If you have school aged children and I say to you 'back to school', I bet you start thinking about shopping and getting the kids kitted out with all their new uniform and essential supplies. The obvious places to shop are the supermarkets (for cheap and cheerful tops and socks) or the high street department stores for the slightly more expensive pieces that you want to last a while, but have you thought about shopping at an outdoor retailer like Blacks?
As well as the actual uniform I expect you need a waterproof or winter coat, trainers, school bag, gym bag and water bottle. Blacks have all these things and because they are a retailer of items for outdoor activities, we are talking really high quality items. They cater for both children at primary school and also bigger kids like mine that have moved into adult sizes and are heading to secondary school, or even college.
My 11 year old twin girls move up to secondary school this year and that means I have a massive task ahead getting them kitted out. Their uniform will include a blazer and therefore any coat I get needs to be a bit larger to go over it and as they have about a mile walk to the bus and back each day they will need a good waterproof to keep them looking smart and feeling comfortable.
Miss E already has a waterproof jacket, as being a size smaller than her twin she gets the hand-me-downs but Miss M was definitely in need. So we had a browse of the women’s waterproof jackets on the Blacks site and I kept pointing her to nice jackets that were perhaps plain black or navy to go with her uniform, but no I totally forgot who I was dealing with. This is my vivacious and vibrant daughter, who likes to be colourful and to express herself, so here is what she choose, a beautiful coat by Joules. How can it be that my 11 year old has a piece of Joules clothing before I do?
It's a lovely long cut (length 85cm) with a scooped bottom at the back with a V cut into it.
The hood is adjustable and there is a drawstring waist.
Full zip and poppers also, as well as poppers at the pockets.
The cuffs are elasticated to help keep you dry.
So we had a look on Blacks for women’s running shoes and she selected a couple of pairs she likes. First there was an Adidas pair in a fabulous pale grey and peach colourway but then she decided that she didn't like the bungee lacing system and quickly fell in love with a pair of Asics GEL-Sonoma 3 G-TX in black and peach, it must be her colour of the moment!
They are currently available in sizes 3 - 7 and retail for £85.00. Although again if you act quick you can secure the 20% off that I mentioned above and that means they will be the bargain price of £68.00.
Miss M tells me they are really comfy fit and your feet feel secure in them but Id say to size up by about half a size as I feel they come up small.
Obviously you can either buy in Blacks stores across the UK or online. Delivery to your chosen address is free if you spend £80 or more or £4.95 for standard delivery and £5.95 for next day UK delivery. You can also order for delivery into store for you to collect, this is free if your order is over £30 or £1 if it is under. I've shopped with Blacks a number of times for home delivery and always found the service to be good. They also have a fair returns, refunds and exchanges policy which you can check out online.
Oh and lastly, did you know they price match? To be truthful, I didn't realise that and it is a great service. If you find the exact same product for sale elsewhere at a cheaper price, they will beat the price by 10%.
Why not pin this post for later?
Disclosure: I was provided with the jacket and trainers for the purpose of this review. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.
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