Scoring at Sample Sales

Note: picture and text heavy post!

Having family members in the garment (note: not fashion!) industry have made me privy to various sample sales over the years.  My first one was about a decade ago, and with each outing, I've gained a bit more knowledge on how to maximize the opportunity.  Hopefully this post will help anyone who's new to the experience!  The pictures to follow are based on this past weekend's BCBG Max Azria sale, but the experiences are pretty representative of typical/similar sales.

1. The announcement
I usually get an email from my cousin which I then pass onto my gal pals, but you can also find sample sale information online as well.  This probably goes without saying, but eat a hearty breakfast.  I thought that I'd be out the door in an hour or two.  We left almost 4 hours later.

The announcement says the sale starts at 9am.  Jerry dropped me off at 8:57 and drove off to find parking.  This is what the line looked like.

I actually managed to get in during the first wave.  After the building hits capacity they have to hold the line until folks from the first wave leave.  (When we left at 12:40, they weren't letting people in, even though the line was only about 10 deep.) Honestly, unless you're looking for something VERY specific (for example, 4 matching BM dresses in appropriate sizes) then you probably don't need to camp out.  I went to a James Perse sale a few hours after opening and there was still plenty of merchandise left. 

What some of these warehouses look like inside when they're not hosting sample sales.

2. No try-ons/knowing your size
Ladies, this is very common.  You're a 2 in one brand, a 6 in another.  You're a 7 shoe size here, but an 8 in another.  It helps to know what your general sizing is for that brand if the sale doesn't let you try on the clothing.  I went to a Laundry by Shelli Segal sale that allowed try-ons but the sale was outdoors in the parking lot, no rooms or partitions!  I wasn't appropriately dressed so I just guesstimated.  At the Barneys sale there was a partitioned communal dressing area, similar to Filene's Basement.  Over time, I've learned that the best outfit for going to sales are tights, a thin tank top, flats, and a cross-body purse.  At the BCBG sale they had a lot of security guards that were pretty anal about try-ons, but the ladies decided to beg for forgiveness rather than ask for permission, hehe.  Some girls have no shame and they just unabashedly just try on stuff.  I sneakily tried on one skirt for size, and then I matched it to other skirts.  

3.  The merchandise
My caveat to anyone who goes to these sales is that the merchandise is rather hit or miss.  I have gone to sales where I walked away with absolutely nothing because of 1. prices still too high, 2. items too damaged.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, I've scored some fantastic deals, including a $700 sweater for $20.  Jerry once scored a $1500 suit for $300 at a Barney's Warehouse sale.  Prices will vary from sale to sale.  Generally, you should pay for what you think the garment is worth to you.  Below was the price list.  It was kind of confusing because they had brands within brands.  Also, I did not see any shoes, but there were no prices listed for purses. 

Sales are a great time for me to stock up on good quality plain short and long sleeved tees that are good for layering or wearing over a sports top.  They are usually priced $1-$5 which is perfect, because paying anything more than $10 for a plain tee, made of the softest jersey or not, is too pricey in my book.  The tees last me until the next sale.  These were all $5 each, except for the purple one on the left, which was $10. 

Hits:

This sale was pretty large.  There was a lot of merchandise but not a lot of aisle room.  The purse section was CRAZY.  I liked that the merchandise ran the gamut from size 0 to as high as 12.  In addition some parts of the warehouse was reallllly dark, so later on when I was sorting my items I was like...this was so not the color that I thought it was!  What I liked about this BCBG sale was that they gave everyone plastic bags to hold their stuff.  Some sales won't give you anything so you'll have to haul it yourself or be lucky enough to have a really patient significant other to haul it for you.  

Misses:

Going clock-wise,  here are some of the damaged goods.  If you REALLY like an item, you can assess what kind of stain it is and risk it.  You'll pretty much never get grease stains out (sewing machines are oiled, hence the occasional grease stains), but you can probably risk it with dirt, make up stains or chalk marks.  (Many samples have chalk marks all over them.)  The above coat was cute, but I wasn't sure if I could clean such a creamy colored coat.  I looked ALL OVER for some cozy sweaters...but unfortunately the majority of them were ripped :(.  I was also hoping to score some dresses...but again, many of the zippers in my dress size were broken!  Boo.  So the colored tape you see above basically raises a red flag that something is wrong with the garment, whether it be a tear, a broken zipper, or a stain.  Being that this sale was a hodgepodge of samples, irregulars, and unsold or returned merchandise, not all damaged clothing will have tape.  So just keep a careful eye!  Finally, this is just random, but I had no idea that Max Azria owned the Miley Cyrus brand.  I have seen To The Max branding, but another new one to me was Tex by Max Azria.  They also had a very minuscule men's selection.  Jerry found a men's dress shirt for $10.  

