My brush with Balmainia

When my brother was in college up at Vassar my mother and I would force a detour every single time. The most glorious outlet mall in America--The Woodbury Commons. You have your basic J. Crew and Ralph Lauren, but then comes Chanel, Prada, Balenciaga, Ferragamo...it's endless. These seasonal trips coupled with more local outlets allows me to consider myself as an experienced outlet shopper.

Over the past years I have done fairly well. I've scored everything from a Miu Miu cocktail dress to a Marc Jacobs bag, although there have been plenty of frustrating and unsuccessful trips, I never lose faith.

Yesterday my mom and I were essentially kicked out of our house for the day due to inspectors and the fun things that come with selling a home, so, naturally, we were on the road to ready to find some discounted designer duds by 9:30 am.

Here are some tips when going outlet shopping:
-Do not take your size seriously. What I mean is if you claim you are ALWAYS a size 6 in pants, throw that out the window. Things might be too big or too small, so if you don't see your size in an item you like, try it on anyway.

-Bring snacks. Outlet shopping is far different from a regular trip to the mall. You need to be focused and prepared to look at everything, thus well fueled. My mom and I always bring a bottle of water and various Fiber One bars.

-Be aware of details. There is a reason why things are at an outlet. Sometimes the store had too much inventory other times goods are damaged. I remember finding a Proenza Schouler skirt that I absolutely loved, however, the stain in the back was not nearly as cute.

-Keep your options open. A lot of the things I try on are just for kicks, but end up actually liking. Most of the time I try on absolutely ridiculous things that I either cannot afford (see below) or items that I have always been curious to try.

 -Look at everything. Outlets aren't terribly organized, so things are placed where they shouldn't be. I was able to find a great See by Chloe shirt hung on the Womens Career clearance rack. Look at the super big sizes, for some reason, I also find a lot of gems there, maybe people are trying to hide their finds?


So, today, when I was looking through the Designer/Couture clearance, I stumbled upon something quite incredible--a S/S '09 Balmain dress. Marked down to $7,360 (originally priced at a semester of a private liberal-arts college) I had to try it on. Firstly, jesus, Christophe Decarnin does not want women to be able to breathe. Secondly, he knows how to make a woman feel sexy. For the minutes I had this dress on, I felt like a rock star, despite the fact it weighed close to 8 lbs. Here are some crappy cell phone shotz.

Is that me? In Balmain?!

Regardless of the begging I tried to do with a straight face, I could not convince my mother to buy this for me. Instead I picked up a great See by Chloe top and an Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti skirt.

 I would have tried this on and created a cute outfit, but seeing as it is 3:23am and I have yet to pack for my flight back to school tomorrow, it's just not going to happen.