How to Bag a Bargain: Everything5pounds.com

When I first saw the advert for Everything5pounds.com, I wasn’t convinced. Firstly, because it had that girl from The Only Way Is Essex in it, persistently squawking, ‘This dress, was only faaahhhhhhhve paaahhhhhnds….! This top, was only faaahhhhhve paaahhhhhhnds….!’ over and over again, which was REALLY annoying. But mostly because, really? Everything? £5? The last time I remember a store where everything was just £5 I was 16 and everything was made of stretchy two-tone fabric (well, it was the end of the nineties…) so I didn’t really believe it was possible to get good quality clothes for £5. Or not ones I wanted to wear anyway…

How wrong I was! What I didn’t realise is that rather than just being a collection of cheap, market stall style clothing, Everything5pounds actually stocks hundreds of ex-season clothing from many high streets brands, so is essentially a giant outlet store! After seeing friends keep turning up to work in items they proudly declared came from the website, I decided it was high time I did a little shopping to see if it was all it was cracked up to be. You know, all in the name of research! Here’s how I got on….

The boring bits…

It’s pretty straightforward – you’ve all been Internet shopping before, right? Things to bear in mind though is that you won’t know who makes your items – the Brands aren’t advertised and labels will often be cut out, so you need to buy based on the fact you love the item rather than the name (which to be honest is how I would hope you shop anyway…) Another thing to bear in mind is shipping costs. If you’re in the UK they charge a flat starting rate of £3.95, which is perfectly average for most fashion sites, however when the cost per item is just £5, it might feel disproportionate if you’re only ordering one thing. I would never recommend bulking up your order for the sake of it, but you might want to consider waiting until there are a few bits you’d like. That said, certain items don’t hang around too long, so be careful not to dither too much! They have a standard returns policy if you decide it wasn’t for you.

The purchases…

The Spotted Dresses

If you know me you’ll know the first place I headed was the dresses section! Dresses probably make up the biggest chunk of my wardrobe thanks to how easy they are to wear and style, but I have so many that I always feel a little guilty about buying new ones. When they only cost £5 though…? Well, that’s just a nice little treat now, isn’t it! I wasn’t overwhelmed at the offerings though, until I happened upon this rather lovely little black and nude spotted dress. This was completely my style so I clicked on it immediately and discovered it came in multiple prints and colours! Normally this would cause a real dilemma, but costing so little anyway I decided to get two – the hard part was deciding which, but I went with the original as it would wear well in Winter, and this lovely sage green and pink version as the colours were so lovely together. I was very impressed with what arrived – they  looked exactly like the product photos and were made of a lovely silky fabric which hangs just right. They’re made by K&D London which I believe is actually a European brand unknown in the UK, not that I’m bothered. My only real criticism – and it’s a very small criticism – is that the tie that comes with them is a little on the short side, but as I normally add a belt anyway it’s no problem for me.

The Verdict: LOVE – seriously regretting not getting some of the other prints which have since sold out. You can pick up this dress in other prints here, here and here.

The 50s Style Frock

We all know that full skirted dresses are basically my life’s breath, so it should come as no surprise that I managed to bag one this time around. Most of the dresses I have in this style are summery or a little on the on the dressy side, so I was happy to see this white version with longer sleeves as it might be easier to wear throughout the year. Again, the real life product was very much like the photos. It’s a textured fabric with a nice stiffness to the skirt, though the fit could be better. The sleeves are just a touch too wide for my liking, but I think I can fix that. This particular one appears to have sold out, but you can get a similar one in yellow or nude here.

The Verdict: So so. I like it, but I don’t love it, though with some tweaks to make the sleeves and bodice a little snugger to my form, I think it will do just fine.

The Cami Tops

Now, I own a lot of cami tops. More than a normal person requires, perhaps. In fact, I already have both black and white camis, which might make the next two purchases seem a little odd, but the thing is, I’m yet to find the perfect one. I’ve found plenty of ‘ok for a specific occasion’ camis, but never that smart enough for evenings; casual enough for daytimes; just the right amount of floaty without being obscene kind of cami that haunts my dreams, and so I’ve collected quite a few over the years. These two both looked like contenders, so in the cart they went! The black cami, as it transpires, is actually by Quiz Clothing and still had it’s tags on, so I’m aware I saved myself around £15 on it, which is always nice to know! The fabric wasn’t quite as soft as I was expecting but the lace touches were very pretty, and while I don’t think my search is complete just yet, it’s the perfect companion for all those big skirts I like to wear on nights out! The white one was also a bit of a bargain. The label was cut out, but being the shopaholic I am I still was able to decipher what was left of it and quickly recognised it as River Island! This one is inching that little bit closer to perfection than the other, with it’s sweet shoulder ties and generous length, though it possibly would look better on someone with a smaller bust (which is hilarious, because I don’t actually have much bust to be honest) Both of these are still available here and here.

The Verdict: Like the black one, love the white one, so an all round win!

So, it really is possible to get good clothes for just £5! Honestly, I’m super impressed and will be sure to visit again! Don’t get me wrong – you have to set aside a good chunk of your day, because there is an awful lot of stuff on there and you’ll probably only want 5% of what you see, but there are gems in there for the finding! And there’s a whole load of shoes and handbags I haven’t even checked out yet….!

Any of you visited yet, and what were your thoughts?

Love,

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