Carmen Reid - A Fabulous Read. A Sexy Read. A Carmen Reid. » How Not to Shop http://www.carmenreid.com/blog Carmen Reid's blog Thu, 10 Nov 2011 11:59:13 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 September Events http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/09/events-this-month/ http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/09/events-this-month/#comments Fri, 18 Sep 2009 10:30:09 +0000 Carmen http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/?p=310 I am touring about the country this month (Click on the ‘Girls Night In Tour’ category for details… maybe you can come!) visiting libraries for fun-packed Girls Night In events.
Girls Night In Tour
The first was at Cardonald Library in the South Side of Glasgow. What can I say? These people know how to party! We had food, we had drinkies, goodie bags and there was a whole wonderful pink and black theme going on with ribbons on the chairs, flowers and matching plates and napkins. I turned up in pink and black by co-incidence! It was a fantastic evening. I enjoyed the Q and A bit hugely, especially the spontaneous telling of our worst changing room disasters. It was great fun to read extracts from How Not To Shop and Jealous Girl to such a fabulous audience. Thank you all so much for a brilliant night!
Girls Night In Tour
Carlisle was also fantastic! We talked about books, writing, favourite authors, but also shoe shopping! We had chocolate and fudge tasting, lovely ladies from Lush and Clinique on hand and the fabulous Marie from Hoopers, a real live personal shopper, talking us through key looks. Marie is a total Annie fan, so it was brilliant to watch her bring little Valentine touches to her talk. According to Marie, every girl must have a red handbag and a pair of Armani Jeans this season. If you live anywhere near Carlisle, book yourself a session with her, it is probably as close as you will come to an Annie makeover!

Portlethen, Perth, Fort William and Blackpool are next.

]]> http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/09/events-this-month/feed/ 0 The How Not to Shop Quiz http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/08/the-fab-new-how-not-to-shop-quiz/ http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/08/the-fab-new-how-not-to-shop-quiz/#comments Mon, 17 Aug 2009 14:05:38 +0000 Carmen http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/?p=301 To celebrate the publication of How Not to Shop, my publisher has created the fab new How Not to Shop quiz! Give it a whirl to find out what kind of shopper you are, and to get a recession-busting 35% off any of my books!

]]> http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/08/the-fab-new-how-not-to-shop-quiz/feed/ 2 How Not to Shop audio extract http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/07/audio-extract-from-how-not-to-shop/ http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/07/audio-extract-from-how-not-to-shop/#comments Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:13:20 +0000 Carmen http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/?p=200 Listen to my introduction to How Not To Shop and find out a little more about what Annie gets up to in the story…

About How Not to Shop

And here’s a little audio taster from How Not To Shop…

Introduction

Extract

Pre-order your copy of How Not to Shop

]]> http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/07/audio-extract-from-how-not-to-shop/feed/ 0 Credit Crunch Style – Annie Valentine on iVillage http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/07/credit-crunch-style-annie-valentine-on-ivillage/ http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/07/credit-crunch-style-annie-valentine-on-ivillage/#comments Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:55:55 +0000 Carmen http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/?p=148 How Not to Shop star Annie Valentine shares her top tips on iVillage, to give you a fabulous wardrobe on a budget!

Read Annie’s tips on i-Villlage

]]> http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/07/credit-crunch-style-annie-valentine-on-ivillage/feed/ 0 Girls Night In Tour – September 2009 http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/06/girls-night-in-tour-september-2009/ http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/06/girls-night-in-tour-september-2009/#comments Thu, 25 Jun 2009 11:45:24 +0000 Carmen http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/?p=194 Dates have been finalised for my forthcoming How Not to Shop/Secrets at St Jude’s tour! Details below – hope to see you there…

Thursday 10th September – 7.00pm
‘Girls Night In’ Launch event at Cardonald Library
1113 Mosspark Drive, Glasgow G52 3BU
Library contact: Myra Paterson
Reading Partners contact: Mary Greenshields
£30 Topshop giveaway
Tickets £1

