199 Marbles
I love clothes - I love dresses, I love skirts, I love coats, I love shirts, and I love, love, love shoes. Problem is I don’t particularly like shopping and even if I did, while I’m in school I don’t have much disposable income to spend on clothes. My kids are always growing – they need new clothes, I only want clothes. I’ve found a solution that solves this dilemma – a consignment store in a wealthy area of town. Usually the store is good to shop at but twice a year, they have their 50% off sale and that’s when I find the really good stuff.
Today for $143 I found: two work dresses, four other dresses, a casual skirt, a t-shirt, a pair of shoes, two sweaters, and a lovely brocade coat with velvet trim. I have a really good eye for quality so despite the quantity of clothes that I scored, they are all good designer labels.
I love clothes - I love dresses, I love skirts, I love coats, I love shirts, and I love, love, love shoes. Problem is I don’t particularly like shopping and even if I did, while I’m in school I don’t have much disposable income to spend on clothes. My kids are always growing – they need new clothes, I only want clothes. I’ve found a solution that solves this dilemma – a consignment store in a wealthy area of town. Usually the store is good to shop at but twice a year, they have their 50% off sale and that’s when I find the really good stuff.
Today for $143 I found: two work dresses, four other dresses, a casual skirt, a t-shirt, a pair of shoes, two sweaters, and a lovely brocade coat with velvet trim. I have a really good eye for quality so despite the quantity of clothes that I scored, they are all good designer labels.
Someone once asked me if I shop mainly at consignment because I don’t think I’m good enough to shop retail. I thought it was an interesting question because I hadn’t associated shopping with self esteem so I asked her if shopping retail made her feel better about herself. I get that there is often a connection but I don’t feel "less than" when I shop consignment.
I often wonder if more income comes my way in the future, will I still take these jaunts to the consignment store? I think I will for a number of reasons: Firstly, fashion is not very friendly on the environment and I like the idea of re-using some other woman’s adorable lightlly-worn discards; Secondly, I still like the idea of getting a bargain and using my money for other things like travel; Thirdly, fashion is a bit of a following-the-herd phenomena and whereas I like to have style, the items aren’t usually on the cusp of fashion trends - they’re items that I like; Lastly, seeing as I don’t actually love the act of going store to store shopping, I do like the one-stop shopping of checking out my favorite consignment store.
When I look back on how my mother shopped, I recall going shopping to bargain basements. Growing up, I found this annoying but I now know she was doing the best with the family resources. Whereas consignment shopping makes me feel clever, stylish, and resourceful, I wonder what my own daughter will think…
Audrey Hepburn said, "The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It’s the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows & the beauty of a woman only grows with passing years." Can you connect to your beauty in or out of clothes?
I often wonder if more income comes my way in the future, will I still take these jaunts to the consignment store? I think I will for a number of reasons: Firstly, fashion is not very friendly on the environment and I like the idea of re-using some other woman’s adorable lightlly-worn discards; Secondly, I still like the idea of getting a bargain and using my money for other things like travel; Thirdly, fashion is a bit of a following-the-herd phenomena and whereas I like to have style, the items aren’t usually on the cusp of fashion trends - they’re items that I like; Lastly, seeing as I don’t actually love the act of going store to store shopping, I do like the one-stop shopping of checking out my favorite consignment store.
When I look back on how my mother shopped, I recall going shopping to bargain basements. Growing up, I found this annoying but I now know she was doing the best with the family resources. Whereas consignment shopping makes me feel clever, stylish, and resourceful, I wonder what my own daughter will think…
Audrey Hepburn said, "The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It’s the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows & the beauty of a woman only grows with passing years." Can you connect to your beauty in or out of clothes?
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