeo Gigli, Gianfranco Ferre, Yohji Yamamoto, Ossie Clark, Allegra Hicks, Biba, Louis de Gama, and Oliver Spencer. There’s also a decent selection of higher end streetwear labels too, plus a few items of clothing for children from Miss Sixty and other shops.

There will be past season stock, a few overstocks, and sample garments. These samples tend to be on the small size, so you will probably have the widest range of choice if you’re female and a UK size 8 to 12, or male and a size Medium.

While the doors officially open at noon, customers have the option to queue jump by buying an advance VIP ticket for £25. This nets you a goodie bag with contents worth £75, entry into a prize draw to win a designer handbag, and the opportunity to bowl into the venue at 11am for the pick of the rails. Alternatively, you can sign up on their website for the standard free invitation, which has always served me perfectly well.
 
Designer Sales UK July One Day Sale
Friday, 23rd July, 2010. Open to the public from 12 noon until 9pm at The Music Rooms, 26 South Molton Lane, London, W1K 5AB.
Sign up to their mailing list for a free invitation.

This article by Penny Golightly originally appeared on lastminute.com

This article by Penny Golightly originally appeared on lastminute.com