Fashion is Nice, But a Good Bargain is Better

"Kelly and her mom have a preppy style," Colleen said. "You know, they wear all those really cool sweaters and nice pants."
"Yeah, that's right," Maureen said. "And Allison's mom has a style all her own."
"She wears the best stuff I've every seen," Colleen agreed.
"Your Aunt Cathie's friend has a glamorous style," family friend Michelle added.
In the upstairs hallway in front of the mirror, we were having a
discussion on fashion and style.
"How would you describe my style?" I asked as I preened at my reflection, expecting an answer describing a combination of pizazz, glamour and good taste. Instead, Colleen Sr., our college student helper, offered this:
"Don't you have a buy-it-on-sale-and-wear-it style?"
"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked the group, which was doubled over in laughter.
"Whenever you show us what you bought on a shopping outing, the first thing you mention is how much the price of the item was discounted," Colleen Sr. said. "You are more excited about the money you saved than what you bought."
"At the end of last summer, when you bought that dress for two dollars, we thought you'd never stop talking about what a great deal it was, especially since it has the French label in it."
"Well, it was a good deal, and it paid for itself right away because Colleen wore it to play practice that night, and I wore it the next day when I met friends for coffee."
"And I suppose you told them all about how cheap it was just like you told me to brag about your shopping skills at rehearsal,"
Colleen Jr. said.
"As a matter of fact, I did, and they were impressed as most people are when you tell them about a good deal." Those girls are right about me. I can't stand to buy anything unless it is on sale. I tell myself I can't afford an item and don't need it, but if it's marked down, suddenly my purchasing power appears and takes charge, literally and figuratively. For me, passing up a bargain would be like Bonnie and Clyde passing through a town without holding up the bank. The other day I ran into a friend when I was traveling about town searching for a wet vacuum to suck up the two to three inches of water that had flooded my basement. She asked me to go with her to a sale at a very nice ladies store. "There will be big markdowns,"she promised. She didn't need to say more. I immediately dismissed my water problems until later, rationalizing that the job would be easier when some of the water had evaporated, and I was off to the sale.
The bigger the markdown, the happier I am. "Clearance" has become one of my favorite words, as has the phrase "50 percent off lowest marked price." If an article of clothing doesn't have at least one red line through its original price tag, or isn't hanging on a special sale rack, it probably never will make its way out of the store in my possession. At these moments, I am so happy I even can instantaneously figure out in my head how much of a good deal I'm getting.
However, I have to admit that I'm not always as savvy as I purport to be.
Occasionally, I'll find a dress that has a price tag that is too good to be true, but the dress will look even better with just the right belt or scarf. So I set off searching for it and, of course, it costs three times what the dress does. And, of course, I buy it anyway. After all, I have to spend all the money I've saved somewhere.

November 30, 1988