Against my own advice, I ventured into the murky depths of the mall today. I normally try to stay as far away from them as I possibly can but I suffered from a temporary lapse in judgement. First of all, I was searching for a birthday present and thought if I could walk around the mall I might get some ideas on what to buy. Second of all, my clothes have started to get that too-tight look that means that my body is expanding against my will. It is a sick cruel joke my body plays on me; every time I try to lose weight I end up gaining weight. Maybe I should try to gain weight in order to lose weight? And, it has been ages since my last hair cut and I felt the need to splurge on a nice cut and color.
The good news is that even though I went to the mall with every intention of spending money, when I looked at the price tags I almost fell to the floor in shock.
"HOLY bejezus, $130 for a pair of jeans???"
"$40 for foundation makeup? $28 for blush? Bless their souls; they have lost their damn minds!"
"They want me to pay how much for this serving tray? That must be $9, not $90."
These were my inwards conversations as I made my way through the mall, just aching to spend some money but not quite THAT much money.
The worst was when I went to go get my haircut. I had bargained on about $150 for a cut and color. Boy, was I ever wrong. Thank goodness I asked before I took a seat in the chair! Apparently, haircuts at this salon run from $85 for a "Stylist" to $135 for a "Creative Director" and anywhere from $145 to $205 for a color. I tried to maintain my calm and composure while she was explaining their pricing, and as soon as she looked away I ran as fast as I could.
Have I really been not shopping for that long? When did everything get so expensive????
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Sticker Shock
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9 comments:
Holy cow! I've lived in Detroit, then central PA and now Raleigh. I don't ever recall seeing prices that high for things (well, perhaps at the Troy malls in Michigan) but where was this shopping? Your profile says 'CA' - I guess California is more expensive for many things. Or my shopping experiences aren't normal (probably true!). I rarely hit the malls anymore myself, just because there's very little there that I need or want.
My goodness. The price of everything is through the roof but my salary is stagnant. (Sigh)
BTW...you had me cracking up with this!!!
"HOLY bejezus, $130 for a pair of jeans???" "$40 for foundation makeup? $28 for blush? Bless their souls; they have lost their damn minds!" "They want me to pay how much for this serving tray? That must be $9, not $90."
What mall were you shopping at? Prices are high like that these days, but I've never once picked up a $130 pair of jeans. Looking for clothes -- try Target, my new nemesis. I've spent so much on clothes there recently, but the quality is good and the prices are great.
Man, where do you live!!!!!!!!!!
Hello Debt Defier! You've come sooo far with your debt reduction! You're down to one last tiny piece-- I'm pulling for you bringing that balance down to zero! The hard part is keeping it at zero, so keep blogging and tell how you're SAVING all your money! :)
I'm laughing at and with you. After going cold turkey with mall shopping, when you go back, the sticker shock is phenomenal. But think what that really means in terms of your lifestyle changes and thinking. I think it's pretty awesome actually. You'll never pay $500 for Jimmy Choos.
I love shopping for new clothes, but I think that raggamuffin swirly look a few years ago really turned me off on the mall. I've always preferred something sleek and chic. Once that went out of fashion, the mall just lost all of its appeal. If I wanted to wear a patchwork quilt, I'd take my coverlet and recut it into a dress.
LPKitten, you absolutely rock! This kind of thinking is going to stay with you for the rest of your life. Good for you and your pocketbook!
I knew I was staying out of malls for a reason!! My heart couldn't take the shock!
holy shnikeys. that is insane. if you only know how many days work that is for me. the jeans the haircuts!?! those people must be raking in the mulah!
tip for haircuts (this works in NY, so i'm assuming it'll work for orange county):
go through craig's list's free section. there are usually hairstylists-in-training who are looking for a model. you'll have to spend a couple of hours with them while the instructor shows them how to cut hair, but it'll be free. i went to one of the teaching salons in ny where they normally charge $130 for a master stylist. instead, i had a student there cut my hair while the master stylist observed. the master also gave my hair a final touch-up to cover any minor snips the student missed. it was terrific for a free haircut!
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