A true Fashole has an aversion to buying clothing full-price; it’s way expensive for this season’s items. Sales are usually the way to go. But sometimes, a sale becomes a moment of insanity. I have stood in front of the clearance rack at Bloomingdale’s agonizing over 40% off purple jeans that were just fantastic and just unnecessary. I imagined wearing them with over-the-knee boots and being stopped by strangers for pictures and accolades. When I got them home, I raved to my personal bankroll/long-suffering husband about these jeans…only to try them on again and notice that I vaguely resembled a grape Popsicle. You know, one of those double ones with two sticks. Sales also inspire wardrobe dementia. I have picked up yet another black Banana Republic boyfriend cardigan at Woodbury Commons because I have forgotten that I have two similar cardigans at home from last year. They are all exactly the same so that 25% off wasn’t a deal, was it?
Instead of being a sensible human being who debates before purchasing, I have simply utilized more and more closets in the house to store these sale mishaps and doubles. My office closet houses my work attire and my husband’s clothes are now, sadly enough, relegated to the dining room linen closet. I could give to good will or throw the clothes away, but this weekend a friend had a great idea. Before moving, she grabbed all the clothes that have been clogging up her teeny-tiny basement apartment and invited friends over to take what they wanted. I called the event “The Majesty of Mooching” because clothes-swapping (from a friend with some style) mixes up your wardrobe without killing your budget. I know clothes-swapping is not a new idea but it deserves revisiting, especially during the holiday season when I want to buy for myself but have to buy for everyone else. No matter what, I cannot give my seven-year-old niece a pair of suede kitten heels for Christmas. I won’t be able to take them back because that darn kid will want to keep them and wear them to school even if they are not her size. Fashion sense is genetic, thank God.
While sipping wine, I tried on at least a dozen separates. I found items I would have purchased for myself and others that I would have passed by but now realize look great on me. After about an hour and a half I had snagged, among other things, a pair of J. Crew corduroys, an Ann Taylor Loft champagne colored sleeveless shirt, a United Colors of Benetton skirt, a Cleo & Patek handbag, two scarves from Express and J. Crew, and a pair of Sam Edelman flats. Everything is last season and some of the shoes have a little heel damage, yet it doesn’t matter because those Sam Edelmans are a lovely dove gray with chunky square buckles that are still in style. And no one notices scuffy heels when you are walking thirty blocks uptown. Clothes-swapping even works with friends of various sizes; my cousin took home a pair of sunglasses and an Italian scarf. There is still a gorgeous blue and brown patterned Lux summer dress sitting on her rack. Any size 12 girls out there might want to jump on that.
Next month, after my friend has found room in her new apartment for all of her current clothes and accessories, we are thinking of having another swap at my home. More friends = more clothes to choose from. Plus, I can get rid of some maternity and post-maternity clothes that I refuse to wear any longer because I'm not pregnant. Now stop asking. And the best part? When I got home that night and tried on those pine green J. Crew corduroys, I didn’t resemble dessert on two sticks. I was a lean, green, money-saving machine.
By the way, I'm Christina, part time contributor to Fasholes. Nice to meet you...and I love your shoes.
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Can we talk about colored jeans? I really like them, and yet, I feel like I'm too old to wear them. The colored jean is tricky, because you can really only pair them with black or white, maybe gray. It seems it would be very difficult to accessorize while wearing a colored jean, as you could very easily look like you went overboard, even though with a regular jean the same accessories would be fine.
ReplyDeleteI really love this whole idea of a mooching party. The best thing I ever got from a friend was a pair of Abercrombie jeans that I am only skinny enough to wear maybe two weeks out of the year, but they are really cute, and they were FREE.
(PS-"Plus, I can get rid of some maternity and post-maternity clothes that I refuse to wear any longer because I'm not pregnant. Now stop asking."-Hilarious)
"Can we talk about colored jeans?"
ReplyDelete1. You sound like Joan Rivers.
2. Stop being racist.
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ReplyDeleteI feel like colored jeans sound like a good idea in theory, but never are in reality. The green corduroys are dark enough to be a neutral, but the red jeans I tried on at Target just made me look like Long Duck Dong from "Sixteen Candles."
ReplyDeleteAnd I love Joan Rivers. Or I did until she died, was embalmed, and was resurrected as cat-lady.
ReplyDelete