The personal shopper experience

I'm in the minority of most women. I hate shopping.

I hate trying to find new clothes and most of all I struggle to find clothes to suit my odd shaped legs and feet. The thought of following a personal shopper around Cheshire Oaks brought me out in a cold sweat but as my wardrobe needed an update, I decided there could be nothing worse than wandering around aimlessly alone.

Personal shoppers, to me, have always been for the likes of Victoria Beckham and other socialites with more money than sense, not mere mortals on a budget like myself. I was always under the illusion that you would have to pay for this service and you had to have a minimum spend but at Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet this service is completely free and I was told they don't badger you to spend more money than you can actually afford. So far, so good.

The whole experience starts by booking yourself in with the in-house personal shopper, Nadine, who sends you a questionnaire to fill out. She asks for your vital statistics, what types of things you are looking for, what your body worries are and most importantly- your budget.

I thought I would give Nadine a tricky mission of finding me the perfect pair of jeans as currently I am in that in-between size that can cause you a thousand headaches when looking for the right fit.

After completion of the profile, Nadine takes your answers and goes round all the shops before you arrive looking for those key outfits to show you on your shopping experience.

On the day I felt a little nervous. How could a stranger expect to take me on a successful shopping trip when I can't even shop for myself?

I found Nadine in the Style Suite which looked like the sort of place Trinny and Susannah would reside. She sat me down in front of a mirror where she proceeded to drape different swatches of coloured material across my chest. I was a little taken aback when bright green was laid out, but Nadine told me to not look at the colours but to look at the difference they made to my skin tone. The greens, blues and bright reds drew all the colour out of my face and corals, olives, and oranges brought out the colours of my eyes and actually didn’t make me look anaemic for once.

Nadine asked if anyone had ever asked if I was feeling under the weather when I wasn’t and she said it was probably due to me wearing a colour draining outfit. After it was determined that I should never wear pillar box red ever again, which I'm ashamed to say that half of my wardrobe consists of, we set off to find the perfect dressy jeans along with smart top in warm colours only.

On our way to the first shop I asked Nadine what sort of people use her service and she explained it was anyone looking for anything from a special occasion outfit to everyday clothes. She’s dressed men who struggle to shop and she’s helped women who have had mastectomies dress without feeling like they have cover themselves completely. She explained that she feels like she’s a counsellor most days as many of her clients have issues to overcome such as body complexes or shyness. I'd already decided she was a shopping saint.

The first shop we arrive at is French Connection, and Nadine asks the dreaded question for any woman with hips: “Do you every wear skinny jeans?” When I hear the word skinny and jeans used together I start to have an outer body experience. As a curvy girl, bootleg jeans have always been my mantra. Nadine obviously saw me starting to hyperventilate and assured me she wasn’t talking about the type that look sprayed on, but the straighter legged type that would give the affect of a skinny cut. I decided to give her the benefit of the doubt.

Nadine then whisked me to the changing room with a pair of skinny jeans and high heels. Once on, I could see she was right- I did actually look good in jeans other than bootlegs. Unfortunately they were too short for me so off we headed to Ted Baker.

At Ted Baker Nadine coaxed me into trying on some burnt orange coloured tops which again I thought I wouldn’t suit, but as soon as she held up the colour to my face I could see it actually worked. After trying on over 12 different tops I found a flower detailed burnt orange top that could be worn for a night out or teamed with a cardigan for a more everyday look.

After Ted Baker it was onto Warehouse where she showed me a dark green teal slouch top. Even though it was green, it had a hint of warmth in it so I was safe to wear it. The top was perfect for wearing with skinny jeans or leggings and at the bargain price of £10 it was a steal.

But we still hadn’t found those elusive perfect jeans, so we stopped by Levis. Now bare in mind that I have never stepped foot in Levis in over 12 years. The sizing just sends the fear of God into me, but thankfully when you have Nadine around she will take care of this for you. She zoomed round the store like the Tazmanian Devil and came back with six pairs of jeans. I was then ushered off to the changing rooms to try them on, scared stiff that I wouldn't be able to get them over my thighs. Much to my surprise, the first fit like a glove. I immediately skipped off to the cash register like a child on Christmas morning to pay for them.

To conclude, I cannot recommend this service enough. I actually think everyone should use it at least once as it’s free, you don’t have to be royalty to use it, you don’t have to spend an absolute fortune and it will give you a brand new eye on how to look for the clothes and colours you should be wearing.

I wanted to steal Nadine away from Cheshire Oaks and have her come and dress me every day but like everyone else I'll have to settle for use of her services when I next go on a shopping day at Cheshire Oaks Designer outlet.