Tick Tock… The Clock is Ticking

You probably think I mean that the clock is ticking down to Christmas, which is now just under four weeks away, and of course I mean that too, but before the festivities I have a deadline to meet, which is why I won’t be in for my regular Fashion on Friday today. I have taken a couple of days annual leave to give me a run of writing days and happily it coincides with the turning on of our village Christmas lights, which I have never been able to attend previously. It’s a win win situation for me – lots of words followed by a nice evening out with my son, whose birthday it was on Wednesday.

For the second year running, I didn’t make him a birthday cake. Last year it was because we flew back from New York on his birthday after a three day visit to watch the American football team he supports (The Patriots) play at the Metlife Stadium. We arrived home to an American cheesecake birthday cake very kindly made by my daughter Sophie’s partner, Reece, and his daughter, Amber – it was delicious! So, I was about to get the cake tin out when my son’s girlfriend, Katie, asked if I would mind if she made his cake this year. Mind? Absolutely not, in fact I was delighted. Not only am I up to my eyeballs in ‘stuff’, it’s also such a kind thing to do. I think Katie asked him what kind of cake he would like and he said he didn’t mind. I loved the WhatsApp message that accompanied this photo; ‘I hope Dan likes chocolate?’ He does, and I have to say the cake was devoured and enjoyed by the eight of us after dinner last night. It warms my heart to see my children so happy with the lives they are carving out for themselves.

I didn’t really see much of my son on his birthday because I was working and he spent the evening with Katie, but I did manage to get a Happy Birthday message for him from Rylan, who was in at QVC with his Luxenoa range, which I am yet to present. What a generous soul he is, no wonder Ruth Langsford often refers to him as her ‘telly son’. I was with Ruth for a Style Channel show on the same day as it happens and she was recommending White Christmas The Musical to me – it sounds fabulous if you fancy a Christmas night out!

So, I am having a few days of writing but I will still be keeping an eye open for Black Friday deals. Our on-line deals have been running for the past week but we have an on-air three day event starting today… Black Friday Weekend.

The first TSV selected for the event is Philosophy, which is a six-piece collection available in your choice of either Classic or Floral scents. I haven’t tried the two fragrances alongside Amazing Grace in the Floral option, but they both sound gorgeous if you like rose… Ballet Rose and Nude Rose. The collection comes with three gift bags, so you could be ticking three presents off your Christmas list with that one purchase and it’s half price against our regular QVC price.

Then it will be a busy day for Glen Campbell tomorrow, as we have a Centigrade coat TSV, which will have its first on-air showing at 9 p.m. tonight, and on Sunday there is a five-piece Doll 10 Hydralux collection. I’m really sad to be missing Doris – we had an amazing show last time she was here and I LOVE her lipsticks… the BEST in my humble opinion!

Of course, our offers don’t end when the Black Friday Weekend is done and in fact our Nails Inc TSV, is already available on pre-sell on our website. There are six lovely colours and a new formulation base coat for under £30.

You will also be able to hear a bit of background about the brand and its founder Thea Green on the latest Inside QVC podcast, which goes live on Monday. The current podcast is Tova Borgnine and I’m delighted to have two Diamonique by Tova shows coming up this week on Thursday at 6 p.m. and Friday at 3 p.m. In fact, Thursday promises to be a good day for me as I’m also on-air at 5 p.m. with The Gift of Gorgeous Skin, which is of course Elemis.

This final TSV of 2019 from Elemis is perfect for me as I’m a massive fan of the Pro Collagen Definition range, as it focuses on skin firming while still helping with lines and wrinkles. There are four pieces to this collection; day cream, night cream, face & neck serum and also micellar water cleanser. I use all of them anyway, and if I tell you that the night cream alone is priced at £63 on our website and the whole collection is under £65, you might want to take advantage of the pre-sell from Monday and order early. Also, just to say, there is nothing like the quantity available for the last Elemis TSV, so the early bird etc. etc.

Right, I must head off to my writing desk now – I have about 15,000 words to write before close of play on Wednesday, so keep your fingers crossed for me. It was such a pleasure to meet so many people at the Christmas Fayre on Monday who are fans of ‘real’ books still. Ebooks definitely have their place, especially in terms of affordability, but there is something quite special about opening up a new book, especially if it has been signed by the author. It was lovely to hear who the recipients of the books purchased were going to be… Dads, husbands, daughters etc. but the cherry on the cake had to be when a mid-teenager came up to tell me she enjoyed watching me on QVC – it properly made my day!

Enjoy your weekend whatever you are up to – I will be making Christmas cake alongside the writing!
Much love,
Julia xx