In theory, I’m against buying brands for brands’ sake. The only barometer for whether or not something’s worth buying is whether or not you look and feel fabulous wearing it – at least, that’s what I preach. It’s not necessarily what I practice. Case(s)-in-point: These two designer dresses.
The polka-dot mini number is Gianfranco Ferre; a brand whose dresses retail for approximately $1000. This one – at around $500 – was a very generous gift from my mother, given to me only because I was too blinded by the brand to see the dress for what it was: Way. Too. Short. I donned it for a sorority formal in 2003, felt more slutty than sexy in it, and it’s been sitting in my closet ever since.
And so yesterday, I took a stand against holding onto brands for brands’ sake. I sold these two uber high-end dresses to Buffalo Exchange. They didn’t price them at anywhere near their original worth ($26 for the Ferre, $32 for the DVF), and I was more than okay with that; their tendency to lowball means I can actually afford their merch. Particularly when I have store credit to burn.
Ridding my closet of these dresses was more than an exercise of practicing what I preach. This act of rebellion against my inner Label Whore was a necessary contribution to the glorious world of resale, one that gives my fellow shoppers the chance to enjoy what I couldn’t. Karma, baby. Karma.
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I feel like I’m at an AA meeting when I read your blog — only maybe it should be called LWA since none of us are alcoholics. Well, I hope not anyway. When I quit my job last year I had no choice but to slow the speed at which I whipped my Visa card from my wallet, but I still had this problem — hanging on to crap I never wore in my closet because I had spend an absurd amount of money on it. A few weeks ago, I did the unthinkable (and believe it or not, it also included a DVF number)I just dumped it all into big garbage bags for charity.
You’re great, CJ. Thanks for making me not feel so alone;)
I just re-read my comment and noticed the horrendous grammar and misspellings. I can’t help it, I’m in bed and the keyboard is too far away from my brain.
I’m unfortunately guilty of that, especially in shoes.
Man, too many times have I bought stuff that doesn’t work just because it was “too good a deal to pass up.” Said stuff ended up making me feel fat/short/dorky — and then it ended up on Ebay. Now, I try to ask myself, “would I still buy this if it were made by F21 or Kathy Ireland?” If not, I have to put the darned thing down and run away.
thanks for being a pioneer! i have a pair of fugly theory capris/long shorts (not sure which one) that are too small and too weird to wear. one day, i’ll sell them too. donna
That’s brave of you! Thanks to your example, I went a sold a bunch of designer stuff to BE a few weeks ago. I was a bit lowballed on the price but I didn’t really mind – it just felt good to clear out my closet!
I commend you on this move!!!
I recently discovered Buffalo Exchange and started cleaning out my closet and selling all those pieces I spent lots of $$$ on but never really wore but swore I’d eventually wear them. It kinda stinks when they lowball you, but its at least some cash and a lot of satisfaction knowing my closet is a little less cluttered. I’ll be going to BE tomorrow to sell more clothes and purses that haven’t seen the light of day in a while….