So my last blog was dedicated to my BFF who was expecting her first baby and is now the proud Momma of Baby N. She is adorable and admittedly the BFF has taken to motherhood like a duck to water. It's all masive sea change and I finally feel like I am having to properly grow up. Things have changed inexorably over the past few months. On holiday in Greece last September the boyf finally proposed after 6 years together and I was over the moon. I spotted the ring as soon as we arrived at the hotel as there was a jewellery shop in the foyer (luckily otherwise I'd be even closer to being an old maid). I dropped into conversation with D that 'if' he ever wanted to propose that 'style' of ring would work. I left the thought with him and said nothing more. My birthday happened to be that week as well and I was gutted when D presented me with 6 eBay purchased crystal earrings (£2.99 frm China) as my birthday present. I thought, this cannot be it. I spent the whole day brooding and worked myself into a frenzy spending the majority of my evening getting drunk and emotional. On walking back to the hotel after dinner D suggested a walk on the beach. I snapped 'why!' He said just come on so I did, churlishly. Moments later D was on one knee and 'the ring' was in front of me. My day had come, I was getting engaged. Surreal to say the least. At that folks was the start of a whirlwind coundown to a 2 person wedding (no guests invite) at Wood Hall Hotel & Spa www.handpickedhotels.co.uk/hotels/wood-hall-hotel, which was fantastic and everything we wanted. Just the two of us and totally unique and special. Our honeymoon was two days in a log cabin in Derbyshire (Hoseasons) inclusive of hot-tub and molton brown products. Fabulous and affordable. On our return to reality and some four days later I found out I was pregant and now a new chapter opens. I am getting bigger, establishing a maternity wardrobe (capsule) and gradually getting scared of what the future holds. The focus of my blog may change slightly but the bargain hunter in me will never go away. I will endeavour to update the blog more regularly and factor in the changes taking place that will alter my life forever.
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It seems like the country has gone baby crazy what with a new royal expected in the next few days. Of course if you're a royal it's 'money no object' when dressing the bump. In reality most women don't relish the idea of having to change their wardrobe every couple of months as their bump grows along with their discomfort. I have been discussing this concept with my BFF who is loathe, when saving for the baby and impending maternity leave, to spend money on revamping her wardrobe. I therefore offered to take a look at what bargains are out there for pregnant women. Also, I have noticed, why is it clothes stores seem to think preganant equals frumpy, famous women out there seem to be able to vamp up their bump so women on a budget can too. This blog is dedicated to maternity fashion and my BFF who is due to give birth in October. I promised her I would do some bargain maternity clothes research, so BFF, this is for you. xxxx This 'fishtail' top from Matalan is cute as it's floaty, light and doesn't scream 'I'm pregnant.' It looks like it will be comfortable, allow room for growth and will look nice over a pair of leggings or stretch waist band skinny jeans http://bit.ly/12yhfpT. Matalan does this top in a couple of different styles and they are £12 each. You can also find maternity skinny jeans and leggings on their site. I can't say that the range of maternity clothes is particularly extensive or impressive but there are a few bits which are affordable and fairly fashionable. How cute is this dress. It is so pretty and girly and would be suitable for work or a wedding. It's part of the asos maternity range which is really lovely. This dress is £35 and can be found at http://bit.ly/12uY1WQ. I also noticed in their sale they have some really comfortable looking brightly coloured sun dresses perfect for the beach or the current heat wave. I particularly liked this neon yellow version http://bit.ly/18cKrZj which has adjustable straps. It is current on trend to have mismatched hems with many summer/festival dresses have a short hem at the front and long at the back so the stretch over the bump doesn't matter at all! I had a look at the George for Asda maternity range which was not very inspiring. Florence & Fred for Tesco have a wide range of maternity swimming suits http://bit.ly/12yidmc and lingerie but nothing much else exciting. So of course when your expecting you have to look after yourself and bump. In pursuit of the ultimate pregnancy product I'm dragged to the upper eschlons of Harrods to try out their maternity products. They stock mama mio which is a popular range of maternity products. Apparently they are beneficial even if you aren't pregnant and people rave about their 'mighty moisture' and apparently a little goes a long way. If you're interested then www.feelunique.com is offering 10% off the product range. On the flip side I am also told you don't need pregnancy related products to ease the stretch marks, palmers cocoa butter will do the trick (£2.50 for 400ml). I noticed that Boots stock a mother to be range by Cussons which is very affordable http://bit.ly/15fwtU4. If you're currently expecting or a close friend is getting close to her due date why not doing something a bit different and make your own outfit for the baby! You have to check out this fabulous website called www.littledresskits.co.uk which gives you the opportunity to make the most adorable yet professional looking outfits. The picture on the left is one example but the website features many more to choose from. It might be a project for the beginning of maternity leave or just a token gesture to do something personal for a friend! Why not 'like' https://www.facebook.com/LittleDressKits?ref=hl or follow https://twitter.com/LittleDressKits. The latest feedback on Little Dress Kits from craft and maternity bloggers is fantastic so take a look for yourself! So there you go BFF this is for you and all the fabulous expectant mama's out there. If you have any comments or feedback please let me know! xx