4. Assessment
At sample sales, you don't want to spend too much time examining your selections in the aisles.  I like to just grab stuff off the hangers, stuff my bag, and move on.  For this sale, it took me 2.5 hours to haul about 3 bags of stuff.  Jerry staked out a space for me to sort.  I probably pulled over 100 garments.  Some items I pulled the same size 3 times without realizing it, and other items I pulled different sizes just in case.  Below is the madness that was the sorting area.

I edited the 100+ items down to 18 which I eventually brought home with me.  Totaled $155, not too shabby, considering what the original prices of some of these items were!  

 $178 for that skirt retail, can you say rip-off??

These skirts were a steal at $10 a pop.   They fit perfectly, the length is work appropriate, and were in solid condition- the zippers worked, no tears or rips.  As you can see, one of them came from Dillards, which isn't a very popular chain in CA- there's only a few storefronts.  The pants below were $15 and $10.  They need like half a foot chopped off...errr hemmed.  Boo for being short.

 I had no idea why this shirt was priced in euros.

 

I guess Macys had a hard time selling this shirt...how many times did they need to put it on clearance??

Whew, what a post!  Sample sale shopping does seem like it takes a lot of effort, but it's worth it if you are like me, and you don't have time to go shopping all the time.  Sometimes, it's nice to have everything in one place rather than walking from store to store.  If you're not particularly picky and you like finding treasures among trash, try it out.  Happy (sample sale) shopping!

The Forever Home: Doggies

Before I fill your computer screen with cuteness:

I had an especially tough week at work.  Even though it was a 4 day work week, the to-do pile was so high that I remotely logged in on Monday to catch up.  (I generally try to leave work at work...but sometimes I just can't.)  Then I had to travel to San Jose on Tuesday/Wednesday for a conference.  I don't do much traveling for my job, so I was looking forward to it since it meant that I was able to squeeze in a quick dinner with my in-laws.  The conference was exciting but draining at the same time.  Afterward, my brain found it hard to process anything, even some light and fluffy blogs and gossip pages felt like too much effort to read.  I had back to back to back calls, webinars and mtgs on Thurs, so I fell behind again.  Friday was my catch-up day...but no matter what I crossed off my list, there were 2 other things to replace them.  Okay I'm done whining. :)  It was just one of those weeks where my brain got so fried that I couldn't even find enjoyment in watching TV or reading fun things on the internet.  Luckily this weekend has been filled with lots of fun so far and after a two great nights of sleep in a row, I should be mentally refreshed and ready for the first week of March.  Okay, back to the regularly scheduled program, doggies!

Jerry and I have dog fever.  We want dog(s) so badly but we know that our condo isn't really suited for pets.  Except I guess cats, but we're not cat people, and I'm allergic anyway.  Our neighbors have dogs of all sizes, but they seem so cooped up and unhappy.  So we agreed that we'd seriously look into it once we moved into our forever home.  Here are some cute options:

I want a Shiba Inu!  This breed first came to my attention when this story about a smiling shiba inu and this other story about the shiba inu puppy cam both went viral.  I'm gonna call him/her Mochi.  (Yes, not only do I already have our childrens' names picked out, I also have picked out dog names.  Totally on top of irreverent things.)

Jerry wants a red Labrador retriever.   I thought the name "Azuki" aka red bean would be cute, but Jerry thinks that dog names should be limited to 1 or 2 syllables.  Yes, I realize that I'm choosing puppy monikers based after food.  This probably stems from college when my old roommates and I named our fish Sushi.  (N, remember that!?!)

