*PR: Gifted-only shopping trip

Sian Victoria © - H&M leopard print bias skirt, Topshop Faux biker Jacket, Birmingham fashion blogger

Best shopping malls in West Midlands

Don’t get me wrong shopping online has many benefits but then again so does spending the day out shopping with friends or family, grabbing a bite to eat, physically trying on a bunch of outfits and asking for personalised fashion and beauty advice from in-store experts.

Like everything, there’s advantages and disadvantages to both yet shopping in a mall like Merry Hill Shopping Centre has many lifestyle and social benefits since it’s a physical experience. In the world of social media and documenting our every move and thing we eat, its these tangible experiences that we are seeking most.

Shopping at Merry Hill in the West Midlands is somewhere I have fond memories of going with my Mom and sister as a child and still till this day when we’re in need of a bit of retail therapy we have the benefit of a huge variety of retailers catering for all our shopping needs all under one roof. You'll find some of the best places for shopping in Birmingham - so it's great to have such a big retail complex near me.

Obviously, as a food blogger in Birmingham I'm chuffed with Merry Hills Eat Central because it means we can all eat from different places yet sit together and eat at the same time without arguing over who picks the place to eat.

To mark the new season intu Merry Hill set me the dream task of shopping with a complimentary £100 gift card in search of the latest Spring/Summer 2019 fashion and beauty trends.

Designer brands at intu Merry Hill

Sian Victoria © - Twenty9, Designer shopping, Merry Hill

Sian Victoria © - Diffusion, Designer shopping, Merry Hill

Sian Victoria © - Tessuti, Designer shopping, Merry Hill

Merry Hill Shopping Centre has almost 200 major retailers all in one place with the bonus of free on-site parking. You’ll find a retailer to suit all budgets, styles and shapes. From affordable brands like Primark, mid-range brands such as fashion at Marks and Spencers, Topshop and River Island and premium retailers like Twenty9, Diffusion and Tessuti that have a wide range of exclusive designer brands.

While doing a spot of designer shopping, the first statement pieces to catch my eye in Diffusion were the gorgeous designer bags, especially the white Marc Jacobs across the shoulder bag with two compartments and the gold grungy stud bag by Moschino.

There was also an oversized bag, perfect to fit in all my photography gear when attending press events.

Both would look great styled with the 90’s style Levi’s jacket and Tommy Hilfiger branded t-shirt from and the Calvin Klein white sneakers from Twenty9.

Best of SS19 womens fashion

Sian Victoria © - Primark, fashion shopping, Merry Hill

Sian Victoria © - River Island, fashion shopping, Merry Hill

Sian Victoria © - Topshop, fashion shopping, Merry Hill

England isn’t quite done with the chilly Winter weather just yet, nonetheless, I can’t wait to store away my thick coats and wear a transitional trench coat because you can style a statement camel trench with pretty much anything. For SS19, they are the perfect investment piece because just like a crop denim jacket and a leopard print coat they never go out of fashion.

So, when in doubt a lightweight trench is perfect for throwing over a jumper with some high waisted distressed denim jeans and pointed boots while the weather is transitioning and then swap the jumper for either a blouse or t-shirt in floral, stripes or tie-dye prints with #shoefie worthy sandals to effortlessly hop your way into spring in style.

While searching my favourite fashion retailers Topshop, River Island, H&M and Primark I spotted a lot of beige, pastels, animal prints, strappy sandals, embellished detailing, tassels, chains, distressed denim, corduroy, high rise bottoms and straw accessories.

Just like the premium stores at Merry Hill, it was the wide range of statement bags that got my attention, I would of happily of bought them all because a statement bag really adds to the finishing look of an outfit.

Mark Heyes SS19 collection launches at Bon Marche

Sian Victoria © - Mark Heyes, Bon Marche, fashion shopping, Merry Hill

If you watch Lorraine, then you’ll know the fashion and style consultant Mark Heyes who makes a regular appearance on the show. His just dropped a collection of pieces for Bonmarché focusing on this summer’s key trend, animal print. The collection consists of statement leopard and snake prints in neutral and vibrant green tones.

My favourites from the collection are the cropped leopard print jacket because it can be worn many ways dressed up for night or down for day so it’s a great piece to throw on for after work drinks in Birmingham and If you’re like me and have an hourglass figure, then Marks frill wrap dresses are a great choice for special occasions or to simply take you from day to night.

Sian Victoria © - Debenhams & boots, beauty shopping, Merry Hill

No SS19 style is complete without spraying the latest floral scent, adding a strobe of highlighter and finishing with a touch of lipstick to enhance your natural features. In Merry Hill the best place to go for high-end beauty brands is Debenhams and Boots. Where you’ll find cult favourites such as Dior, KVD Beauty makeup, Nars, MAC, Bobbie Brown, Make Up Forever, Clinique, NO7 and Benefit to name a few.

If you’re like me and prefer to try on different makeup shades before purchasing then Debenhams is perfect because you can receive expert advice from a variety of brands who will match your skin tone to the right foundation shade and even help you create a new makeup look for Spring and show you the best way to apply each product to get the most from them.

That way you get to see and feel the cosmetics on your skin before you buy, meaning you don’t end up with a bag of makeup that isn’t right for you - which I always find to be the case when I buy cosmetics online.

Sian Victoria © - Accurist watch, Urban Decay, Topshop bag

Sian Victoria © - Topshop midi bias skirt

The khaki green distressed corduroy jacket (£24.99) is from New Look and looks great paired with either of the skirts, a white slogan t-shirt and pointed black boots. Finally, the Urban Decay Naked Skin One & Done Foundation (£28.50) from Debenhams is my favourite for lightweight coverage during Spring-Summer and has the added benefits of an SPF20 which is one of the many essentials to prevent premature ageing.

So, there you go a brief insight into my favourite SS19 pieces available at Merry Hill right now. When it comes to the shopping experience nothing beats physically trying on the item, seeing if it fits you in all the right places and how it looks with other pieces, or how it feels in terms of the materials and its quality. I’m super picky when it comes to materials I’ll usually send something straight back if I don’t like the feel of it - therefore buying instore saves time.

Having the added incentive of discussing your style with a personal shopper and being able to grab something last minute from a variety of stores without having the inconvenience and expense of ordering online next day delivery to find that they’re not suitable - which always happens to me as I’m short with an hourglass figure and have to wear wide fit half size shoes.

To conclude, if you are seeking fashion and beauty stores Merry Hill in Brierley Hill is one of the top-rated places to go shopping in the West Midlands.

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