So when you buy a pair of J.Crew ballet flats, for instance, at $190 (just throwing a number out there for argument's sake) and a dress for just under $200, the numbers start to blur. Well, I know for a moment in time they blurred for me. & I thought nothing of doing this on a weekly basis. So when your shopping budget is in the arena of $500 - $1000 a month, you find yourself moving on to the next level --- Diane Von Furstenberg starts looking like a decent price. & you wonder why you haven't paid more attention to the sale rack at Neimans before. & then at some point, you move on from the sale rack and are moving on to bigger and better. 
I've found myself here, peeps. I start to think I'm slumming it when I go to the Gap. Or when I land in Banana Republic! P'shaw!! They're dresses are $150 at Full Price!! At some point soon, and I'm so ready you have no idea, I want to get back to reality. When I thought that $98 for a polka-dotted pencil skirt that wasn't lined was absolute highway robbery. Or when I thought that $68 for a hammered silk tank was just for suckers (do you even know how many hammered silk tanks lie in the dimly lit recesses of my closet?). I want to be a simple girl! I want to get off the J.Crack.
Haha. This is a funny post. I don't have a cure or solution for our Jcrack adiction, but I would gladly take those Revas off of your hands (smile)
ReplyDeleteYes! It is a gateway drug. I have jsut found myself selling all my J. Crew flats at the consignment shop and purchasing Tory Burch flats in matching colors. I seem to have the same problem you do. I think the only answer is to stop buying for a while. Get back to basics, which we already have!
ReplyDeleteHi, I am new to your blog. When you find a rehab or support group let me know, LOL. I just spent an insane amount at Jcrack SUnday night online. I keep going out to the mail in hopes my hubby doesnt see the package!!! I was thinking of blocking it from my computer, hehehe
ReplyDeleteThere absolutely s/b some form of therapy! I've had to stop looking at the emails. . They kept giving me reasons to look!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you totally about the prices blurring and making you look at other high-ticket brands; but for the life of me, I do NOT understand the attraction to RIVA's by Tory Burch!! I refuse to pay that ridiculous amount (even on sale) for shoes with GIANT monograms of someone else!! There are much more beautiful (and comfortable) shoes out there for that money!
ReplyDelete(And I do have some TB clothing items, so it's not the brand - just those flats!) Actually TB has some gorgeous boots, but the heels are out of the question for someone with my orthopaedic problems. I actually am refusing to buy any more J Crew sweaters this season - as the ones I own from previous years in cashmere are of better quality than the current issue.
Thanks for the great post topic!
Lol to the Revas, Suze. Someone asked me once what Chinese character I had on my feet. I know what you mean. I thought they were comfy, but we all have our lines in the sand. Hope Baby is doing well!
ReplyDeleteFrom a shopcrack friend that can't give you much advice you may should try ebay. I found vintage dresses, beautiful ones from the 70's for less than $30. The old is gold :)
ReplyDeleteIsn't amazing how you can get completely desensitized to prices once your cross over to the dark side of "designer" brands. I'm with you. No more "J Crack" for me. I've got plenty.
ReplyDeleteWhats funnier is that women are buying J. Crew to impress other women....much like how we buy shoes or bags. No man, unless he is gay, appreciates the $ spent, nor does he care. I think, regardless of brand, $ need to be spent on quality items that are basic staples that are made well. Shouldnt matter that it has a J. Crew tag or an Ann Taylor tag, or a Land's End tag...all that matters is that you look good and feel fabilis.
ReplyDeleteThis post is HILARIOUS. I could have written the same thing.
ReplyDeleteWow - you understand! I tell myself "no J Crew" emails - no ordering from the holiday sales, but I am drawn like a moth to the flame. Your post is so right! I have been keeping their catalogs by my closet and trying to copy "the look" with my Target and Old Navy clothes. It helps.
ReplyDeleteMarisa, I am with you on this one. To put an end to my ridiculous mindset ($98 sweaters are a good "deal") I started limiting myself to buying things on sale or promotion only. I only recently started doing this (um, 2 weeks ago...) so we'll see how long it lasts :)
ReplyDeleteWhat you just posted is sooooo true, I'm trying to buy things on sale only, i have bought them at regular price and then one week later they're on sale....that hurts...
ReplyDeleteladies --- J. Crew just announced holiday event -- 25% off all items in store and on line and free shipping for orders over $150. Valid through 13 DEC Monday......
ReplyDeleteI AM a DEFINITE J. Crew ADDICT! I NEED J.CREW in my life EVERYDAY!
ReplyDeleteLOL, you know, I never thought about it but I think J.Crew totally *was* my gateway drug...after I started indulging myself more and more in early 2008 with the J.Crew, I think it was only few months later when I suddenly I started letting myself justify the big ticket items. What a great insight! More reasons for me to swear off the J.Crack for good.
ReplyDeleteLadies thank you for your resounding comments which have confirmed for me that the Crew was definitely the reason I could justify the designer brands. & I most definitely agree that no straight man appreciates my J.crew purchase over any other brand. It most definitely is done for other women. I know I'm guilty of that!
ReplyDeleteLOL! This is a great post. J.Crew is totally my gateway shopping drug. But at least it is a socially acceptable addiction. ;)
ReplyDeleteoh my god, this is so true. My shoes and bags used to be from Nine West and I thought BR was a total splurge. That wasn't even so long ago. Now I want Marc Jacobs purse for Christmas and I found myself embarrassed when a coworker asked me about my booties and I started on how cheap i got them, until she asked me about a price. I stumbled with 'errr, they were about, errr $175, but...' I suddenly felt very shallow like a TV character I never wanted to be.
ReplyDeleteajc, I hear you. Banana was a big deal but that was all BJC (Before J.Crew). I'm pretty sure it's the price points that numbed my perspective. A big deal purchase was nine west, and now only certain brands will do and I've found myself this brand snob. Your points are exactly what I was trying to get across!
ReplyDeleteAlexis thanks for posting!
ReplyDeleteSuzy, I, too, wondered about the Revas when I first started blogging. I just couldn't understand it/them. But then others don't understand my Stuart Weitzman shoe addiction. LOL
ReplyDeleteHILARIOUS -so true. I love your blog!
ReplyDeleteRose, I was a Reva-doubter many years ago, but I have to tell you, the buttery leather ones are so comfortable. I had a pair of patent ones and they were hard as rocks as no where near as easy to wear. The plain black pair, even with the mega-huge gold hardware on the front, became this obsesh.
ReplyDeleteTammy, Thanks for stopping by and adding to the conversation. I was completely serious when I wrote this and I'm hoping that we all can curb our J.Crack addictions in 2011! Happy New Year!