Thursday 17th September – 7.00pm
‘Girls Night In’ Carlisle Library
11 Globe Lane, Carlisle CA3 8NX
Contact: Helen Towers
Phone: 01228 227287
Mob: 07802 451545
Joint kids / adult event in association with Debenhams

Wednesday 23rd September – 7.00pm
‘Girls Night In’ Portlethen Library
Bruntland Road, Portlethen AB12 4QL
Contact: Lesley Masson – Adult Fiction Librarian
01651 871215
Joint kids / adult event

Tuesday 29th September – 7.00pm
AK Bell Library Theatre
York Place, Perth PH2 8EP
Contact: Katherine McLeod
01738 477023
Joint kids / adult event
Bookseller tbc
£50 Topshop giveaway

Wednesday 30th September – 7.30pm
Fort William Library
Airds Crossing, High St, Fort William, PH33 6EU
Contact: Charlotte Macarthur
01349 868247
Joint kids / adult
Beautician attending on the night

Wednesday 7th October
Blackpool Shopping with Words
Contact: Lynne Pattinson
Venue tbc

]]> http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/06/girls-night-in-tour-september-2009/feed/ 2 New books, school trips and New York http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/06/introduction/ http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/06/introduction/#comments Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:48:27 +0000 Carmen http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/?p=1 On the book front: the next instalment of Secrets at St Jude’s: Jealous Girl is out on 2nd July for everyone who loved New Girl and can’t wait to find out what happens next…

Make a little room in your summer holiday suitcase for the new Annie Valentine, as How Not To Shop comes out on 13th August.

At the AK Bell Theatre in Perth, I served my first ever time on a discussion panel this month.  Is The Love Story Dead? Discuss. It was a really interesting and enjoyable evening. Great to meet writers Ewan Morrison and Sharon Blackie as well as the incredibly well-read Dorothy Macmillan, Stuart Kelly and Ajay Close. Just as soon as I’d sipped down my second Buck’s Fizz to quell those public speaking nerves, I had a great time!

I’m going on a library tour in September… more details to follow next month. Hope I can catch up with lots of readers.

The rest of June has been all about two of the Very Important Males in my life: my son and my Dad.

On the same day that my son went off on his first week-long school trip to an outward bound adventure centre thingy, my Dad went into hospital to have his hip replaced.

Oh what a lovely amount of fretting and stressing I did! Will Sam have enough socks? Eat enough fibre? Survive the abseiling lesson? Will Dad have enough books to read? Eat any hospital food? Survive the operation?!!

Good grief it was stressful. My Mum and I got through much more wine and cake than usual, I can tell you.

However, the week ended. Sam came off the bus looking tall, brown, grubby and ridiculously chirpy. He was absolutely fine – apart from a neck rash brought on by a combination of ‘slurping on midge repellent like gravy’ (his words) and not washing properly (well, he is newly 11!) And apparently abseiling – which he’d been slightly worried about – was the best fun ever.

Sam preparing for the Wild West... of Scotland Saying goodbye to his dog and sister

Dad came out of hospital the following day and went home to the farm along with crutches, a raised loo-seat and various other gadgets.

He has always been the fittest, healthiest person I know. Up until two years ago he was still running (he doesn’t jog, he RUNS!) and he looks after a herd of 80 cattle, so the ever-increasing hip problem has taken some time for him to adjust to.

Dad dreading the op

I have no idea how Mum is going to keep him resting for six weeks. There is already talk of how soon can he get back on his bike (his new hobby now that he can’t run!) and my Dad’s usual competitive streak  means he will want to make the fastest recovery from the operation ever!

More news next month when I get back from New York! Yes, I’ll just say that once again… when I get back from New York!!

]]> http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/06/introduction/feed/ 2 How Not to Shop – new cover http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/05/how-not-to-shop-new-cover/ http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/05/how-not-to-shop-new-cover/#comments Thu, 07 May 2009 09:00:54 +0000 Carmen http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/?p=15 Check out the gorgeous cover for my new book, How Not to Shop, which will be out this August!

How Not to Shop

How Not to Shop

]]> http://www.carmenreid.com/blog/index.php/2009/05/how-not-to-shop-new-cover/feed/ 3