J Crew Arrivals

I arrived home last night to two J. Crew boxes--reminders of my crazy shopping bender that has only made me redouble my resolve not to shop excessively this year. I won't stop shopping entirely. For one, I know my reliable winter shoes are few and far between and I will need to get another pair at some point. But I don't need any more of the default small items I buy because they seem practical (tights change an entire outfit and favorite colors don't stay in stores for long, pretty bras on ebay that are new and hugely reduced, cashmere cardigans on massive markdown, with one caveat that I'm watching at Club Monaco and will likely go on sale around August.) I apologize for that horrible sentence.

As for the purchases, most were very nice. The oatmeal cashmere cardigan may be my favorite--soft, subtly sparkly and it looks like it won't pill. Even Evan liked it (and he is not impressed by the number of cardigans I own). The gray cable cardigan that I nearly canceled turned out to be soft and drapey, not stiff as I'd feared (this one is better in real life). The olive green cardigan is nice but not as soft as I'd like (it's not scratchy but it pales in softness to the other two) and is a little boxy. Still, I like it and it is a keeper. The gifts are all lovely--one piece of jewelry in particular. And, no, I'm not keeping them. The bag is bigger than I'd thought and wanted. It will likely work for school but it is more of a tote and not as soft as I'd hoped. That said, I think it will come in useful. But one of the things I really want is a nice cross body bag and that will be an item I will save for--and will use as an incentive not to splurge on the wrong things. I know I want a soft bag but I have no idea which one it will be. Again, that's something to look at later.

As for my resolve, I was out yesterday with a couple of friends/former students. We ended up in a mall in LI (intention was to visit the Apple Store). While we were there, I thought I'd check out J. Crew's final sale section. Everything was 50% off, so I found an olive green v-neck cashmere sweater. I tried it on, it fit, and I draped it over my arm and headed to the register. Somehow, I thought the markdown price was $79.99 so it would be around $41 with tax. I thought that was pretty good. Now, I don't need a v-neck sweater. I rarely wear them and prefer crew necks (which are a lot harder to come across). I have six v neck cashmere sweaters (one in navy, one in green, one green argyle, one camel, two black--different weights) and rarely wear them. I have so many for two reasons--cashmere on deep markdown tempted me and, secondly, because BA lost my luggage once during January and I had to replace my sweaters as they were all at Heathrow for over a week in the middle of the winter cold--and sales. While I was standing waiting to pay, it hit me that I didn't need this sweater while one voice still urged me on as it was such a good deal. Then I looked at the price tag. It was actually $99, which would make it a shade over $52 with the markdown. The bad voice told me it was still a good deal but I did what I had to and walked it back over to the sale section. I didn't need it, my overstuffed closets don't need it and I hope it's a good omen for my willpower in the weeks and months to come. Of course, the real strength will be avoiding such triggers in the first place.