Archive for October, 2009

Edit: Asda have been in touch following this post and were quick to investigate this problem. Apparently there was a glitch in their system which is being fixed now they are aware of it. Items shouldn’t go on backorder in the first place, which is why there’s no notification sent out to buyers. Apparently very few people were affected and I was just one of the unlucky ones.

This hopefully means if any of you decide to order from Asda online, you should actually get your stuff.

Now, I’m off to buy a coat…

—————————————————-

Dear George at Asda,

If I visit the website of a big UK retailer and click to buy something, and if the website says it is in stock and available in my size, and if I later get a confirmation email saying it’ll take 3 – 4 days for delivery, and notice that the money has gone out of my account, I do not expect to still be waiting ten days later with absolutely no sign of my purchase.

I particularly do not expect, having waiting so long, to log on to the tracking page of the site (expecting to perhaps find an apologetic note about postal strikes) and instead to find that said item is now ‘on backorder’ with no explanation of when (or indeed, if) it will ever get to me.

I understand that there is no way of adjusting stock levels on a website every second of the day, and that sometimes things sell out before the page can be changed, especially when they’re such good value. But it doesn’t take much to set up an automated email that goes out to customers to inform them when their order is going to be delayed indefinitely. Especially when they’ve already paid for it. Someone or something has to change the status from ‘processing’ to ‘dispatched’ or ‘on backorder’ and an email should go out at that time. It’s not brain surgery, it’s common sense. It should not be the customer’s responsibility to chase an order when it doesn’t arrive, the retailer should make the effort to keep in touch with them when there are problems or changes.

Waiting ten days with no word, then phoning up to find that it will be at least another 2 – 3 weeks for an order to arrive is Just. Not. On.

By the time my sodding coat actually arrives, It’ll be almost December and half the cold weather would have been spent wearing last year’s threadbare offering. Thus I have cancelled my order, and you have lost a(nother) customer. Well done!

When I ordered from the new Tesco clothing website, my order came in 2 days and my card wasn’t charged until after the items were dispatched. That is how it should be done.

Take note, Asda. Just because you’re a big name doesn’t mean you can fob off your customers with half-arsed customer service and bad communication. There’s always an alternative and from now on I will be pointing people elsewhere.

When the kind folks at Electric Shopping offered to send me one of the newfangled hair removal products to try, I couldn’t really say no. As far as I’m concerned, hair removal is up there with ironing and washing up in the list of things I hate doing the most so anything that might stop me having to do it so often is a winner in my book.

The no!no! is a gadget that uses ‘Thermicon’ technology to remove hair. Basically, it’s the no-laser home alternative to laser hair removal, using only heat to zap hairs in a similar way, disrupting the follicle to stop them coming back. It claims to reduce growth up to 64%, and is also pain-free. Sounds good, but it comes at a price - £139.99 to be precise, plus you may need replacement hot blades.

The product itself looks like a small epilator (I was sent the pink but it also comes in black and blue) and comes with all kinds of extras, including a DVD to show you how to use it. Sounds intense, but getting the hang of it does take some time so it’s worth watching. Once you do get confidence, it lives up to it’s pain free promise, and it’s pretty quick too… it takes slightly longer than shaving, but less than epilating.

So how does it work? First you choose the right element (one for longer hair or one for stubble), slot it in and turn it on. Then you hold the no!no! at a 90 degree angle to the skin, and move it along at a steady pace. A light will tell you if you’re moving at the right speed. It doesn’t hurt even if you mess up, you just might feel a tiny bit of heat if you go too slow. What is unnerving though is the smell. This product is essentially burning hair, so you won’t be surprised to hear that using it fills the room with the smell of, um, burning hair. That takes a bit of getting used to and it is a big con (the guide suggests burning scented candles as you use it – not a bad idea).

Between using the no!no! on each area, you then pause to use the buffer (think very fine sandpaper) to buff the treated area. This removes bits of burnt hair and dry skin and any bits that have been missed. It reminds me a bit of using the silkymit (anyone remember that?) without the intense burning pain an hour later. This new-wave buffer is very fine and soft, but it does the job.

The makers of no!no! are very clear on the fact it may not remove all the hair at first, and you have to make a commitment to use it a few times a week minimum at first to see real results. This was a slight problem given the fact I was reviewing the product in the middle of Summer when I had my legs out all the time, but you can shave in between uses if need be (it’ll just slow down the process of reducing hair growth). As I’m fair-haired naturally, the hairs on my legs aren’t that noticeable anyway so it wasn’t too much of an issue, but worth bearing in mind if you’re darker. If you’re thinking of investing, this time of year is the time to give this a go, as you’ll be in tights or trousers most of the time so a bit of regrowth / missed sections as you get used to using it won’t be on show!

So the big question is…did I see results? Yes, I did, though I have some way to go. This is a long-term solution and there are no quick miracle results, so I’ll probably check in to this review in a few months to update. As of now, the hairs on my legs take longer to grow back and are finer when they do, and I think that will continue. I like that the no!no! is pain-free and easy to use, and it doesn’t make much noise either so I can use it while watching TV or listening to music. There’s no mess and it’s small and easy to store away – all good plus points. The main downsides are the smell, and the fact that it is expensive, but it’s actually not much pricier than a good epilator and is definitely a better option. Overall, I give it the thumbs up, and I hope in time they can reduce the cost so more people can give it a go!

* no!no! Hair Removal System, £139.99 at Electric Shopping

Many thanks to Glenn Waldron at the Telegraph for including Catwalk Queen in a list of the top 20 best fashion blogs. Even more thanks for mentioning me by name even though I’m not writing for the site any more. It’s good to know I’ve not quite been forgotten yet! The list includes some of my favourite bloggers ever, as well as a few I’ve yet to investigate, so definitely take a look if you’re a fashion blog fan.

ps. I don’t think the quote about CQ getting more traffic than Vogue is true. It may have been once but that’s a very big brand to try and compete with!