Husky!!!  I heart huskies.  They are so fluffy and cute.  A guy in our complex had a husky, and every time we'd go for a late night run, we'd crane our necks to catch a glimpse of his husky that would be chilling on the balcony.  The husky owner moved, so no more glimpses...but I hope it was a move to a house with a nice big yard!  FYI- no Japanese cuisine inspired names yet for this husky. 

I am almost excited to have doggies as I am to have kids!  But ahhh...must be patient.

The Forever Home: Fancy Display Tables

I'm in love with this table/display unit called Shaped Console.  It's from Brocade Home.  

Here's the version in "coffee":

I prefer the white color over coffee.  That would mean that I'd have to paint the wall or have fun wallpaper for the white to contrast against.  I wouldn't put dishes on it...maybe display interesting things from our travels?

When His Pet Butterfly Betrayed Him and Sold His House, Billy Wept

Went to a friend's birthday party and learned this new game- it's a hybrid of Telephone and Pictionary.  I laughed so hard that I had tears coming out of my eyes.  My tummy was sore from all the belly laughs!

Basically everyone gets the same number of papers as players.  You number them.  Each person writes down a phrase- could be a sentence or a single word.  Then everyone hands their entire stack to the person either clockwise or counterclockwise.  The next person interprets the phase with the drawing, places the first page with the original phrase to the bottom of the stack, and hands the stack to the next person.  The 3rd person then has to interpret the drawing by writing down a phrase.  The game keeps going until the stacks go through all the players.

As you can see, the more "unique" the phrase, the more belly laughs!  We had some unoriginal phrases such as "Sleeping Beauty" and "The Big Fish Eat The Little Fish" which were pretty easy to draw/interpret.  This is a wonderful idea for an icebreaker/party game at your next gathering/meeting, esp if people don't know each other that well or you have limited space.  I seriously want to throw another get-together so I can play this game again. :)

Listening To: Natasha Bedingfield- Little Too Much

I stumbled upon the trailer for Something Borrowed and at the end of the clip, a song by Natasha Bedingfield plays.  It's called Little Too Much, and it's a really catchy song.  I've already played it 5 times in a row this morning, let's see how many times I can get away with playing it this weekend.  Jerry isn't a particularly a happy camper when I discover a "new-to-me" song because I tend to play it over and over again and it drives him nuts.     

Side note: I'm excited for this movie to come out.  I've read every single one of Emily Giffin's books.  I read a lot of chick lit, but her writing style isn't very silly and cheesy when compared to other books (lookin' at you, Shopaholic series!). 

Obsessed VS Over It

A popular feature in many magazines that I read consists of a section where the editors list things that they are totally obsessed with or completely over it.  Other versions include celebrities that are really hot or now just plain gross.  You guys know what I mean right?  Well here's my current list!

Obsessed:

39 Clues series.  My nephew introduced me to this book over the holidays and I can't get enough of them!  I'm currently on book #9.  I kind of wish there were more than 11 books total but I guess they have to cater to the attention span of kids nowadays, since books now have to compete with video games and THE INTERNET.  Great news is that a second series is coming out...bad news is that they are rolling them out slower than molasses with the first book coming out 8/11 and the final book coming out 3/13.  Boo.  The awesome thing about being a Nancy Drew fan in the 90s was that the original 56 books were completed before I was born.  

Furikake party mix.  This stuff is so addicting!  I made some for my family potluck over the weekend and plan on making another batch for a friend's birthday party.  

Dine LA.  The last time Dine LA rolled around, I didn't participate because the menus didn't seem appealing.  This time around we went 3 times!  The Bazaar > Cobras & Matadors > Ruth's Chris.  Links go to my Yelp reviews.  In summary: I probably won't go back to Ruth's Chris again since there are other steakhouses in LA to try.  Cobras and Matadors is good, but now that I know the Dine LA menu price...I wouldn't want to pay full price there.  The Bazaar-  I am definitely going there for the tasting menu someday!  And I'm planning on going to the afternoon tea next month.  Yum, I can't wait.  That picture above is the jicama wrapped guacamolé from The Bazaar, the single most tasty thing that I ate throughout my Dine LA experience!

