Maxximum Bargains

I'm lucky enough to have a branch of TK Maxx in the local shopping centre. While it's not the largest, it is perfectly formed and I much prefer the Homewares section to anything else. We've a holiday to France planned at the start of September and our experience of self-catering there is a bit hit and miss, so I tend to bring the essentials with me, like a decent knife, a non-stick frying pan, a teatowel & chopping board.

I also like to bring unbreakable glasses as (a) the ones we normally find in the apartment are teeny - think egg-cup for wine and (b) cost a fortune to replace if you drop them. Over the past few weeks I've been picking up a few bits for the holiday/use in the garden and here's a selection for your viewing delight...

I've bought a whole range of plastic glasses from chunky tumblers to champagne flutes to large beer glasses, there's also a pair of bowls which will suit everything from soup to salads, a huge insulated picnic bag with additional insulated wine carriers (oh yes, that was tailor-made for me!) and two Jamie Oliver cooking utensils for the house - a set of magnetic measuring spoons and a y-shaped peeler.

By the way, that little lot there in the picture came to less than €35... now that's a Maxximum Bargain!