Wow it's been way too long since my last blog posting and it's time to put that right. Even though I haven't been blogging the eagle bargain hunting eye has still been roving. I have curbed my own spending a little - we're in a recession don't you know and I am also running out of wardrobe space. Last week I was told that the average girl has 19 pairs of shoes - so I am not average - I knew that already. So, onwards and upwards to the latest installment of the Fashion Bargain Hunter. Enjoy xx Modern Fairytale Club (@MFCClothing) are 'Unique Fresh & Trendy' t shirt designers from Huddersfields. I noticed these guys on Twitter so gave them a follow. I then checked out their link http://bit.ly/113vIv5 and noticed that their designs were both unique and affordable. I sent them a message about buying a t shirt and they immediately responded, showed me their new designs (bang on trend Aztec themed) and I was impressed. I got a twitter follower discount immediately and the t shirt, ordered on Thursday arrived by Saturday! So, not only are the t shirts quirky and unique and affordable, the customer service is pretty damned good - all in all an excellent find worthy of a Fashion Bargain Hunter blog post mention - thanks guys! Aztec is everywhere at the moment - not for the faint hearted as the designs tend to be bold, dramatic and heavy on colour. But, a little bit can go a long way so if you don't want to rock the full on aztec look http://bit.ly/173QJYl (Aztec full-length skirt from www.shelikes.com (£12.00) or http://bit.ly/16TQDo7 (Aztec leggings again from http://www.shelikes.com (£8.00) then why not just break up an outfit with an aztec themed top http://bit.ly/Zgnt03 (just an example) which is more subtle. Another alternative is to rock some aztec themed ballet bumps - for the fashion conscious lacking a little bravery to go all out http://bit.ly/ZnEwuc. Ok so this is the good bit - the part that means I've done the hard work so you don't have to (am sure that's an advert tag-line). The aim here is to feature some decent websites featuring fashionable pieces at affordable prices for you to enjoy. 1. You have to check out http://www.prodigyred.com I almost fell off my executive office chair when I stumbled across this site. For illustration purposes only look at this gorge monochrome dress perfect for the office http://bit.ly/10XzreT a total steal at £14.99 Also look at http://bit.ly/ZshXne this super cute sweatshirt to glam up your couch potato look! Finally, cannot leave this entry 'shoeless' so also check out these Jeffrey Campbell esque beauties for £14.99 http://bit.ly/Yk733y. 2. Also click on to www.shelikes.com because this blogger definitely likes. I thought this tie dye sweatshirt (sounds dreadful looks great) http://bit.ly/17xeZVO was cute and would make for a very cool skinny jean combo with converse. There is a very helpful 'trends' section that you can use for inspiration www.shelikes.com/trends.html. So go on take and take a look! I would really love to make this blog interactive and get thoughts and feedback from anyone who reads it. Any feedback or comments are gratefully tips and fashion bargain hunting tips will always be published. Why not follow me on twitter @busyliz1. xx
So got up manically late last weekend having overslept due to jet lack and stumbled into town to meet my lovely friend for coffee. Mooching around the charity shops has become a bit of a hobby and whilst I was in the land of nod missing our get together time said lovely lady was actually choosing things she thought I may like and putting them aside at the charity shop - I loved all the things she chose! This cute little blazer is perfect for a weekend away as it folds up small, is lightweight and will girlify any plain black outfit. I may even wear it for work over a black dress with pink pumps. This was a bargain at £3.95 xx And this was choice number two from the same lovely friend. It's a River Island jacket and seems like it has been barely worn. This was £8.95 and has the cutest little bow detail on the pockets which are embellished with little twinkles. Another great weekend jacket to throw over a pair of skinny jeans for an evening out. xx I managed to get a link that introduced to me the hot 50 bargain dress of the season so far. I thought this River Island hottie was tres cool. It's £25 so not too pricey either. They have loads of geometric prints in at the moment which work really well for hiding lumps and bumps as they eye is distracted. Perfect for someone who hasn't quite got into the swing of the 2013 gym routine. Also check out http://bit.ly/14ArptH. Bargain beauty information -- Whilst stateside the week before last I noticed my hair was looking awful, bery broken and split from all the hair drying. I headed to my nearest Walmart and picked up a bottle of Argan Oil for $7.99 (you can get it i Boots for £7.99). I had vaguely heard people talking about it before but thought oil would be too greasy for me. It is lovely stuff and really helps bring back the shine to your hair. A bottle will probably last me an entire year so good value all round!
