John Lewis: Our favourite finds from the department store you can shop online

Beat the queues in-store and shop online for some of the retailers best bits

If you're after heavy duty items, make sure you take measurements first (The Independent)

Since 15 June, John Lewis & Partners has welcomed customers back to its stores, as non-essential retailers are now permitted to reopen following changes to lockdown measures.

There will be strict social distancing measures in place to keep staff and customers safe and Prime minister Boris Johnson has said people should "shop with confidence".

The retailer follows in the footsteps of shops like Ikea which has also now opened its doors following months of lockdonw. You can find our top picks from the furniture store here.

On its website, John Lewis & Partners has explained that the safety of customers and staff are priority and “any lessons we have learnt from opening the initial stage of shops can be applied to the rest before we open more”.

The social distancing measures in place will include fewer entrances, limiting the number of customers in the shop at any given time, hand sanitiser provided at shop entrances and signs directing customers to stay 2m apart.

There will also be protective screens at checkouts and areas around the shop where you may need to interact with staff, as well as an increased contactless payment limit of £45 to reduce the need to handle cash. Beauty appointments and personal styling will not be available though, and changing rooms will remain closed.

It has also temporarily stopped appointments for home services including flooring, window and curtain fittings, fitted kitchens and bathrooms.

However if you don't want to wait in a socially distanced queue outside or inside the store, we’ve put together a shopping list of our favourite pieces to buy online. There are also many furniture sales currently happening, all of which you can find here.

You can trust our independent round-ups. We may earn commission from some of the retailers, but we never allow this to influence selections. This revenue helps us to fund journalism across The Independent.

Furniture

If you're going to buy big items, first of all, do your measuring. Make sure they'll fit in your car, or measure yoru doorways if you're after something like a new sofa that will have to be delivered.

This No.185 mirror and shelving unit (John Lewis and Partners, £250) is a modern take on a dresser and is ideal if you’re limited on space but still want a dedicated space to get ready in the morning.

Keep your floor space clutter-free with this modern set of shelves (John Lewis and Partners) (John Lewis & Partners)

Stack it with makeup, skincare, books or plants for a stylish, contemporary feel.

If a wine cellar is a distant dream, this RTA wood wine rack (John Lewis and Partners, £20) is the next best thing for a budding wine enthusiast.

If you're looking to store your favourite bottles properly, try a sleek wine rack (John Lewis and Partners) (John Lewis & Partners)

It holds nine bottles in its sturdy steel frame but you can join the racks together to hold different bottle shapes and sizes.

However, if you’re looking to splurge on a decadent piece for your living room, this John Lewis and Partners + Swoon sartre marble coffee table (John Lewis and Partners, £350) is a showstopper.

Splash out on a coffee table that will upgrade a living room instantly (John Lewis and Partners) (John Lewis & Partners)

With an art deco-inspired design, it’s a mix of marble and metal that will take pride of place.

Household appliances

The more essential buys are often the least interesting. Take vacuums, for example, needed but not necessarily the most fun to buy. But find the right one and it’ll make cleaning a whole lot easier

We’d recommend the Dyson cyclone V10 animal cordless vacuum cleaner (John Lewis and Partners, £399).

Making hoovering a breeze with this cordless machine (John Lewis and Partners)

It has great suction and increased air flow, which means it needs less battery power to support it. It’s lightweight, reaches into corners and comes with attachments that will remove ground-in dirt, dust and pet hair.

The Siemens fully automatic coffee machine EQ.9 plus connect (John Lewis and Partners, £1,499) is another hefty investment but impressed us for producing coffee on par with our favourite barista-made stuff in our IndyBest round-up of the best bean-to-cup coffee machines.

This machine holds two types of beans, has on-screen prompts, connects to your wifi and is easy to clean (The Independent)

We loved the fact you can load up two types of beans, that every step of the coffee is editable and the machine intuitively remembers what you tend to prefer – right down to which beans for which type of coffee.

Tech

Seeing as most of us have been glued to our screens for work, socialising or through boredom, treat yourself to a new gadget that can make it a more enjoyable experience.

The Beats Solo pro wireless bluetooth on-ear headphones with active noise cancelling and mic (John Lewis and Partner, £199) are must-have if you want to drown out the noise and plug into your favourite podcast, phone calls or playlists.

For work calls or workouts, these noise-cancelling headphones will help you really focus (John Lewis and Partners) (John Lewis and Partners)

They turn off automatically when you fold them, which is compact enough to fit in a small handbag, have a 22-hour battery life and a 10-minute charge will give you three hours of playback, a bluetooth connection and built-in microphone.

If you want to blast your favourite tunes at your next social-distancing BBQ, you need a speaker such as this Bose soundlink portable bluetooth speaker with built-in speakerphone (John Lewis and Partners, £90).

Splash out on a portable speaker to play your favourite songs with friends (John Lewis and Partners)

Small but mighty, the pint-sized product has a waterproof body, tear-resistant strap, bluetooth connection and high-quality sound, so even if it gets dropped in a paddling pool or caught in the rain it is durable enough to withstand it.

Fashion

As lockdown continues to ease and we slowly approach being able to see friends and make more trips outside, you can finally start wearing clothes other than gym kit, hoodies and pjs.

This Whistles elephant print jumpsuit (John Lewis and Partners, £135.20) is the perfect addition to your summer wardrobe.

Invest in some lightweight, throw-on-and-go pieces for your wardrobe as we enter summer (John Lewis and Partners)

With a relaxed fit, tie waist and wide leg, it's perfect for picnics in the park.

Or splurge on this hush Bessy Circular Bag (John Lewis and Partners, £110). It has a leopard-print exterior and circular shape that's still roomy enough to keep you valuables safe and organised.

Go bolder and give your black bag a break (John Lewis and Partners)

Seeing as temperature, fingers crossed, continue to rise, swap the jeans and jogging bottoms for these AllSaints colbalt chino shorts (John Lewis & Partners, £60)

Ditch loungewear for shorts when you're outside the house (John Lewis and Partners)

Designed in lightweight cotton, they’ll add a sartorial edge to your summer wardrobe.

Beauty

Having made it this far through lockdown, we think we're all pretty deserving of an indulgent treat such as this Clarins lip comfort oil (John lewis and Partners, £19) and makes a luxurious change from a pot of Vaseline.

Nourishing and hydrating, a lip oil has all the benefits of a balm but with a luxurious edge (John Lewis and Partners)

It has a wide doe-foot applicator to glide over lips to hydrate and adds a natural gloss, which can be worn over lipstick or on its own.

Or if you’ve managed to save some pennies while in lockdown, then this is one sure way to spend it

This bottle of Maison Francis Kurkdjian baccarat rouge 540 eau de parfum (John Lewis and Partners, £200) is a heady blend of saffron, jasmine and cedarwood.

Step into summer with a fresh new fragrance (John Lewis and Partners)

Expensive yes, but if you used it every day for a year, it would work out to cost just over 55p a day. Not that we need convincing.