Thursday: Day Off

So, I have been an avid Ebayer for years.  It is a good and bad thing.  It has ruined my ability to shop, which might not be a bad thing.  I guess more, it has ruined my ability to need a dress for an occasion and then go somewhere and pick one out and bring it home.  If I need something, it is more like I head out shopping with a little spiral notebook, lock myself in a dressing room with several articles of clothing, then mark down my size in each item and head home to peruse Ebay until I find it for much less.  Then to prolong my excruciation, I begin rounding up items from my closet that I can bear to part with and sell them on Ebay so that I can get the item that I want for an even lower price.  It is a game of strategy and chance, you do not always win, and honestly sometimes the disappointment is unbearable.  I know that local shopkeepers hate me and wonder what I am doing holed up in their dressing rooms, and I do have nice clothes, but I cannot say that I always save money, as I am still ultimately buying clothes.

I do, however, have some stunning items that I will probably have when I am 80.  The shoes and the jeans are the best bargains.  I know I am a European 38 and the European classification system is much more reliable than our American system.  For this reason, I I ere on the side of luxury shoes and have been more than successful.  They are usually available slightly used for at the most, 1/5 of the price.  Amazing right??
Jeans are always around $75 to $50 dollars cheaper and sometimes much much cheaper which is always exciting.

Other things like cashmere sweaters and lovely jackets also come down the pike, and it seems that if I have good judgement about my purchases they retain a good bit of their resale value, and if I am bored with them I can sell them and put the money towards some other Ebay item.  It is thrilling!!  I work with strategy, I dicker with vendors and complain vehemently if the items received are not as advertised, and I have always won.  SO, I encourage you to Ebay and enhance the luxury items in your closet.  If you wear a shoe size 38, however, beware, as I will be trying to outbid you.

Anyway, all that to say that this month I won my greatest Ebay triumph.  In the first SEX and the CITY movie, Carrie Bradshaw buys this beautiful pair of blue Manolo Blahnik shoes to wear for a wedding that then does not happen.  I mean, I do not really fault anyone for not marrying Carrie Bradshaw, but I was in raptures over the shoes except that they were blue satin, which is totally impractical.  Ever since, however, I have been perusing Ebay for a similar style that I could incorporate into my wardrobe, and one day I found them.  It was a very similar style, with a slightly lower heel and made with black calf's hair and a huge rhinestone pilgrim buckle.

I sold a pair of my own shoes that were totally uncomfortable and then put in a secret bid with a bidding company that I use, and the shoes were mine for 1/8 of the retail value.  It is amazing.  They are beautiful, a perfect fit, ever so comfortable and I can honestly say that they have contributed to a slight increase in the quality of my life.  I think we should none of us be intimidated by runway prices, luxury is easily ours with a bit of patience and an eye for a lasting style.