I am a perfume fiend and love a good spritz. I am also tight and hate wasting good perfume when just around the house or getting into bed. I have found this lovely cheap body spritz from Boots which is £2, vanilla scented and lasts the distance. It's from their natural collections range and really does the trick. Trendsetters - I don't purport to be trendy but recently managed to catch up on some style and 'ones to watch' reading and noticed the following:
Style In View is a new fashion search engine website that aims to bring you all the brands in men and women's fashion, from the leading high street fashion retailers and boutique shops, in one place. There's also a 'Sales' page, that lets you browse all the sales from different shops at once. We regularly update our blog with news on the latest trends and fashions and you can you can also find us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/StyleInView) Twitter (https://twitter.com/StyleinView) Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/styleinview/) and Google+ (https://plus.google.com/100377828788446204937/posts). Be sure to check it out and hope you enjoy the site! Worsley Designer Dress Agency: What is your business about? “Selling authentic, affordable, gorgeous sometimes rare ‘pre-loved’ designer handbags, clothes, shoes, accessories and some brand new, from top designer labels to high end High Street brands.” What products/services do you offer? “We re-home customers’ pre-loved authentic designer handbags, clothes, accessories in a friendly, centrally located dress agency boutique in the heart of Worsley village. Every item is handpicked by us, assuring all our handbags, clothes and accessories are 100% authentic, pristine, meeting our very high quality and value for money standards.” What sets you apart from the competition? “We offer a personalised, industry leading professional customer service. We are the largest seller of pre-loved authentic designer handbags, shoes and accessories in the north of England. With over 150 handbags in stock at any one time we are the number one destination must see Designer Dress Agency! Our boutique is based in the heart of the beautiful and historic Worsley village, in north Manchester, we are very accessible from the M62 motorway, easier to access than the city centre. We are only 10 minutes away from the Trafford Centre. We offer competitive commission rates and upload our new stock to Face book and Twitter on a daily basis, so customers know what’s in stock. We pride ourselves in taking the time to hand pick all our pre-loved authentic, designer goods including Louis Vuitton, Mulberry, Fendi, Prada, Gucci, Dior, Louboutin and many more. We also carry rarer and collectible older pieces, so the shop is like an Aladdin’s Cave for our customers. We aim to always carry a stock of 150- 200 fabulous, authentic pre-loved designer handbags giving our customers the best choice at fantastic bargain prices, outside of London.”