Speak Now.  I received Taylor Swift's album for xmas but was unable to listen to it for a few days since I didn't have to drive to work.  One AM commute to a press event in Porter Ranch later, I was hooked!!!  I've listened to the album dozens of times since.  The only track that I'm not a fan of is Dear John, and my favorite is Long Live.  Such a lovely song. :)

Anthony Bourdain.  I'm especially loving this all-star season of Top Chef, and one of the first things I do after each episode is read Anthony Bourdain's blog entries.  Totally all sorts of win!  Honorable mention for whoever transcribes Eric Ripert's video blogs.  I can't explain it, you just gotta watch the videos and then read the transcripts! 

Over it:

Getting pregnant the second you get married.  As soon as the ink dried on our marriage certificate my family immediately started putting enormous pressure on me to get pregnant.  Only one of my cousins has defended me and said that there's no rush for me.  I really appreciated that.  My parents and Jer's family has been in the middle, not really stating either way, so I'm glad for that as well.  There are a lot of unknowns and unfulfilled tasks/goals (hello, we are still without a dining room table!) in my life now and I'd rather not bring a baby into this world until I'm ready to make some sacrifices.  In all fairness, my baby-crazy family cares about me, and are just too excited for me.  No worries though...I don't plan on waiting too long!  I already have a good list of names going. :)

Shopping sprees at Michaels.  Even before I got engaged, I used to visit Michaels multiple times a week with a 50% coupon in one hand...and Jerry in my other hand with a 50% coupon in his hand.  Those days are long gone, especially now that the wedding is over.  I realized that I've become a crafty hoarder and I need to make stuff with what I buy.  My start is pictured above. 

 

 

Earphones in general.  Up until maybe a year or so ago, I used to listen to a lot of music via earphones.  I've weaned myself off of the earbuds and haven't used them in many months.  I guess it just doesn't appeal to me anymore.  I prefer to run without them, and it's definitely liberating now to get in a good workout at the gym sans annoying electronic junk!  I saw this person at my gym with a cell phone, an ipod, and an ipad.  And she was fiddling with all the above at the same time...why are you at the gym if you are not going to workout???  At least her thumbs are getting in some exercise. :P

Angry Birds.  Enough said. 

Photography.  My interest in photography seems to have declined in the last year or so.  I came to this realization very recently as I was uploading pictures and video from Thanksgiving onto my computer earlier tonight.  T'giving was so many months ago!  I used to NEVER be that person! :(  In the past, I never understood how people could go half a year without emptying their memory card.  Now I know...it's just not a big deal.  The whole process of editing, uploading, and documenting pictures have been very stressful to me in the past (only Jerry sees this side of me).  I deleted all my photography google reader subscriptions one by one, the content overwhelmed me.  I don't look at Facebook photo albums if there are hundreds of pictures in the same album (esp if they are mostly repetitive- I could never be the person that uploads 5 variations of the same posed shot.  I envy people who can upload files straight from their camera to their facebook album.  My editing process is much more rigorous, but I can't help it, I'm a control freak!)  Anyways, hopefully I'll find a nice medium that is somewhere in between being obsessed with documenting everything, and apathy, which is what I am feeling now.  My next big project is finishing up the documentation of our wedding.  The life event that keeps creating work...ahem....giving, haha.    

11 for 2011: Beat My Old 10k Official Best

I've run in four official 10k races in the last two years.  Jerry is a pretty avid runner and has participated in many 10ks.  In fact, today he just ran the Firecracker 10k in Chinatown for the 6th year!  As for myself, the Redondo Beach Superbowl 10k is the most consistent race that I participate in.  It's a festive event with a decent course (decent = less hills...I'm talking to you, Firecracker 10k!).  I've done Redondo 3 times now, and the Manhattan Beach 10k once.  I would have liked to run the MB 10k more in the past, but in 2008, we were at the Miramar Air Show, and in 2010, we were on our honeymoon.

One of the things that we promised to each other that we'd do after tying up loose wedding ends was to get back to "workin' on our fitness."  Jerry decided that he would train for the Pasadena Triathlon in March, and I wanted to beat my previous 10k times and achieve a personal best.  

