ALERT: BLACK FRIDAY STARTS THIS FRIDAY. Like, tomorrow. Or even tonight, for us Australians!
If you’re not sure what it is/the history of Black Friday sales, I’ll let you google that. I’m not a scientist.
If you live in Australia, you know that we’re really only just starting to get into the swing of the Black Friday to Cyber Monday weekend of sales.
If you’re reading this blog, you probably have to do the majority of your fatshion shopping overseas, and for us Aussies it’s a really great opportunity to stock up on some massive bargains from our fav US/UK plus size retailers.
Even better is that since the Northern Hemisphere is going into cooler weather, I often find myself cleaning UP on double discounted summer items. Woot!
However, my greatest downfall with these deals is that I always forget they’re coming up, and I don’t have a gameplan. I usually end up frenzy-browsing and making a bunch of impulse purchases.
So, because I don’t want you to suffer as I have, I’ve decided to put together this little Black Friday sale guide for Australian plus peeps/those who don’t live in the US/UK.
Here’s my hottest tips, and below that you’ll find all the things I have my eyes on for this coming weekend!
REMEMBER THE TIME DIFFERENCE
Get up early on Saturday/stay up late on Friday (tonight). I use the phone app Synchronize but obvs a google search will do.
CONSIDER THE DAYS
Since we’re talking a whole weekend (and in a lot of cases, even a WEEK) of sales, it’s important to game plan what day/s you’re going to purchase on. I’ve noticed that the deals tend to get better the longer the weekend goes on, but you’re also gambling with diminishing stock levels, too. If you want something really bad, don’t wait in the hopes of saving a couple of extra bucks.
BUDGET
Work out what you’re willing to spend. I am totally here to enable you in your shopping adventures, but i’m also down with people not overspending and financially stressing themselves out. Be sensible, friend.
MAKE A LIST
Whether you have a particular item you’re looking for (ie. a chambray pussybow top – oh look there’s one right here!), or if you have a list of favourite designers/retailers that you want to be sure you hit up; write stuff down. That’s why gawd invented Evernote.
GIFT SHOP!
This is also a great time to get some last minute Chrissy pressies organised, if that’s your jam. Just remember that there’s a lot of shipping that happens post-sales, so maybe don’t rely too heavily on stuff making it from overseas before the holidays.
CHECK THE CLEARANCE SECTION
A lot of retailers discount their already discounted items, and as I mentioned above – a lot of the time that’s stuff that’s going out of season (for them).
HAVE A SHIPPING STRATEGY!
While i’m on the topic of shipping, let’s get real. Shipping to us over here on Convict Island is totally the pits. Oftentimes it outweighs the cost of the goods, and that’s just wrong, (non-gendered) man. So, keep your peepers peeled for free/discounted shipping. Last year Torrid had some heavily discounted international shipping that made my weekend haul of summer dresses (some that i’m only just busting out of my wardrobe now) a total steal!
CONSIDER COMBINING SHIPPING
Also, if you’re doing a lot of shopping the US, a totally viable option is taking advantage of free domestic shipping and setting yourself up with a Shipito account. Haven’t heard of Shipito? Well, dear friend, let me change your life.
It’s a forward shipping service so you can have a US address to get your stuff sent to, for the low low cost of only a $2 handling fee. Basically you log into your dash, tell them you’re expecting a parcel from XYZ (and any tracking info you might have), and when your parcel arrives they take a photo of it for you and provide a bunch of shipping options (with varying yet totally reasonable costs).
Wanna level up?
If you’re willing to fork out US$50 a year for a premium subscription, this is where you can start saving SERIOUS SHIPPING CHEDDAR. The best perk of this paid service is that they’ll actually hold your parcels (for up to 90 days) and combine all your purchases together in one, money-saving shipment. SHOPPING SPREE FRENZY, ACTIVATE.
So what I often do is look for sales that have free domestic shipping, get them all together at my Shipito address, and get them sent over together. SCHWING.
Anyway, if you want to sign up for either a free or premium account, do it here.
And now for the extra fun stuff…
MY WEEKEND SALE HITLIST/WISHLIST/DON’T TEMPT ME COS I JUST MIGHT BUY YOU LIST.
JOANIE CLOTHING
30% off all full price items, no code required. They are a UK company, but you can change the pricing to USD. Note that they have a kind of tedious search bar and misleading general size guide. But because they stock lots of different items from different manufacturers, each design has it’s own size guide. My strategy is to just tick size 22 and then look at individual size charts for stuff I love. I’ve just placed my first order from them (the dress in the middle below, and this adorable top).
Burgundy Tea Dress || Geometric Bee Dress || Zooey Floral Collar Dress (also comes in 6 other colours – see them all here) || Denim Pinafore Dress (also comes in washed black) || Cat Print Dress
JIBRI
Sale (that they’ve already announced) is midnight EST to 11.59pm EST on the Friday. Use code BLACK17 for 50% of all available items!