Am getting really into this blogging malarkey and have been doing some research this week with the help of Twitter. It's a great forum to discover people doing the same kind of thing as me, entrepreneurial fashionistas and make connections. I thought rather than just tell you where to buy bargains this week or what I'd seen I would actually feature some sites and people I've 'met' along the way. Marc Defang: Wow this site really blew me away when I saw a picture of his custom made shoes on Twitter. I have featured a pair above so you can see what I am talking about. They are so intricate, carefully put together and like little pieces of art. I tweeted my love for these shoes and was amazed when I got a response! I dropped them an email asking whether they ship to the UK and to my delight they do, for $19.90. I have already ordered my first pair and am busy saving for another. They aren't as bargainous as the usual things I feature but for the quality and the customer service I already know they are well worth the price. They do glam, glitzy, girly footwear and also feature matching clutch bags. There is also a bridal section. So, don't take my word for it -check-them-out @marcdefang,com xx Don’t Wear It Anymore Don’t Wear It Anymore sells pre-loved women’s designer, luxury high street and vintage fashion at purse friendly prices. Fashion items are gently worn and in excellent condition. As well as the chance to source a real bargain and find something truly unique, you can also sell your unwanted fashion items on the website. There is nothing more overwhelming than clearing out your wardrobe, but with a complimentary collection service in London for sellers, Don’t Wear It Anymore takes away the hassle of selling. Your fashion pieces are then photographed and put on the website. The aim of the site is to revive pre-loved clothes and accessories, making secondhand fashion glamorous. From Kurt Geiger to Isabel Marant, there is something for all. If you have any fashion items you are interested in selling, please e-mail [email protected] - also follow them on twitter @dontwear. Missguided & Fashion You definitely have to check out this extremely cute, savyy and reasonably priced site. It has everything you could look for on an affordable yet trendy fashion focused website. Check out this gorgeous peplum day dress http://bit.ly/13AoZvz for £22.99 - great for work or play. The site also features a 'trends' section so you can see what's hot and what's not for this season and next. Check out their blog too for a chance to win in their competition! Viva Las Vegas (& Chicago) - am off to the USA this week and so excited to see what fashion delights await me stateside. I might even find time to fit in a cheeky blog whilst I'm there! I am really not supposed to be spending ANY money at the moment after Christmas and with a holiday in the USA coming up but I could not resist these animal print shoes. I have been after a pair for a while to match with a plain black outfit. Am not a massive animal print fan but do like it interspersed with a plain outfit. I managed to pick these up for a bargainous £5.30 in Sainsburys. They were reduced from £18 and are really comfortable with a nice mid sized heel. As the years progress I find myself unable to walk or bear the pain of 5" stilettos so am embracing the 2"-3" inch mid court with the aim of not giving up heels altogether. At 5ft1" I really can't afford to wear flats all the time as everyone just towers above me :-(. These shoes make up for the ones which Debenhams could not find the other shoe to last week. I love the fact that I picked up salad, headphones and a pair of shoes all in the same shop! The supermarkets are really giving the high street a run for their money in terms of fashion and affordability. Ok so at first sight this looks like the weirdest picture ever and seemingly has nothing to do with the usual theme of my blog. At work we've been having in depth discussions about false eyelashes as one colleague got married, had eyelash extensions which unfortunately didn't stick and another tried out some semi permanent ones supposed to last three weeks. One section did fall out but prior to that they looked really glamorous and were £15 for the set from American Nails. I have really experimented with false eyelashes as am fortunate enough to have fairly long natural lashes. I was keen to give them a try and see if they were a) easy to use and b) didn't end up looking like dead caterpillars crawling across my face at the end of the night. I picked up a cheap pair (£2.19) of pre-glued petite lashes from Bodycare and was really surprised that they were easy to apply, stayed on all night and didn't take my real eyelashes off on removal. These lashes aren't massively obvious but did make my eyes stand out more. Bodycare doesn't have a website yet but there are stores in lots of towns around the country. They sell lots of high street toiletry products for