I shop, therefore I am

I must confess – I’m a shopaholic. I love shopping for clothes and this is truly my recreational activity of choice. Window shopping is good too, even if I don’t buy anything. I love discount stores such as Marshall’s, TJMaxx and Ross and I’ve found several good thrift shops that benefit not only from my purchases, but also my returns! I love it when I come home with lots of bags and relive the thrill of the buy as I find hangers to put them on and figure out where I can stuff it into my closet. It’s also a thrill when I confirm that my mind’s eye was right on target and the blouse perfectly matches the slacks I had at home and is also just the right style. Conversely, it can really be heartbreaking when you find yourself completely off. Then you have to decide, do I return it or go out and shop more to find the perfect piece to match the mistake? Depends on how much I really liked the mistake. Then again, there are the occasional “what the hell?” moments. What was I thinking when I bought THAT? I save all receipts and don’t frequently shop at stores that only have store credit return policies. And shopping for clothes in Philly and Jersey is also fun because there’s no tax! You can shop right up to the penny! Come to think of it, though, maybe I’m not as much of a shopaholic as I thought. I find myself not buying a lot when I’m visiting other cities and have to pay tax. I have to really like it!

But I don’t think I’m a shopaholic in a bad way. Many people who are shopaholics have tons of clothes that sit in their closets and drawers, tags attached, never again touching skin except for the fleeting moment when it was tried on in the store. I wear my stuff! In fact, sometimes I think the only reason I have a job is just so that I have some place to wear what I buy. Plus, since my favorite stores are discount places, I haven’t really paid huge sums for them. I know, I know – some people would rather buy top quality items that will last years and years. But I know me. After about 2 or 3 years of something, I’m usually sick of it. And no, changing an accessory or two is not gonna do it. At a minimum, I need a new piece in order to keep one of the old ones in rotation. And I wouldn’t say it’s because my clothes are ultra faddish and subject to going out of style in one season. They’re relatively mainstream – I do work in a center city office environment, even if it is informal and I don’t have to wear a suit. Think casual Friday 5 days a week. I just like having a lot of variety.

One item I just couldn’t resist was the shorter jacket. In the summer, I found one in red stretch canvas. It fit great since it wasn’t boxy. Then I saw a very similar one in corduroy in an olive green color. At the time I wasn’t seeing a lot of green of any hue and the price was unbelievable. On my next stop at the store, I found more. This time in burnt orange and cream corduroy. Then I found it in demin. Then I found another in a blue/gray corduroy. I bought them all. I just recently saw the same jacket in a gold colored corduroy. But lest you think I’m obsessive/compulsive, I didn’t get it. I figured that even if I didn’t have enough of that style, I did have enough of that style - in corduroy. I must admit, that it they were a good buy. I wear at least two of them almost every week. So what do I wear them with?


I wear them with my true obsessive/compulsive find. The Express Design Studio Editor Pants. I discovered these slacks by accident since I don’t actually shop at that store. I found my first pair in black at Marshall’s. I tried them on and was absolutely shocked! Generally, no pants fit me without alterations to take in the waist – never. This time, no alterations needed. When I went to the actual store, I found that the pants normally retail for about $78. I didn’t love them that much, but I figured that I’d keep a look-out for them should any land in the discount store. Later that year, I found some in three different colors at Marshall’s and TJMaxx. I thought the first fit was a fluke, but when I tried them on, they also fit perfectly. These are billed as the best fitting pants on earth.



Then the compulsion began. While looking to see if the store was on-line, I found that sellers list them as a whole category on Ebay. There were 100’s of pants listed in a rainbow of colors, materials and some very unique patterns! And since I knew exactly what size fit me, I didn’t have any concerns that I wasn’t going to be able to return them. And I didn’t have to pay $78 for them either. In some cases I had the winning bid (usually between $20 and $30), other times I got it for much less especially when nobody else bid. And most times, they were still new with tags.

The extent of my obsession/compulsion? I estimate that I have at least 50 pairs between summer and winter variations and I’m currently awaiting delivery of another pair. I don’t think that’s too much since, other than jeans, I don’t own many other styles and I do wear them just about every day.