Best UK beauty/clothing buys. HIT me, people!

[toffeeboffin]

So I am a Brit living abroad but planning a trip home this summer.

Where should I be shopping?

And what beauty products do I need in my life?

I plan to hit TKMaxx, Topshop, Primark, Dotty P's. What else is reasonably priced but good?

I'm a mid 30's working mother, size 10, 5'5 if that makes a difference.

Do they have Boden up north?

Also, where is good for kids clothes? DS will be 2.5.

TIA

[IfItsGoodEnough4ShirleyBassey]

Where abroad are you? (Roughly, so do you have access to European shops or US shops or are you in the jungles of Borneo)

[toffeeboffin]

Ha, Borneo!

I'm in Canada - so lots of American stuff that's either tat or too expensive.

Some European stuff, but tends to be very dear.

I am slightly trendy but also want practical items.

[IfItsGoodEnough4ShirleyBassey]

Just checking because it would be a waste to recommend H&M if you're in Sweden or Zara if you're in Spain.

Boden is catalogue only so you'd need to get your relatives to order for you then try on and return the stuff that didn't fit: sounds like a faff.

H&M is very good for attractive cheap children's clothes.

Every chain in the UK seems to have adopted an infuriating trend of having an upfront price if you walk in off the street, and then a 20% (or 25, or 30) discount that you get via an email code or a magazine offer or a loyalty card or that just gets applied to everything on the third Wednesday of the month. So once you've got a shortlist of shops to check, do a quick google for discount codes (Money Saving Expert website normally does a good summary or you could just start a thread here and ask nicely).