reasonable prices. Since the arrival of my gorgeous handbag at Christmas I have become designer bag obsessed which doesn't really work with the theme Fashion Bargain Hunter, or does it? I noticed this eye-catching bag by Kenneth Cole on the website of Fashion Bloodhound and it was love at the click of a mouse. This bag would usually retail for £200 but is featured on the site for £75 as it's second hand (but in excellent condition available with accompanying dustbag). There are loads of great designer items on the site and all come with a description of their condition. It's a site where you can also sell your designer clobber off as well to make way for new high-end pieces. Another site doing a similar thing is Buy My Wardrobe. There a number of shops that do the same thing, most of which are in London. If you're in the big smoke why not check out the Pandora Dress Agency and also Bang Bang. Some lucky folks may be heading off to the slopes fairly shortly and looking for bits and pieces for their trip. It may sound strange but I noticed that Aldi are stocking a skiing range at crazily cheap prices. You can pick up skiing socks for £2.99, thermal layers for £4.99 and both kids and adults jackets for under £20. Skiing is a fairly expensive sport anyway so it might be useful to save a few pennies in advance for the ski pass! Talking of Aldi I am still hooked on my Aqua serum (£1.99) which is great for my sensitive skin and their aloe vera face wash which is non abrasive and leaves the skin feeling soft and fresh. I also picked up a food processor in Aldi today for £14.99 so all in all a successful trip to the bargain supermarket. It's been a while since my last blog (this feels like a confession) and I have been told in no uncertain terms by a close friend of mine that I must keep up the hard work with the blog and website. So, new year, new start and here is the first blog of 2013. My new years' resolutions are the same as every year, get thin, get fit, be content blah blah blah but I also want to explore my creative side more and achieve more outside of work. I will be accompanying my shopping forays with notebook and camera in hand with the aim of bringing you the best of the high street bargains. Watch this space. Hello Anya it's so nice to meet you! I was absolutely cock a hoop to receive a gorgeous Anya Hindmarch bag for Christmas. No, it's not a stripey cloth bag, this is just the dust bag. The handbag is black and beige leather with detachable straps. It was bought from Bicester at 50% off retail price (like Mother like daughter) but it was love at first sight, touch, feel and smell! It will be with me forever and will stand the test of time. 2013 is also going to be the year that I hope to add expensive but well made and good value products to my wardrobe. Let's see if I'll be ready and willing to give up the cash when the time comes! These were my Christmas present to myself as I find they are sturdier than the traditional Uggs and a little more unusual. I got them off M&M Direct for £107 when they retail at £249 so was pretty chuffed. I noticed that M&M Direct stock quite a large range of Uggs and you can pick up the traditional ankle length boots in some unusual colours for £89.99. It is quite rare to find Ugg Australia at such discounted prices so buy now to avoid disappointment. The office Ugg Australia site doesn't even launch a sale and you have to buy through other concessions (Kurt Geiger or Office) to get any discount during the sales. On the theme of shoes both of the above sites had some really good bargains. I have also found a new love for shoes by the clothing make Lipsy so imagine my disappointment in Debenhams the other day when I found a pair of cute leopard print kitten heels reduced from £80 to £19 to be told that they could not find the other shoe! Sounded fishy to me, gutted :-( Ok so I was a little naughty and also treated myself to a pair of Hunter wellies as well over Christmas. What else is Christmas money for??? I need them for all those long country walks I take with the dog I don't actually own! I got these on a site called Hurleys and they were reduced from £120 to £61. I also picked my Mum up a pair of the high gloss jade green ones too for £59. The high gloss ones usually retail at £85 so even these were well discounted. The only thing I found annoying about the site was that even though I was spending over £100 they still charged p&p which I thought was a little cheeky. You can also pick up Hunters for £51 (limited range) from The Outnet site. Ones to Watch/Big Shout Out Having joined Twitter (Lizzie Mac) and tweeted about my blog and site I have started to follow other websites and retailers that offer bargain clothes or handmade products for reasonable prices. I thought I would start featuring a few here (like on the main site) so you could have a look and I can show my twitter contacts that I'm promoting them and perhaps they can do the same back to me!!!