Navy Silver Capped Maxi Dress || Sheer Star Jumpsuit || Gingham Swing Dress || Slouched Maxi Dress
FOREVER 21
I know, I know. Fast fashion. But I own quite a few pieces from F21 Plus and I have a lot of fun with them. Anyway, I also think it’s important to have some lower priced options for those whom higher priced stuff is not accessible. I also like to use shops like these to take a risk and try something I wouldn’t normally – a luxury that is afforded our thin counterparts by simply walking into a store.
I’m not sure what F21’s discounts will be, but they’re already doing a pre-sale with 30% off, so I can only imagine the discount will get higher as the weekend progresses.
Top L-R: Denim Overalls || Graphic Tee (that is just so weird i’d give it a go) || Floral Lace Bodysuit (also available in nude) || Wine Ribbed Dress
Bottom L-R: Ombre Denim Shorts || Tie-Dye Romper || Zippered Bodycon (saucy!) || Off the Shoulder Denim Dress ((looks so summer comfy)
TORRID
I know you’ll probs defs already know about Torrid, but I have to include them because, even though they aren’t usually out there breaking down fashion norms for us fatties, they still do a pretty reliable job of producing some trendy and comfy stuff for a much more inclusive size range than a lot of these other places. Plus, they have the ability to offer some HUGE discounts on products and shipping, and are (honestly) where I scored most of my deals last year.
This year, it looks like they’re starting with 40% off everything regular priced, an extra 50% off all clearance items, and a mammoth 50% off international shipping. Wowsers! Here’s my picks):
Top L-R: White Pussybow Blouse || Yellow Cutout Tank || Tie Dye Peplum Top || Mesh Star Top
Mid L-R: Polka Dot Challis Skater Dress || Olive Green Pussybow Dress || Floral Chiffon Maxi Top || Mesh Side Slit Skirt
Bottom L-R: Harness Undies (only US$9!) || Lurex Pleated Midi Skirt || Cage Bralette || Leopard Jogger Pants
ROSE WHOLESALE
I’m including Rose Wholesale because they are also a budget-friendly option, and also because they seem to be prepping for some serious Black Friday sale offers – some which have already started and are up to 80% off (with the code BLACK1)! Plus extended warranties (what is a clothing warranty, one wonders?), free shipping and cash cards for new customers. I don’t know, but it’s probably worth a look. Note: be sure to triple check size charts as I’ve never ordered from here, only had them recommended.
Top L-R: Batwing Lace Dress || Lace Neck Halter Dress || Vintage Bat Dress || Halloween Ghost Pumpkin Dress (cos it’s never too early to start stocking up on Halloween dresses!)
Bottom L-R: Halter Neck Polka Dot Bikini || Plaid Double Breasted Coat (cos this will be AMAZING in Winter) || Plaid A-Line Dress (ugh SO cute!) || Music Notes Printed Dress (a Modcloth-esque dress for basically less than a quarter of their prices)
WITCH WORLDWIDE
For all my moody witches out there, I want you to get your paws on some Witch Worldwide stuff. It’s all stunningly made in LA, and goes from an XS to a generous 4XL (with heaps of oversized/loose fitting styles).
Their sale starts 7PM PST on America’s THURSDAY evening with 40% off everything for 48 hours, and then 30% off til Tuesday. They also kindly added more stock, right before the sale! Bonza!
Girl Power Halter Top || Coffin Cotton Fringe Kimono || Goth Spice Cropped Tank
UNIQUE VINTAGE
25% off everything (including sale) with code YAY25, as well as extra daily deals over the period.
I am keen to order my first batch of stuff from here! They’re search function is so thorough and easy to use, and I simply adore that you can search via era!
1920’s Emerald Beaded Flapper Dress (I have a wedding to go to soon and think this would be just DELIGHTFUL) || Mustard Floral Swing Dress (this cut is also available in a FLAMINGO PRINT and makes it a really tough choice!) || Off-White Cap Sleeve Button Up (in fact, i’d be keen to try a similar look with high-waisted sailor pants) || Burgundy Cotton Swing Dress with Mesh Capelet (also available in black)
COWCOW
40% off storewide with free shipping until Nov 30. Use code WELCOMEWINTER
CowCow are pretty awesome – they have cheap, mid-quality stuff in classic silhouettes and fun prints. However, because anybody can submit their own print (you can too) and it goes up for sale on the site, they have A LOT of designs – not all of them stellar. They’ve recently improved their search functions to be slightly better than they used to be, but still… it can be pretty tedious. I’ve waded through a lot of the dodgy prints to find you some cute ones. You’re welcome 😛
Yes, all the same model photo is creepy. Yes, all I care about is food and cats.
Top L – R: Cheeseburger || 7-Up || Pastel Cats || Cats on Green
Bottom L-R: Sushi || Icecream || Pizza || Piggy Bank
What’s your plan? What are you buying? Let me know so I can also live vicariously through all your new pretties!
Note: this post contains affiliate links which give me a small percentage of anything you purchase. It doesn’t cost you anything additional, it’s a reward from the company. This helps me maintain the running costs of this site, so I can keep bringing you cool shit!
