Thursday, June 07, 2007

Gotta have that dress!

Have you ever seen a dress you just absolutely had to have but knew your budget just couldn't accommodate it? I had such a dress several years ago. It was velvet, black with deep purple, so deep it was difficult to distinguish. The straps were rolled velvet and this dress was a killer. Simplistic in cut but formed to the curves. I had to try it on and loved how flattering it was.

Anyway... I was a single mom at the time and on a very very limited budget. I so wanted this dress, but at $250 it was out of the question. I would look at this dress every time I went to the mall. In fact, I would park out of the way just to cut through the store so I drool over the dress.

And then one day I noticed it had been reduced to half the price. My heart pounded because I knew someone would buy it with only two left and one was my dress size. I was sure it would be gone, but it was still too expensive a buy for a struggling single mom. I let it pass and over the next 2 weeks, watched it go down to $100, $90, $75 and knew when it was marked down to $65, it would be gone the next time I came through the store.

Well, a few days later, I had to run to the mall and of course cut through the store to look at my dress, certain it would be gone, but it was spring and this was a winter dress, and it was still there. When I turned the tag around, I was shocked to see it was marked down to $34. I felt I could afford that price. (G) Remember I was a single mom with a house payment, car payment, supporting a child, etc. So I was very careful when I had to buy clothes, typically opting for business suits for work.

Anyway, I bought it, not knowing if I'd ever have a chance to wear it other than to try it on and stand in front of a mirror admiring it. But I did wear it that December to my company's Holiday party. I don't think I've ever been prouder of an article of clothing as I was that dress because it was something my heart had truly desired and the Universe had saved it for me and made sure it was a price I could afford.

I love great bargains and that was probably the best one I ever had. I felt someone somewhere really wanted me to have that dress as much as I wanted it because all the others had sold and in retrospect it was almost comical how that dress markdown kept on and on, almost like a reverse auction.

So what about you? Have you ever had something you wanted so bad you could practically taste it? Feel it? Any great bargains?

4 comments:

Unknown said...

I've lost 50 lbs in the last year (while at college, no less!) and while I still have a long way to go, I've dropped from a size 24 to 18/16 (depending on the cut and the brand). I was shopping with my mother the other day for a nice sun dress- because none of my summer clothing fits.

Well, in one of the stores I saw this spunky (that's the only word for it) jeans dress. It was $50- not the bargain I was looking for, and the only one on the rack. I tried it on with a bunch of other things- just for fun, and I found it was a 14... and looked great!

So I sucked it in- did some mental juggling in my head, and decided if I skimped with a few necessities I could get it.

I got up to the cash register, and the woman run it up- only for me to see that it was $4.89!!! It had been put in the wrong place, with the new dresses... and what was originally an $80 dress was mistakenly put in with the $50 dresses, even though it had been marked down to the price I purchased it at.

I decided that the universe wanted me to have the first size 14 that I have ever fit into since before middle school.

Sally Painter said...

JC congrats on your weight loss that is quite an accomplishment and glad you rewarded yourself with the dress. WOW $4.89. THAT is my kind of bargain!!!

Susan said...

Now this was many years ago, but I found this RED, figure hugging(I used to have one)dress that was so sexy and classy that I was dying to have. Me, being the practical person, wouldn't buy it because I didn't have anywhere to wear it so I put it back on the rack. Weeks later my sister in-law and I made plans for a special evening to celebrate our husbands birthday(we married twins)so we hit the mall for something to wow them. There sat that dress and marked down too. I decided to splurge and purchase it and never felt sexier than I did when I wore that red dress and of course matching shoes...:)Oh and Hubby liked it too...LOL. That was over 15 years ago and I still remember that dress.

I kept that dress for many years(but not the hubby), even though I only wore it twice. I eventually gave it to someone else who could wear it since I kinda outgrew it...:)

Sally Painter said...

Susan,

Great story! Isn't it funny how an article of clothing can make us feel?

I shoul give my dress away, too, but I haven't been able to just yet.