Score!

On Sat Spouse & I did a little shopping.  I needed a baby gift for some clients/friends who recently had their 1st child.  Found a great gift for a great price at HomeGoods.

I also needed some shoes.  I was looking for something not as dressy as a hard sole dress shoe, but not as casual as a Sketcher shoe.  A middle-of-the-road shoe is just what I need for the Dockers-style pants I wear to work most days.

1 of the stores we looked in was the Bass outlet/factory store.  I'm a rather picky shopper and never buy anything that isn't at least on sale, if not on clearance, so I was delighted to find not 1 but 2 pairs of shoes I liked in my size on clearance.

On the left is an updated wingtip in black with a grey plaid inset.  On the right is a tan saddle shoe with dark brown suede.  I normally wear size 10 but these were a little snug so wound up getting size 10 1/2.  They fit great and are very comfortable.

The shelf label claims the "regular price" was $160. for each pair, but were on "clearance" for $29.99.  That's more than 80% off.  While I'm skeptical that these shoes ever actually sold for $160. I felt that $29.99 was a very, very good price for these shoes.  Score!

So I bought both pairs.  I figure I'll wear the black ones with my navy and grey pants and with jeans, and I'll wear the tan ones with my various shades of khaki pants.

Bargain hunting

I am definitely NOT a clothes snob.  I don't need designer labels or embroidered logos.  $78 for a long sleeve shirt is too much for me.  I usually buy and wear clothes from Old Navy and The Gap outlet stores.

But once in a while I treat myself to some really well-made clothing when I can get a good deal on it. Yesterday I visited the Polo Ralph Lauren outlet store with a Friends & Family 30% off coupon and looked at the sale items and clearance racks to maximize the value.  (The 30% off coupon is good on ALL merchandise, regardless of whether or not its on sale or clearance.)

I ended up with 2 long sleeve shirts (I'll put away until fall) and 3 short sleeve shirts and a belt (not pictured).

The OUTLET price (not the retail price) for all 6 items was $334.  Since the items were all on sale and then they applied the 30% off coupon, my total was $139.  That's right - I saved almost $200 by spending $139! 

As if that wasn't enough, I stopped in at a used furniture and furnishings store afterward (it was my day off), where I saw these 2 Ty Wilson framed posters (circa early 1990s) for $130 for the pair.

I liked the size and the simplicity of the pair, and thought they'd look terrific in the guest room we are going to redecorate in the Hollywood Regency style.  I snapped these photo and texted them to Spouse.  He agreed that $130 was too much.  I offered to see if the vendor would negotiate on them, especially if they've been there awhile.  The result was $80 for the pair, so I bought them!

It was a banner day for bargain hunting!