Black Friday Finds - Part 1

Haven't had time to photograph everything I bought at the black Friday sales so I'm gonna have to feed them to you one by one. Thankfully, Old Navy had a good graphic of this coat on their website so I was able to just lift it for your viewing pleasure while my coat is still in bag on my bedroom floor (it been a long weekend).
I LOVE this coat!!! I love the soldier boy style of the buttons and the A-line shape and I know you can't see it but the burgundy colored lining on the inside is gorgeous. Every black Friday I buy a new coat at Old Navy because they are such great deals and I like to have a new style every season, this year I was specifically looking for something that I could wear over my dress to my company holiday party. Our party is going to be on the rooftop of the Thompson Hotel in Beverly Hills (I know super swanky) so it might get a bit chilly which means that the coat I wear might get more exposure than the dress and therefore has to be cute! I think this coat would also look really good with some tall boots and jeans or even ballet flats.

Original Price: $99.95
Black Friday Price: $39.95

Total Savings: 60%

Final Word: Its ok for it to get cold outside when you have something this fabulous to keep you warm.

While you were sleeping . . .

LeeAnn and I were standing outside Old Navy at 3am patiently waiting for the doors to open so we could get our shop on! What didn't turn out in this pic was the long line of people behind us who were also there to shop. We ended up scoring some really great deals on Black Friday (so yes, it was worth losing out on some sleep) and I will post them a little later. I took a picture of the clock in LeeAnn's car - thought we needed photographic proof that we were actually up at the ungodly hour of 3am.

Getting Ready to Shop!!!!

This is such an exciting time of year for someone like me! This is the week that leads up to Black Friday and Cyber Monday and as is the case with anything . . . preparation and research are the key to your shopping success! For this reason I am already hard at work forming a plan of attack for Friday morning because I am hoping to hit up more sales this year than ever before. I'm not huge into electronics so I probably won't be battling those insane Best Buy shoppers, but some of the stores on my list this year are: Nordstrom Rack, Target, Old Navy, Macy's, Bath and Body Works and Pier One.

Where are you guys shopping this year?

Michael Kors Artisan Flats

Remember when I said that if you can’t find a certain item you want at the Nordstrom sale in your size they will track it down for you somewhere in the world and ship it to you for free? Well these came in the mail last week!!!!! I have been in love with Michael Kors shoes for years, they are just soo exquisite and comfy at the same time. Being six feet tall; I almost always wear flats and Michael always produces some killer flats. The only problem with a Michael Kors shoe is that it comes with a Michael Kors price tag which is not soo cute - they are always at least $100 regularly priced. This particular shoe was featured in the May issue of Bazaar magazine in the color Sunset. I remember this because 1) I am just the kind of freak that remembers a great shoe in a fashion mag and 2) I wanted them soooo bad. Enter Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale. After I finished picking through the clearance shoes available in my own size I started browsing the shoe rack of the other sizes and that that is when I saw these bad boys in a metallic gold color. I told myself right then and there that I didn’t care how good the sale was, if they were available in my size I was getting them! Thankfully, my Nordstrom shoe helper was able to track them down in the Mission Viejo store and a couple days later they arrived at zero cost to me for the shipping and handling.

Final Word: Let Nordstrom foot the bill for your shipping, order your purchases in the store.

$12 Nordstrom Envelope Clutch

I think this clutch chose me, somewhere out there in purse heaven (which I truly believe exists) the purse gods guided me to this gem! I actually found it on the ground of the Council for Jewish Women Thrift Shop in West LA. I was headed to the check-out counter with my Betty Crocker Cookbook and it was laying there directly in my path. I have been wanting a white clutch for a while so I thought that instead of just stepping over it might be worth bending over to check it out. Boy am I glad I did! It was perfectly my style, so chic! I noticed right away that it was real leather and in immaculate condition, seriously, not one stain on the lining, I don't think the previous owner ever used it. Then I discovered the Nordstrom label, this is when I knew I hit the jack pot. In my head I'm like: So, let me get this straight - It's a super cute leather Nordstrom envelope clutch in mint condition for only $12? Soooo coming home with me! Just to prove what a deal this was I pulled some comps off Nordy's website. These are all Nordstrom brand clutches currently for sale, they range in price from $88 to $98. Not to be a gloating brat but I think my second hand clutch is way cuter than any of these and it was a fraction of the price.

$88 Nordstrom Clutch

$98 Nordstrom Clutch

$88 Nordstrom Clutch

New Nordstrom Clutch: $93 (average)
My second-hand, never been used before Nordstrom Clutch: $12

Total Savings: 88%

Final Word: Sometimes you find a good deal and sometimes a good deal finds you!

$18 Kenneth Cole

Here's another one of the items I got at the Nordstrom Sale. I wore it to work today and got more than one compliment. Meredith shot a pic of me in it (thanks M). How often do you find a designer dud for under 20 bucks? And this wasn't some Nordy Rack, been tried on by 16 different random people kind of items, this was hanging on a rack in at the regular Nordstrom at the Westside Pavilion. I really like the color, and the material is very soft too. I paired it with my new silver shoes. This isn't a Reaction by Kenneth Cole label by the way, this is a true blue Kenneth Cole New York label.
Original Price: $39.00
Sale Price: $18.20
Total Savings: 54%

$2 Vintage Betty Crocker

I LOVE shopping vintage because just like with my normal clearance shopping, it is all about the hunt mixed with a little luck. I especially love vintage housewares like dishes, bowls, servers etc., but I don't like it when the vintage stuff is more expensive than the new stuff - just really annoys me. So you can imagine my delight when I stumbled upon this old Betty Crocker Hostess Cookbook at a thrift shop in Century City last week. I was just browsing the books and the graphics of this one caught my eye immediately. I noticed the very 60's style on the front and then I noticed the title "Hostess Cookbook". I LOVE hosting! Seriously, I am like Monica on Friends (always the hostess) so I was sure there would be some fun ideas in there too.

I discovered that this book was published in 1967 (circa Mad Men) and I could just picture Betty Draper cooking up one of these meals for a dinner party with Don's work associates. Once I got home I tried to do a little research on the book to make sure I had gotten a good deal and I found this pic of Betty Draper in her kitchen and what is in the background? My Book! So thrilled to see that. I also found my book on Etsy (Mecca for vintage collectors), there were five copies of the book for sale all ranging from $7 to $15, again reaffirming that this was an awesome $2 purchase.

Food sure has evolved in the past 40 years and thank god, this book is all about the frozen and canned fruits and veggies and the processed foods. Some of the recipes actually call for dry potatoes out of the box and can we say jello moulds anybody? Below is a completely edible arrangement that they explain in detail how to make to serve as a center piece at your event. Seems kinda fun, but I don't think I have nearly enough patience to attempt it.

Silver Shoes

Picked up a few uber fabulous items at the Nordy's sale last night, here is the first installment of what I made off with (more to come).

Me Too 'Nadia Flat'

I have been on the look out for new silver flats for a while, (they just seem to go with so many outfits) so I just couldn't pass these up. Also, I love the Me Too brand because I always find their shoes to be very comfortable and to stand the test of time.Original Price: $88.95
Sale Price: $58.90
Total Savings: $30.05

Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale

I just can't wait to get some new shoes at Nordy's Half Yearly. The sale starts tomorrow and they always have so much to chose from. When Nordstrom throws a sale, they come real with the savings and their staff always delivers with excellent customer service too. Looking forward to cute shoes, handbags, accessories, and clothing! I'm getting so excited just thinking about it.

Final Word: If you can't find what you are looking for in your size ask a sales person, they will scour the whole country looking for it and send it to you at no cost for shipping.