Alison Cork, founder of Homes & Bargains

Lifestyle journalist and TV presenter Alison Cork founded Homes & Bargains, the place to find quality homeware at affordable prices, in 2005. Recently relaunched with a fresh new look, it continues to deliver the inside track on where to get the very best for less.

ALISON'S FAVOURITE SITES
 
Lakeland - For me it's culinary porn - I simply cannot get enough of the cake tins, jelly moulds and various icing accoutrements that I can't even begin to pretend I really need. And don't get me started on non stick baking liners. Love it to bits and always look forward to the next catalogue. They rarely put a foot wrong - having said that I think the Banana Guard almost proved their to be their nemesis, but I could be wrong.

ASOS - Until very recently I assumed that Asos was for undernourished 16 year olds and didn't go near it. But for some reason I  took a peak a few months ago and promptly bought six dresses. Fabulously convenient and superbly efficient, I am now a total convert to the sartorial religion that is Asos.

Hawkins Bazaar - I would like to think I was one of the early adopters of Hawkins Bazaar. It's like an old fashioned Curiosity Shop, but online, with thousands, and I mean thousands, of exciting gifts for children, from just a few pence. The sheer colour and vivacity of the site, not to mention the obvious enthusiasm of the owners, is infectious. If ever you are stuck for a party bag or two, this is your solution.

ESpares - No gadget geek am I, but I do appreciate the brilliantly practical and useful nature of this online parts store, which has over half a million parts and accessories for more than 500 different brands of appliances. Strangely addictive, I find myself poring over spare knobs for hobs, vacuum cleaner bags and the like with great relish. More than anything else, it's just very satisfying to think that you can beat the system for once and repair rather than replace. Cheaper too.

Primelocation - Call me a day dreamer, but I believe in visualization, and that if I look at enough gorgeous country houses, I will eventually be the proud owner of one. If I am having a difficult moment, or simply have an hour to spare, I like nothing better than to tap in a southern county (because I know exactly where my house should be), and salivate over the beauty parade of bricks and mortar that follows. I particularly favour the smaller county estate agents, secretly hoping that they will come up with that undiscovered gem.

Smitten Kitchen  - A cult blog written by a Jewish New York housewife whose life clearly centres around food. I love the simplicity of the proposition, the unpretentious way in which she writes, and the drop dead gorgeous photography, which apparently she achieves with whatever light is available and often in the evenings after her baby has gone to sleep. It is about the food, but it's also about the passion that exists behind it.

10 August 2010