My times in the past were: 
RB 2009- Finish 1:16:12.5 Pace 12:17
MB 2009- Finish: 1:22:32 Pace 13:17
RB 2010- Finish 1:17:11.4 Pace 12:27

And here's how I did for the RB 2011-
Finish 1:13:57 Pace 11:56

Yay!  I was so proud of myself.  They also had mile markers with a digital timer along the course, so I was super stoked to see that my pace from mile 3 to mile 4 was 10.5 minutes!  (I should have been tired and slow halfway...but I guess I caught my second wind!)  Of course I lost all the ground I gained earlier on the last mile (mile 5 includes that hill you see Jerry coming up on, which was full of SUCK), but it was a good mental boost to know that I'm very capable of running faster than what I think I can.  Jerry told me that running is mostly mental, and I definitely have to agree.  With a better attitude about running, and as long as I stay consistent when it comes to working out and eating healthy, I surely have plenty of room for improvement.

Our next race is the Mud Run, but I think our goal for that one is to just finish.  I really want to run the MB 10k this year, and maybe even try my hand at Firecracker next year, so here's to achieving more personal bests! 

2 down, 9 to go!

11 for 2011: Watch a Movie on the Big Screen

Jerry hadn't been to a drive-in movie theater since he moved to LA, so we headed to the Pacific Theaters Vineland Drive-In over the weekend.  (The one he used to go to as a kid is now a Walmart, how crappy!)  It's minutes away from where I grew up, and I never knew it was there until about 5 years ago!  I had been eyeballing the list all month (it changes every Friday).  What is really neat is that if you call the number, the recording will give you the exact playing times for each movie.  We found out that on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, not only can you watch a doubleheader, but they'll replay the first movie again!  So if you time it correctly, you can pretty much watch 3 movies for $8.50 pp.

Which is exactly what we did.  I made sure that I wouldn't fall asleep by grabbing 2 samples of Lee's coffee from the market, and we brought LARGE sizes of boba milk tea AND boba green tea.  I rarely ever upgrade my drink to a large size unless we're going splitsies, but I knew that I had to take drastic measures if I was going to stay up 4 hours past my bedtime.  :P

We ended up watching No Strings Attached, 15 minutes of Little Fockers, The Fighter, and The Mechanic.  It was a bit tough to watch 3 movies in a row, but I think it would have been worse if we were in an actual theater (seriously, how do movie hoppers do it??).  It was nice to sit back, put my feet up, and get fresh air/visit the restroom without squeezing through an aisle of tangled legs and feet.  My eyes didn't feel tired since we parked further back, and I actually preferred the lack of surround sound- Jerry had a portable FM radio which we used instead of the car radio.  In case you're curious, the only movie that was worth its money was The Fighter.  Christian Bale was excellent, and I love how Amy Adams is expanding her roles.  This is probably the first time in years that I will have seen an Oscar nominated movie...before the Oscars.  No Strings Attached was as fluffy as expected...and The Mechanic had Jason Statham in it- all action, no substance.  (We <3 Jason Statham for different reasons.)

A random thought: we had our radio frequency set to the start of the next movie, but the credits for Green Hornet were still running...and Jay Chou was rapping.  In Chinese.  I was probably the only person in the whole lot thinking that he should go back to making this kind of music instead of rapping. 

1 down, 10 to go! 

A New Icebreaker

In my capacity as a student leader in HS, a community organizer post college, and now an organizing trainer, I've facilitated and participated in my share of icebreakers.  They tend to blend together, but yesterday's icebreaker really struck a chord in me. 

It was really simple.  We all had to go around the room and name one thing that we think no one in the room has ever done before.  If someone has done it, they'll raise their hand, and you'll have to come up with another one.  It was a fantastic and fun way to get to know everyone outside of their "work-shell."  Having done this activity twice (I had to participate in both sessions, while almost everyone else only attended one), it got me thinking that I really have not done anything all that unique or crazy.  Well, crazy-to-me. 

Here were some responses from my peers:
I ate a scorpion.
I ate a toucan. (We learned that the beak is hollow)
I cooked tarantulas in a restaurant kitchen in Phnom Phen and served them.  (He proceeded to tell us what they tasted like.  Cheese!!  Ewwww!!!)
I drank champagne with Maya Angelou. (How could I top that with "Mila Kunis asked me if this seat was taken?" True story, happened in college.)
I ran for political office in New Mexico.
I almost drowned in the Colorado River while kayaking.
I spent a year backpacking in _____ (name a country that you most likely wouldn't see a Travelzoo Top 20 deal for).
I went to the Soviet Union 3 times (well, no one can do that anymore...)
I played ____ (insert musical instrument) and performed in _____ (famous venue).
Etc.