I was chatting to a friend the other day about new blog ideas and thought I might trial a kind of forum/section for designer v high street. Just browse some of the upcoming fashion trends and see which high street retailers are doing affordable versions. I noticed that Winter 2012 has seen a lot of gothic lace on the catwalk and this features heavily in peplum tops and dresses. I noticed that Dorothy Perkins had quite a variety - also they are now offering 50% off all party-wear, right on time for the Christmas party!!! Remember block colours are featuring heavily at the moment, especially purple, so check out the fab block colour tops at Mango (£32.99) which will brighten up any pair of black skinny jeans and stilettos. Pair with a fitted leather jacket and you've got the biker girl/rock chick look down to a tee. Check out New Look as well - also offering 50% off party-wear. So so chuffed with my latest bargain footwear. A lovely unused pair of leather Anne Klein deck shoes that will look lovely for both work and pay. These came in their original box and retail at £125 and I paid a mere £12! Love them! They add to my new latest obsession for flat shoes which is a total turnaround for me. Must be getting too old to wear heels all day! Anyway got these beauties on eBay and will definitely have worn them by the end of the week. And in other bargain hunting news: 1. My friend hooked me up with the website Top Cash Back where you buy from high street retailers via this website and you get money back for purchases off. Any new member automatically gets a £10 Amazon voucher, win win situation! 2. I ordered in bulk from www.everythingfivepounds.com for a few Christmas presents and ended up with a free pair of hot pink shoe boots, lush! 3. Am still on the hunt for a new leather jacket so might have to hit up the sales in the New Year. Anyone sees any please get in touch! 4. Picked up a lovely cute bright orange hoody for my sister from The Gap this week, 40% off and they have got some bang on trend block colour tops and cute pastel coloured skinny jeans starting at £9.99! 5. Orla Kiely scarves at Uniqlo - £9.99! Look expensive and a great stocking filler!!!! Check out my new sewing caddy! It was a bargainous £5 and I hope to put it to good use. I just need to learn how to sew properly! I picked up some cute lip buttons on eBay and am hoping to replace the buttons on an old cardigan to give it a new lease of life. Since starting the blog am constantly thinking about ways to do things on the cheap it's just getting around to actually doing them that seems to be the problem, life just gets in the way! Might have a go at sending some customised Xmas cards this year - I found this cute fairy stencil online and am endeavouring to stick diamantes on one by one. It is painstaking work but I reckon the end result will be worth it. If you happen to be the recipient you know it's been a labour of love!!! So it's been over a week since my last blog and I thought it was about time I posted an update! I have been keeping an eye out over the last week for both party outfit ideas, winter jumpers (BFF) and also general bargains. Thanks to New Look I picked up the two bargains seen pictured. They had 50% off shoes and as soon as I found out I ran there like a girl possessed. The sparkly loafers were £11 and the brothel creepers were £20. I also managed to stab myself with a stiletto in the frenzy, not so good. I also picked up a cute black and white ditzy dress for £10 and three pairs of high waisted jeans (all reduced). I popped into BHS yesterday which isn't a shop a frequent very often but was drawn in by the 30% signs in the window. I noticed some nice Dorothy Perkins peplum dresses (lace effect) for £20 and a lovely jade green peplum top for £8 which would work with skinny black jeans for a night out. It seems that pattern/festive woolly jumpers (like your Nan used to knit you) are all the rage this winter. Dorothy Perkins have a large selection and they are currently doing a 30% off pop up sale. River Island has a cute sparkly reindeer jumper for £25 and Asos has a jumping reindeer jumper for £24. Talking of sales/discounts check out the following: - Shoeaholics are selling all of their shoes for £39 or under and they feature Kurt Geiger, Carvela, Hunter etc. - TK Maxx have a range of Emu boots (short and long) for £60-£90, I noticed a really nice unusual plum coloured pair. - I checked out Uniqlo for the first time this week and saw they have a collection designed by Orla Kiely. Patterned smocks and long sleeve tops with the distinguishable Orla Kiely designs, unusual and reasonably priced. - Check out the blog for 'buy my wardrobe' for secret santa gift ideas http://blog.buymywardrobe.com/2492-secret-santa-ideas-under-20/ and other bargain ideas. - One more bargainous hint for this week - check out Tiger for affordable stocking fillers, arts and crafts, kitchen ware and household goods. So having successfully taken up the curtains last week and them actually being level I thought I had suddenly become a dab hand with a needle and thread. I was so wrong. I bought some beads and diamantes on eBay to try and customise clothes/jazz them up a bit but am a long way from making anything look decent. I thought I might cheat and use clothes glue so stuck some pink beads on the shoulder line of a top. They are yet to fall off but am not sure if they would survive the washing machine. I think I better get practising with the needle and thread :-(. The clothes glue is quite good for sticking diamantes/beads on card so I will definitely be using it for some customised greetings cards this year. My Next Mission - I have been looking for a genuine soft leather jacket for ages now. I found the most incredible Temperley one in baby pink some months back whilst on the Kings Road. It was £200 which seemed a fortune at the time but looking back it was a signature piece that I should have seen as an investments, opportunity missed. Same as the Gucci boots I found for £100 which I should have just bought and got over it and the bargainous Anya Hindmarch clutch, regret. Watch this space for an update as to what I find! |
AuthorLove a bargain, love to look and feel good so combined the two and now we have 'The Fashion Bargain Hunter.' Archives
February 2014
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