Boxing Day..

Regional area style!

Being from Melbourne I was accustomed to Boxing Day crowds. I had a plan; priority list of stores and things to look for as well as the order to look for them in (most popular items to disappear first to things people don't go straight for at the stores).

Our Myer opened at 8:30 am, the other stores at 9am. I wasn't sure what to expect, are the shoppers here as dedicated (insane) here as in Melbourne? Will I be crushed by a mob trying to get in the door?

I decided to arrive to the shops earlier in case parking was difficult. Turns out there was no need. 8:10am and the car park was practically deserted! For once there was no need to hurry and plenty of time to sit and enjoy a nice breakky.

Freshly baked scones with delicious cream and jam!

I was expecting quite a crowd around the front entrance by the time Myer opened, but there was just a small handful of people milling around which was awesome.
Unfortunately being a small store there really wasn't much of a selection available and not much caught my eye-the only thing I had been after was the MJ Dot fragrance gift set which was sold out prior to Christmas.

Thank goodness for Myer's Christmas Eve online sale!
photo from sephora.com

After a quick 15 minute circle of the store I decided my time would be better spent checking whether Peter Alexander had opened.
Sadly they hadn't, but when they did I was the first in the door!

Score one! Mr Kittylove gave me the matching eye mask for my birthday.
photo from peteralexander.com.au

Score two! $10 cheaper than online as well!
photo from peteralexander.com.au

The only disappointment at PA was that I couldn't grab the teddy bear nightie at the top of my list and while I did stumble across the Alice in Wonderland nightie, it didn't make sense to pay $50 for it when it was only $37 awhile back and when I can buy other adorable nighties for $29!

With the high priority shopping behind me, I went back to Myer for a second look. I needed another sheet set as I hated the rough BigW one I had (brought late night when all other stores had closed and I realised I had no bed sheets to fit my new queen sized bed!)

Myer had 40% off Sheridan and 50% off Heritage and Vue, but the prices were still a little steep for me. So I wandered off to Target for a looksie just in case they had a sale on. They did! 50% off 1000 and 500 thread sheet sets. So I ended up with a 500 thread count sheet set for the price I would've paid for one 250 thread flat sheet at Myer. Anything's an improvement from the old Big W one, I purchased an Ikea flat sheet for less back in Melbourne a few weeks ago and it's luxurious in comparison.

By this time the crowds had started to pick up, so I decided it was time to leave the big stores and head to the smaller stores.

Forever new had 50% off the already reduced price for a few items. I picked up the last of the Karmen Biker jacket in porcelain.

Surprisingly comfy
photo from forevernew.com.au

I was ready to head home, but all the traffic in the car park intimidated me so naturally I walked into Country Road for some bargains. Thanks to an additional 25% off for members I ended up with a pair of stretch jeggings for $45. 

What's in the bags?

The haul

I left the shopping centre with an additional T by Bettina Liano dress and Essie Apricot Cuticle Oil, both from Myer.

I was pretty pleased with all my bargains today, almost everything had been 50% off or more. Then I made the mistake of adding up the amount of money I'd spent. *face-palm*

Oh well, I'd been pretty good up until now AND I'd refrained from buying this pack from Kit Cosmetics which has since sold out.

Limited Edition Power to the Pear Kit from Kitcosmetics
photo from kitcosmetics.com.au

Did you brave the crowds today?