Shopping Tips

Sometimes I hear people say tings like "I hate shopping!" This. Is. Unacceptable. I'm not saying everyone has to be like me, the die-hard shopper that lives, eats and sleeps it, but it should be a pretty enjoyable experience. After all, you're out there BUYING thins for YOURSELF. How do you not enjoy that? I'm sorry, we probably can't be friends.

I have some ideas that can make shopping a little easier on both the feet and the pocketbook. One day, you shall be a shopping lover, and I will you see you twirling your shopping bags in circles and throwing your hat up in the air Mary Tyler Moore style in the mall. We'll get there, I promise. This is on my mind especially because I am FINALLY going to buy some of those cute academy sweaters today. I can't believe I have put it off this long. Must have one! K, so here we go.

-SHOES! Put some thought into the shoes you wear shopping. I know you're automatically thinking comfort, but please! before you pull out your perfectly white Keds, remember the purpose of trying on these clothes is to make sure they look good. You will not be happy if you go to try on a cute skirt with clunky old running shoes. *shudder* My advice is to shop in flats. They look good with pretty much any type of clothing, and will give you a better idea of how the clothes will look and not leave you frustrated. Trying on jeans? Remember that there are different length inseams. I get longer jeans to wear with my heels and shorter jeans to wear wit flats. When trying on long jeans for heels, do a little tippy toe test (stand on your toes about three inches in the air) and make sure they'll fall correctly....and that your butt looks good. Go ahead, give it a little peek.

- Wear something presentable. Remember that there will be other people shopping, and you'll feel all frumpy and unrepresentable if you head out in sweats and mom jeans.

- Do not bring children if you are serious about shopping for yourself. Don't get me wrong, I nip into stores with my two year old all the time, but I don't do real shopping with her. You'll get too frustrated and then tell me you hate shopping. And that will make me cry.

- STAY OUT OF CHILDREN'S STORES. If you are going shopping for yourself, stay away from the dang Gymboree stuff. I know there might be a sale, but you'll go in, drop a small fortune on weirdly coordinated apple clothing, and then feel guilty when you walk into an adult store because all of your money is gone. This is for you.

- Set a spending limit. It'll stop that awful buyer's remorse I used to get all the time (now I have no remorse. HA! Yes, I'll be here all week. Tip your waitress.) If you only want to spend $20 on a top, weed them out accordingly. Trust me, there are many tops in the proverbial sea. That $35 one does not need to belong to you if it does not belong in the budget. Good deals are to be found!!

- Eat something!! If you're in a mall, grab a pretzel and something with a little bit of protein so you're not all rainy-day-susan. Alot of time we're just rushing around and forget about it. Grab a smoothie and you can sip and shop. You'll have a better time, trust me.

K, that should be it for now. I use shopping as my 'me' time. At least once a month, I pass the duties off to my husband, kiss him and the baby goodbye, and head out on my own for a few hours. Not only is it because I love shopping, but I also love ADULT time, when the old Jae shakes off the dust and comes out to play, umbrella stroller not included. Remember when YOU were an adult? That was fun, wasn't it? Doing big people things! So try it, for yourself, just once, and tell me I totally haven't changed your opinion on the big 'S'. (That's shopping, not smoothie, although I could use a Mango-a-go-go today...)