Here was my morning response:
"I climbed Half Dome." 
A guy raises his hand. 
"I ate at Club 33 in Disneyland."
4 people raised their hands!
"Okay fine, I went snorkeling in Fiji."
Boring, but whatever, no one raised their hands.

Afternoon:
"I've been to the Racetracks in Death Valley."
My coworker raised his hand, grrr.  We then proceed to tell everyone how awesome the Racetrack is.
"I have been to Canada 7 times."
A girl raises her hand.
"I've hugged a kangaroo in Sydney."
The guy at my table raises his hand.
"Fine, I went SNORKELING IN FIJI."
My colleague: "Well, Jeannie can say that she's gone 27 years without eating a frozen dinner." (I shared this fact over lunch)

The only time that I raised my hand for someone else was when a colleague mentioned that she had auditioned and participated in the Vagina Monologues in college.

I guess maybe there were other unique things that I had done that my colleagues hadn't, but it didn't really come to mind at the time.  Anyways, it was a really neat icebreaker and it's inspired me to make more of an effort to try new things out of my comfort zone!

What would you have said during the icebreaker?

I Feel Awkward When...

*People who I used to be close to now act cold to me.  Awkward...because I feel the fake-niceness when we're in public.
*People I know go through something negative.  How often do you bring it up and ask them how they are doing?  Or should you give them space and not talk to them for a while?  Would it be inappropriate to talk about something completely unrelated and totally downplay the situation in efforts to cheer them up?
*I get solicited for proofreading and the writing is just terrible- very basic and elementary.  And grown-ups don't take constructive criticism very well...
*Someone asks me if they bought me a gift.  No, not if I received a gift that they had bought.  Rather, they aren't sure if they bought anything in the first place and would like for me to confirm.  Faux pas on all levels.
*When people ask me multiple times to remind them to bring me a gift they had bought me.  Unless you're grandma with memory problems, I don't think it's appropriate of me to chase after my own present again and again.
*Someone on a higher level than me spells my name blatantly wrong.  Should I just not bother correcting them?   
*People who choose to be unemployed because they didn't like where they worked and are looking for something better, and in the interim, they make snide remarks about how wonderful it must be for you at your new job.  At they do it to you at a wedding.  In front of other guests.  And you awkwardly try to diffuse the attitude by brushing off your new job like it's nothing, but really, you actually worked your butt off for it and are quite happy.  Is it worth it to show confidence in front of other people who are Debbie Downers?
*People who whine about not having money, and then they brag about spending money on something that's non essential or beyond their means, and you're stuck there fake smiling and nodding at what a wonderful purchase it was.
*People who whine about not having money, but they still spend $4 on their morning coffee, $8 for their lunch, and $10 for dinner takeaway because "I don't like cooking for 1."  So they'd rather spend for 3?
*The same people short the group bill every time...for the last decade.  Everyone knows it's them, but no one wants to say anything, so people awkwardly reach twice for their wallet throw in more money to cover the difference, while the bill-shorters just pretend to be oblivious to what's going on.
*Someone attributes my success to pure luck.  And it's very awkward to explain to people that it's actually hard work because some people only hear what they want to hear.   
*I purchase or plan something pricey and fun...and I can't really share it with many people because I know that they are sensitive about money, and will not be happy for me, but rather will make comments about how lucky I am.  I have continuously been employed since I was 15 and have been saving for retirement since I was 21.  Money didn't grow on any of MY trees...But how to explain that to people who still depend on their parents or loans to fund their lifestyle?  There are so few people left in this world who are genuinely happy for others.  I can probably count the ones I am friends with all on my left hand.   

Okay maybe some of these things also annoy me in addition to making me feel awkward.  :)   What makes you feel awkward?  I guess anything that involves finances and gifts makes me feel a bit uncomfortable.  If only I could go back to the days when splitting your pants open during recess in front of the entire 5th grade while doing a Power Ranger kick was embarrassing.  Life's just not that simple anymore.